Soft focus is an optical effect created by the use of a special lens or filter. It produces images that are deliberately blurred due to spherical aberration while retaining sharp edges. In this respect, it is thus not the same as an out-of-focus image, since the effect cannot be achieved simply by defocusing a sharp lens.

Soft focus is also the name of the style of photography produced by such a lens. Soft focus adds a touch of softness to the image, which is generally associated with “romantic moods”.