To me that's a relatively useless generalisation. There are times you want
a softer look in nature and many times you want a sharp look in portraits.
Sure if you're trying to hide someone's age, you can blur it a bit (not
really any need to use vaseline or a diffusion filter these days), but more
often than not I'd rather reveal the detail, the character, of the subject.
It all comes down to opinion and style at the end of the day, but really I
think you have to assess the subject and the purpose of the photo. No bride
wants to look wrinkly on their wedding day, of course. But a grandmother
and baby in sharp focus can provide a wonderful textural contrast, or an old
bushman with a wonderful face formed by years of experiences can give such a
sense of character.
I'm sure you know this, but for the sake of the conversation.. "Soft Focus"
is also, to me, a slightly misleading term. What you don't want is for the
subject (esp. eyes) to be out of focus and something else in focus... it
just looks unintentional and unprofessional. If you must, a diffused look
is preferable to an incorrect focus look. Where possible I prefer to use
lighting to soften, or indeed harden, such details too, rather than making a
soft photo.
- Peter
-----Original Message-----
From: Larry Colen
Sent: Tuesday, December 28, 2010 3:06 AM
To: Pentax-Discuss Mail List
Subject: Facebook discussion on sharpness in portraits
I posted a link in facebook to some photos of Zab that I took during the
photo shoot of Matthew:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ellarsee/sets/72157625554834337/
which I think are a big improvement over photos I took of her on Boxing day
four years previously:
http://www.red4est.com/lrc/pix/efllrc061226/
This has led to a discussion on sharpness in portraits, or as someone said:
Sharp focus for nature, soft focus for portraits.
I'd love to hear people's views on this subject. If you're able to weigh in
there, the link is:
http://www.facebook.com/ellarsee/posts/128415210554550
--
Larry Colen l...@red4est.com sent from i4est
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