A blurry background can help to emphasize your subject and get rid of distracting features and blurred backgrounds can be achieved with compacts just as effectively as they can with a DSLR. Here are some top tips on getting a blurry background with a compact. Portrait Mode The portrait mode on your camera is ideal for creating a blurry background, because it knows that the main focus of the picture will be on the face and not the surrounding area. It also knows that you will want to use a wider aperture (smaller f number) to create a very shallow depth of field. Macro mode Macro mode knows that you are shooting small objects, and therefore won't want lots of background objects cluttering up the frame. It is ideal if you are taking photos of your subject close up. Macro mode is great for photographing flowers, insects and other small objects that will benefit from having a blurry background behind them. Aperture Priority Some mid-range compacts allow you to change the aperture your camera uses by switching to Aperture Priority Mode. This mode controls the depth of field in your image and the larger the aperture you pick (smaller f number) the shallower your depth of field will be. So, if you want those blurry backgrounds try and use a larger aperture. Move Your Subject If you're not getting the desired blurred effect by using the methods above, it may be because your subject is too close to the background