Live music and the blurring of lights

Last night I was fortunate enough to be given free tickets to the U2 concert. While I couldn’t say that I actually listen to their music, they played all the hits to ensure that every fan and concert goer had a great time.

Turning the lights off at the 360 U2 Tour

The music was stops, but i couldn’t help thinking about photography the whole time. I found Bono to be incredibly photogenic, every action made was an image to be captured, inspiring awe with each movement. He worked his video cameras well, always found his light and remained animated from beginning to end. No wonder everyone in the audience had their cameras out the entire concert.

At one point of the concert, the 360 stadium turned all it’s lights off and Bono asked everyone to whip their mobiles out and to wave them about. I shot the image above with an iPhone 3G, hence the low quality, but you get the picture. The result, creating the milky way!

The video visuals on top of the stage then transformed to show bokeh lights! Again, shot with an iPhone 3G, but I was pretty stoked to witness some bokeh at a major concert:

Video visuals at the U2 360 concert, ANZ Stadium, Sydney. Snapped on an iPhone 3G - December 14, 2010

A pre-made visual of bokeh lights appeared on the circular screens, one of the features of the stage. The bokeh light visuals were used to frame Bono as he performed on stage, creating a magical concert atmosphere. It was a spectacular view from the stands watching the moshpit people waving their lights about.

 

Happy Snapping,

P

Filed under: Night Bokeh, Personal, 2010, 360 stadium, 360 tour, bokeh, concert, December 14, iPhone 3G, milky way, photography, Sydney, u2

Dog Stencil – Video Animation by Pahnl

If you thought bokeh photography was amazing, you will probably be blown away as much as me after watching Pahnl‘s, “Nowhere Near Here” video.

Follow the adventures of this curious canine throughout the city streets of Oxford; chasing cats, being chased by cats, he’s finding his place in a dog eat dog world (had to be said).

Using over 200 stencils and 300 hours in the making (long exposures!), the result speaks for itself. The sharp detailing of the stencils work well to create intricate movements and add a real sense of character to the animation – watching this little rover waiting for his turn at the lights, having some doggy relief by a well sought out light pole, running through the concrete jungle of Oxford and having a howl to temporarily mark his night.

Set to Röyksopp’s, “What Else Is There?“, the cinematic brilliance created by Pahnl has made me feel a part of this little terriers life. The focus on the terrier and use of Bokeh to blur out the bustling night around him allows for you to be taken on the journey.

The complete set of stills from the shoot can be purchased too 🙂

Technical Aspects

Camera Used: Nikon D90

Lenses: Nikkor 35mm, 18-55 and 50-200mm.

Feeling inspired?

P

Filed under: Night Bokeh, Video, bokeh, bokehlicious, dog, light painting, long exposure, night photography, photography, stencil, video, vimeo

Bokehlicious Portraits – 10 shining bokeh examples

From pool tables to insects, the limits of bokeh are endless. One of delightful uses of the style can be best seen in portraits/self-portraits.

Bokeh portraits pull the focus onto the subject, while also filling in the negative space with a visual feast of colour and light. Check out these great examples of bokeh photographers that have the style down pat.

Some Kid and Mr. Bokeh by anton khoff using an Attribution 2.0 Generic Licence

A thought for a reason! by  green umbrella using an Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic Licence

Self-Portrait with Bokeh by evocateur using an Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic Licence

Bokeh Breakfeast by DaveNeukirch using an Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic Licence

What to my wondering eyes should appear … by James Jordan using an Attribution-NoDerivs 2.0 Generic Licence

bokeh!! by suez92 using an Attribution 2.0 Generic Licence

Day Two Hundred Forty Two by Dustin Diaz using an Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 2.0 Generic Licence

Happy Bubble Bokeh! by reid.gilman using an Attribution-NonCommercial 2.0 Generic Licence

So Long, Lonesome. 025/365 by Lambholic ▲ using an Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 2.0 Generic Licence

DSC_0793 by DeadGoat using an Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic Licence

Happy Snapping!

P

Filed under: Portraits, bokeh, bokehlicious, examples, inspiration, photography, portrait, self-portraits

Warm Nights and Fairy Lights

One of the great things about warmer nights is getting to spend some time outdoors listening to the creepy crawlies under some subdued moonlight or fairy lights. I had the pleasure of enjoying watermelon at a friends place with gorgeous miniature lanterns that were a gift from Thailand.

(Image shot with Canon 50mm prime lens – Aperture: f/1.8, Exposure: 1/320 seconds, ISO: 200)

(Image shot with Canon 50mm prime lens – Aperture: f/1.8, Exposure: 1/400 seconds, ISO: 800)

(Image shot with Canon 50mm prime lens – Aperture: f/1.8, Exposure: 1/400 seconds, ISO: 800)

(Image shot with Canon 50mm prime lens – Aperture: f/1.8, Exposure: 1/320 seconds, ISO: 800)
Indoors or outdoors, hang up some fairy lights for a more creative and ambient light source.

Happy Snapping!

P

Filed under: Night Bokeh, Personal, 2010, bokeh, bokehlicious, fairy lights, photography, spring

What the Nikon D7000 will bring for Bokeh-graphers

In the past few weeks, there has been a lot of buzz surrounding the launch of Nikon’s soon to be released D7000 digital SLR camera. One of the exciting new features of this make for bokeh-graphers is its 39 AF (Auto-Focus) points. For those unfamiliar with the term, it means that when looking down the viewfinder of the D7000, the user will see 39 reference spots- usually in some sort of cross/rhombus formation, which can be individually selected or all combined to anchor a point within the image for the camera to focus automatically on. While this isn’t as superb as some of Nikon’s other models (the D300s boasts a whopping 51 focus points), it will be combined with a 2016-RGB pixel metering sensor allowing more colours in the RGB scale to be differentiated from the next pixel, equalling more focus and sharper images for users.

Why is this good news for bokeh?

The AF metering points are important to selectively focus on any subject, no matter the size. The more AF metering points available, the easier it is to focus without having to shift your camera away from the scene or when you are shooting a subject that you don’t want to disturb. Here are some bokeh examples where AF metering modes matter.

Shooting bugs:

Hey by @lbyper using a by-nc-sa license

Shooting fine features:

Sometimes I wish the days are longer.. by CW Ye using a by-nc-nd license

Shooting small moving subjects:

Bee Speed!!! by Danny Perez Photography using a by-nc-nd license

Shooting subjects quickly that are off-centre:

Aircraft in Hanger by mtsofan using a by-nc-sa license

Happy snapping!

P

Filed under: Equipment, Uncategorized, AF, AF Metering Points, auto focus, bokeh, bokehlicious, Camera settings, D7000, Nikon, Nikon D7000, photography