We have a Hitachi digital camera - it's a 10 Megapixel Camera and was wondering how you can take pics with a blurry background but concentrates on faces ? I've tried the macro setting but cant find an y options for shutter times etc etc
Does anyone have a similar camera and know how to do it ?
Cheers
You need to have a higher aperture (actually it's a lower aperture but the number is higher ) works like your iris in your eye
Problem with this is you have to shoot with a slower shutter speed or higher iso to allow enough light in so it's exposed correctly
cpjitservices (12th May 2011)
As above. If it's a compact you probably won't have too many options for aperture or shutter speed or even a manual focus mode in case it auto focuses on wrong subject
cpjitservices (12th May 2011)
theres a few options like ISO and have set it to the highest option with Macro turned on but can't find any settings to do with aperture or shutter speeds.
oooh this is my field. let me know which model it is and I'll see if I can google a manual and see what settings you have available.
Are you after head and shoulders, full body or just head shots?
Actually, you need a lower numbered aperture for a lower depth of field - something like 3.5 / 5
You want your ISO as low as possible (the higher number increases brightness in dark situations, but also degrades quality).
Do you have a dial on top of the camera to select the mode? If so, do you have an 'A' or 'Av' mode?
I hate to say, but you've got that the wrong way round. You need a big aperture (A low number) and ideally an DSLR with a prime lens which goes down to f1.8 or f1.4 to get the best results.Originally Posted by gaz350
For example:
Taken with a aperture of f5.6
Taken with a aperture of f14
The technical term for it is Depth of Field. A wide aperture (low number) gives you a shallow depth of field, where as a small aperture (high number) gives you a large depth of field.
Last edited by maniac; 12th May 2011 at 01:15 PM.
Zooming in will reduce the camera depth of field, which is why you should manual focus on a long zoom.
distance from the subject will have an impact too which might be the way to go if you have limited control on the camera.
If your only options are ISO, zoom and focus, set as low an ISO as you can, this should force the camera to open up the aperture but may also force it to use a slower shutter speed, then get as far away from the subject you want in focus on as you can while still being able to frame the shot as you want it with the maximum zoom you can get.
My Camera model is HDC-1087E, if you could help that wold be great if you could find out that'd be great - and any combination of those shots would be great!!
cromertech (12th May 2011)
Hi Chris,
It took some digging but I eventually found a manual (in English too!) It does suggest you can have control of all the settings mentioned above as there is a "user setting" under "Scene mode" in the camera set up menu (second button down on the back) but it doesn't elaborate on how. There's also a "Program AE" setting which is an aperture priority mode but I think on this model it's an automatic option.
If you pm me your e.mail I'll send you the manual. P27 shows you where in the menu to find this stuff. when you have the manula open, read the below:
The settings you need to try and achieve are lowest iso possible for image quality, 80 on this camera, this will also (as mentioned above) force the camera to open up the aperture (make the f number smaller) there's an auto, turn it off by selecting 80
the lowest f number (aperture) you can get f2.9 is the lowest you can get on this model at min zoom, f5.2 at the long end of the zoom, I'd suggest midway for portraits. you'll need to experiment with the different scene modes to see which gives you most control. in the "user settings" mode i'd thik the rocker on the back of the camera might control the f number and shutter speed, and there should be a gauge somewhere which will need to be in the middle to get the right exposure.
set the camera to mid zoom and then use your feet to compose the shot. get as close as you can once the camera is set as this will help with your blurry back ground.
then take some pics and see how it turns out.
one thing you could try, put your subject in front of a plain background ( a whiteboard? a wall?). if you put some distance between them and the background, say a couple of meters, and are within a couple of feet, the background should be fairly out of focus and won't have any detail anyway. Or if this is for personal stuff, keep as much distance as possible between the subject and it's surroundings.
you'll be a bit limited with the controls available to you but the manual should help you find the settings to help.
I'll await your e.mail address
D
cpjitservices (12th May 2011)
The thanks is for the link for the service manuals site. What a great resource!!
oh, looks like you found the manual while i was typing
cpjitservices (12th May 2011)
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