hey nismo,
to get this effect u either shoot macro, or use a very fast lens, meaning a lens that has a large aperture. some have mentioned the larger the aperture (smaller F number) the lower the depth of field, which equates to "more blur areas"...
i dunno wat type of cam u'll be shooting with, but if it's an SLR u could try using a 50mm f/1.0 (DAMN expensive) or 50mm f/1.8. if u shoot macro, then any stardard (28-85mm?) lens will be fine. if u're using a point and shoot or non-slr (like mine) i'd probably do a macro shot. CONFIRM ur DOF will be short no matter wat ur aperture is, for a macro shot.
now parka was talking about a shot i did that is similar (not using macro) think he was referring to this one:
in this shot i used the largest aperture on my cam at the longest zoom (approx 280mm [35mm film equivalent] at f/4.0). this is the largest aperture that my cam can go at that zoom. u can also try it that way.
as for the focus, if auto focus doesn't work, then u gonna have to use manual focus.
a macro shot will be something like this:
where the lens was only 2 inches or less from the subject.
wanna tell me wat cam u'll be using? it'll help alot.