Try "unfocusing" your photographs for some dreamy, evocative and somewhat abstract takes on life. Check out the two tutorials (here and here) from Michelle Geoga of Lights! Camera! Photoshop! for tips on unleashing the blur-power of your camera. You can see plenty of example images there to help you out.
Tips for Blurring Fireworks
And since it's Fourth of July time, it's a great opportunity for you take some wonderful, blurry pics of the fireworks on display. Not sure how? Mark Rosal has some great tips on his Gomarky blog for taking some unbelievable fireworks photographs on July Fourth.
With his camera set up on a tripod, he set his ISO to 100, his aperture to around f/9.0, his shutter speed to around 1 second, and his lens to manual focus — at the closest range possible — so the fireworks are completely blurred.
The trick is to snap the photo right before the fireworks burst happens. Over the course of the exposure, turn your focus ring all the way to infinity. In other words, if you were to photograph the fireworks on infinity, they would be crisp and sharp.
For more information, make sure to visit Mark's blog.
Other Subjects to Blur ...
Here are some more non-fireworks examples from Michelle to help inspire your photo blurring.
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Waiting at the Merry Go Round, Motion Blur, Shutter Speed
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Portrait through Willow Tree, Blurry Foreground
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Photo Road Trip, Slow Shutter
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Portrait with Disco Ball for Background, Slow Shutter
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Millennium Park Chicago, Motion Blur, Slow Shutter
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Monroe and Michigan in Chicago, Motion Blur, Shutter Speed
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Waiting at the Merry Go Round, Motion Blur, Shutter Speed
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Portrait through Willow Tree, Blurry Foreground
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Photo Road Trip, Slow Shutter
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Portrait with Disco Ball for Background, Slow Shutter
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Millennium Park Chicago, Motion Blur, Slow Shutter
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Monroe and Michigan in Chicago, Motion Blur, Shutter Speed
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