DIY Shaped Bokeh

The holidays are here! What a perfect time of the year to do some fun photography with tree lights! Today I’m going to show you a quick and easy way to make some DIY templates to take some fun shaped bokeh photos!

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I followed this tutorial at kevinandamanda.com. Why re-invent the wheel, right? Amanda gives step by step instructions on how to construct the paper hood that goes over your lens.

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All you need are: black cardstock or construction paper, scissors, tape, repositional or temporary adhesive, and some small shaped paper punches.

I made this paper hood that goes over my 50mm F/1.8 lens. Yes, the tape is ugly but it works just fine! Then I cut out pieces of cardstock that are bigger than the “window” on the hood. I punched shapes in the middle of the cardstock pieces.

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The hood fits right over my lens like this.

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Then I applied temporary/repositional adhesive to one side of the punched paper pieces so I can adhere each piece onto my paper lens hood and use them.

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Put the manual focus on something very close to the camera, as close as you can get without the object being blurry. The background will blur. The bokeh here is round. This is what it looks like without the paper hood on the lens.

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I used the star punchout on the paper hood.

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50mm F1.8 lens on manual focus and manual mode
F/1.8
1/15 sec
ISO 1600

Heart punchout on the paper hood.

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50mm F1.8 lens on manual focus and manual mode
F/1.8
1/15 sec
ISO 800

Swirl punchout on the paper hood.

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50mm F1.8 lens on manual focus and manual mode
F/1.8
1/15 sec
ISO 1600

And Christmas tree punchout on the paper hood.

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50mm F1.8 lens on manual focus and manual mode
F/1.8
1/15 sec
ISO 1600

Isn’t that cool? Of course it would look super-awesome with some different colored lights on the tree too. And if you have willing subjects such as children or pets, you can put the focus on them and have the bokeh in the background. I made the paper lens hood and punched pieces in about 10 minutes, so it’s super-easy to do! These photos will make fun pages in my December album, Project Life, or any scrapbook page about the holidays! 🙂

Give it a try!

 

Christine (listgirl)

I’m a creative who pulls inspiration from all corners of life—both the joyful highs and the real-life moments that punch you in the gut. Honestly, I don’t think I can pin down a single scrapbooking style for myself, so let’s just go with eclectic. My layouts really depend on my mindset. If I’m in a deep, cerebral mood, you’ll likely see something chaotic and messy. If I’m more relaxed, it tends to come out clean, simple, and structured.

My brain is usually running on several channels at once, so it’s completely normal for me to be working on a digital layout, dabbling in a hybrid project, and getting messy with art journaling or mixed media—all at the same time.

Here are a few of my go-to tools: Digital: Adobe Photoshop CC + my MacBook; Photos: Canon Rebel or iPhone; Hybrid: Cricut Joy + sewing machine; Art Journaling: watercolors, stencils, and artsticks

And when it comes to embellishments—digital or physical—I’m always reaching for messy threads, ribbons, and Polaroids. Always the Polaroids.

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