Bokeh, pronounced "Bo-Ke" not Bokee or Booky but Bo-ke with a silent "h"... for those not in the know its the term used for background blur, yes in photography blur has a name and its not "blur" its Bokeh, yes Bokeh.. Bo-Ke, I like saying the word it makes me sound sophistim'cated, its a Japanese term, the Japanese love their background blur so much they named it "BoKeh", now this may seem trivial but its actually far from it, you see the difference between an average looking photo and a professional one can be the blur oops I mean Bokeh.
Exhibit A - I took this image in Burma using my 50mm prime lens at f1.8, this means the Aperture blades (which work like the iris in your eyes) are at the widest setting, this creates a small area in the middle of the image which is sharp and the rest is blurred, you can clearly see the transition from blur at the bottom through sharp and then onto blur again, this is known as Depth of field (DOF) and gives the image a 3rd dimension, now this is all good and well but the real power of Bokeh is when its used to make subjects stand out from the background.
Exhibit B - this image was taken using the same lens on the same day and location in Burma, here you can see the subject is the focus and both foreground and background are a little blurred, hopefully just enough to give the image context, the challenge here was to show her in her workplace which is very busy but not be overly distracting and maintain the 3rd dimension to make the image interesting.
Exhibit C - here the background is burred completely allowing the subject to stand out whilst still providing context, there is enough information in the background to show where she is but not be overly distracting. Look at the character on her face, you can see her wonderful personality, I sat with her after taking this and showed her the photos she was such a delight I couldn't stop thanking her. Now some may say that it doesn't completely comply with the rule of thirds but I kinda like the green showing through the window so I didnt want to crop it down.
Conclusion, Bokeh is wonderful and very useful but not all Bokeh is created equal, the quality of the glass and even shape of the aperture blades will effect it, its best when it appears smooth and creamy, like a smooth, creamy, buttery, foamy flan or the succulent creamy crema on a half caf half decaf no milko frappe chino latte (hold the sugar) Mmmmmm... sugar... Anyway I think you get the message. Below are some other example photos Ive taken over the years to help illustrate my point, to achieve this you need good glass (i.e. quality lens) and a wide aperture, the wider the better, then position your subject far enough from the background so it falls into BOKEH.
Im off to get a coffee...