Donut Modalities | Relating to mode Without referring To substance |
O
ne of the purely photographic characteristics which serves to distinguish the craft from other modes of two-dimensional representation is the control leveraged over the plane of focus. An exercise I employ in my Science and Technology of Photography class is for students to create images that are more about the out-of-focus areas than about the focused area. I call this exercise “Good Bokeh,” and it is generally done with a longer focal length lens and a wide open aperture. The relationships between camera settings, subject distances and background separation are juggled to produce the desired effect.
Taking this concept to the extreme, I have been experimenting with making images that are intentionally defocused across the entire image. This is a wonderful exploration of impressionistic abstraction and provides many surprises. I suggest you try it for yourself. Point your camera at a promising subject and slowly articulate the lens throughout its focus range while observing the result. Detect that position where the resultant image is most interesting and release the shutter. Not only does this open up new avenues of creative expression, it also provides much insight into the intrinsic characteristics of various lens designs.
“There isn't a single person or landscape or subject which doesn't possess some interest, although it may not be immediately apparent. When a painter discovers this hidden treasure, other people are immediately struck by its beauty.” - Pierre Auguste Renoir
