The estimated reading time for this post is 4 minutes
One of the most compelling features of the new iPhone 7 Plus is the dual cameras that allow you to create special effects with your photos. One of those effects is bokeh, an effect that lets you focus on one part of the photo while blurring the rest of the image.
The bokeh feature is only available on the iPhone 7 Plus, not the iPhone 7 or earlier iPhone models, and works in only in portrait view. The effect can can be used on people, pets, flowers, and other objects to make them the focal point of the photo.
But bokeh isn’t available on the iPhone 7 Plus quite yet. Apple will be adding this feature in the iOS 10.1 update, due to be released later this month. But whether you don’t have an iPhone 7 Plus, or you do and you simply can’t wait for the update, you don’t need to fret.
You can add the bokeh effect to your photos no matter what phone (or camera) you have, by using PicMonkey editing tools. These tools are free to use, you don’t have to be a paid (Royale) member of PicMonkey to add this effect to your photos.
[tip]See, 4 Top Tips to Use PicMonkey Like a Pro to learn more tips for using PicMonkey.[/tip]
You can add this effect to any digital photo, taken on any phone or camera, in portrait or landscape view. The effect is easy to do and takes a short time, once you learn how to do it.
Adding the Blur Effect on PicMonkey
To get started, go to the PicMonkey website and upload the image you want to use. Click on the Effects icon in the toolbar (the one that looks like a magic wand).
Choose Soften in the Basics section to blur the entire photo. You will see two slider bars, Softness and Fade. You can adjust these to get the amount of blurring you want.
Adding the Focal Effect
If you want your entire photo to be blurred, you can click Apply and stop editing now. But if you want part of your image to be in focus, continue editing.
You will see a Paint window appear next to the photo.
Use this to erase the blur effect from the object you want to remain in focus. Click the Original button to turn your cursor into a virtual paint brush that will remove the blur effect. You can adjust the brush size, hardness and strength to get the optimal effect.
[tip] Use the back arrow button at the bottom of the screen to undo your work and fix mistakes. [/tip]
The brush is in the shape of a circle, but you can reduce its size to get more precise accuracy. A slider at the bottom of the screen lets you enlarge your view of the photo to help you hone in on the section of the photo you want to edit.
You can also click on the Effect button in the Paint window to add the blur effect if you’ve erased it from a section accidentally.
The Paint window also lets you use blur in the reverse effect, adding it to select parts of a photo. Click on the Reverse effect box to add the blur effect with the virtual paint brush.
PicMonkey App
You can also use the new PicMonkey app to get this effect, though not with as much control. Open the app and choose your photo.
Select Effects (the same wand icon as on the PicMonkey website), then choose the Blur filter.
Tap on the photo to have a circle appear. Within the circle the original photo will appear without the filter. You can move and adjust the size of the circle, but you don’t have as much control over the editing as you do with the PicMonkey website.
[tip]Learn more at PicMonkey’s New App and Hub Making the Most of Your Photos.[/tip]
What Else You Need to Know
Don’t be confused. PicMonkey has two different editing tools that use the term “bokeh.” These don’t give you the same bokeh effect as the iPhone 7 Plus does.
You can use the Soften effect repeatedly to get a more intense blurred effect for your photo.
The iPhone 7 Plus will let you add the bokeh effect as you take the photo, which PicMonkey clearly can’t do.
Your Thoughts
Have you been wanting to use the bokeh effect on photos? Do you have any photos you would like to use this effect on? Have you tried this effect on PicMonkey?
Share your thoughts in the Comments section below!
* Smiling faces photo (edited) courtesy of Brett Davies via Flickr and Creative Commons
* Jumping image (edited) courtesy of Jakob Owens vis Unsplash and Creative Commons
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Hi Carolyn,
You knew I would read this with my interest in photography. I was intrigued because although I never use my phone for taking pictures, phones have a wide aperture so you should get a bokeh when you zoom in. I tried it! There was a slight bokeh, but it is a digital zoom and so wasn’t the same as a wide open aperture on a camera zooming in. Wide open gives amazing detail when you zoom in but for older people that can be a disadvantage, so last week I shot wide open with a soft focus filter and got good pictures of the deputy mayor and other local politicians. Yes, I photograph local dignitaries now! I’ve just been editing a picture from my archive and adding a little extra snow to a winter picture! The newspaper has given me drect access to their picture desk so I must be getting quite professional. 🙂
Hi Mike, So glad to see you back at The Wonder of Tech! Yes, one of the advantages of cell phone cameras is that you can take photos without knowing the intricacies of photography and camera settings. That being said, learning about camera photography is always interesting.
We have so many more options now for our photography, with smart phone camera features, digital editing tools such as PicMonkey, and digital camera features, that we have the potential to do a lot more with our photos. How wonderful!
Hey Carolyn,
I have always tried something like this. Such type of effects adds the value in an image.
PicMonkey can be so helpful in such things. I am sure, people are going to love it.
Thanks for sharing with us.
~Ravi
Hi Ravi, Yes, some people may think that the iPhone 7 Plus is the only way to get this cool effect. But PicMonkey lets you add the effect to any digital photo. The effect is free and easy, no iPhone needed!
There are other reasons to get the iPhone 7 Plus. But if you want a different phone, such as the smaller iPhone 7, and want the Bokeh effect for your photos, know that you can get both.
Omg! This is the best hack in photography I have come across. Will definitely try this right away.
Thanks for sharing.
Hi Akshada, Yes, this is a very cool, easy and free way to get the Bokeh/blur effect using PicMonkey, no iPhone 7 Plus needed. But as of this writing, not even iPhone 7 Plus users have this feature. Apple is due to release the update, iOS 10.1, very soon that will add the Bokeh effect to iPhone 7 Plus.
Many people are excited to get this effect, but it’s available to everyone now, with PicMonkey.