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I work to get a blur in the background and foreground items that are not the subject. I believe that focus on the subject and blur are important parts of my photography. Everything appears in focus from the eye, however it seems to be in focus because you are looking at it; the things you are not looking at are not in focus. This is a simplistic explanation but I feel that the foreground and background blur better represent how we look at things because we cannot focus on everything. So this is a rule that I use and will occasionally break.
Obviously the subject in this photo is mildly backlit and her eyes show natural shadow. I think this photo may seem better to me because I know what Elizabeth looks like and don’t need the visual reference of her face to see the devious eye behind the cat.
I also make it a point to try not to crop out parts of a person’s head. I notice that often videographers will concentrate on the subject's eyes and cut off the top of their head. I try to get the whole head in my shot, and that sometimes results in more clutter in the rest of the photo.
This photo was made with one of my favorite legacy lenses: the Hasselblad 150mm f4. This lens has a long focus throw and I have a handle that does not seem to help me at all. I believe that because I can finely focus the lens, I will often take much too long to find the focus. I also can’t help but be insecure about my focus choice in a way that autofocus does not allow.
I feel you have to trust autofocus or not. With my legacy lenses I can use focus peaking and focus assist. It may help to hit the focus right-on, but it also introduces anxiety that you can alway get sharper and sharper.
It is hard to express what a fantastic lens the Hasselblad is. This was made for a medium format camera, and has really high-end optics that I can focus on my digital sensor. Although this lens has coating, I believe it is not as sharp as a modern lens when you shoot into the light. I love that the lens is 40 years old and still great gear.
150mm Hasselblad f4, built in the mid- 1970s.
Cats: https://www.flickr.com/gp/timmwheat/QZ8R93
Flowers: https://www.flickr.com/gp/timmwheat/8531Z5
Mom and I. This photo was made by my father, Lowell Wheat with his Olympus OM2.
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