Orton's sharper shot was overexposed by two stops, and the one with more blur was overexposed by just one stop, according to Photoble. Some subjects benefit more from the technique than others. Dave Johnson reports in PC World that he has found the technique most effective in portraits of people or naturescapes. Avoiding strongly lit scenes is advisable. Since heavy shadows are likely to produce too much darkness in the finished product, intimate scenes captured in overcast light seem to work best. Very little sky should be visible.
In a podcast by Photography Canada, Orton spoke of getting his idea from painters in the 1980s who sketched a scene in pen and ink and filled it in with watercolors. He said he shot many rolls of film, then viewed them through a jeweler's loupe on his light table to find the best combinations. After deciding on two that complemented each other, he would take each slide out of its frame and place one over the other in a single mount, locking them together with a tiny piece of Scotch tape. Orton has authored a book, "Photographing Creative Landscapes," about his technique.
When using slide film, set the aperture for the detailed image at f16 to f22. Next, change the aperture to the widest possible setting, probably f2.8 or f4, to pick up blobs of color. Use a tripod to avoid movement between the sharp and out-of-focus shots, advises Nature Photographers Online Magazine. Before making the second slide, rotate the focus ring manually until you find the setting that gives the biggest blotches of color.
Today's photographers can achieve the Orton effect digitally. Many use Corel's Paint Shop Pro or Adobe Photoshop Elements, according to PC World. Menu commands will vary between the different programs, but you will make two copies of a photo. One will be left as it is, while the other will be blurred through the filter feature. Then the two copies are merged to produce the Orton image.