Skip to main content

Using Depth of Field in Landscape Photography

Depth of field is the limitation of perceived sharpness within a photographic image. The greater the depth of field, the more of the image from front to back that appears sharp. An image with a shallow depth of field has a short and more specific depth of sharpness.

In photography, careful use of depth of field can be a compelling tool indeed. It can force viewers to focus only upon that which is sharp, by utilizing a shallow depth of field. As our eyes are not comfortable in viewing unclear images, we then tend to look at the parts of an image that are sharp. Our gaze will then focus upon that part of the image. The other unsharp parts of the image are blurry and not worthy of our attention. This use of a shallow depth of field is particularly well suited to portraiture. As long as the eyes are sharp, we will disregard most other things if they aren’t pin sharp. People and animals tend to look at the eyes first. So the eyes need to be sharp in most portraiture photography.

Landscape photography is generally at the opposite end of the scale of depth of field. The vast majority of landscape images need a very long depth of field. This is because landscapes mainly are trying to emulate an actual scene as we see it. Viewers are usually drawn into the image by its great depth of field.

You can control depth of field in two ways. The most common way is aperture control. The smaller the aperture (the larger the number, i.e. F22), the greater the depth of field. The larger the aperture, (the smaller the number like F2.8), the shallower the depth of field. The apertures between have a depth of field proportionate to the aperture selected along the scale.

The second means of controlling depth of field is by using a camera or lens that can tilt the lens forward or back. This lets the focusing plane of the lens to be more inclined to the plane of focus of the subject. This provides a much better depth of field without a change of aperture. It is one of the major reasons for using bellows type cameras, or tilt lenses. With such a camera or lens, one can have a considerable level of control over depth of field at any aperture.

Depth of field is also dictated by the focal length of the lens, and the camera format using the lens. For instance, a wide-angle lens always has a much greater depth of field than a telephoto lens. A very wide-angled lens such as a 14 mm lens has a depth of field so great that it almost doesn’t need focussing. A 600 mm telephoto lens has a shallow depth of field. Unless focussed upon a long-distance subject, the depth of field will be very limited.

On the other end of the scale are macro lenses, which can focus on very close objects. Once you start moving in for short focussing, the depth of field again becomes quite shallow. The closer you get to the subject, the less the depth of field becomes. In extreme close-ups, the slightest movement will cause the image to go out of focus entirely.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Your Houseplants can not only Survive Winter but Thrive

Let’s talk about surviving winter with our green buddies. It’s that time of year, you know, when the sun decides to take a long vacation, and our homes turn into a desert thanks to the blasting heat. Not exactly a paradise for our leafy friends, right? But don’t you worry because with a little TLC, we can totally keep those plants happy and healthy all winter long. Light it Up (or at least, try to!) First things first: light. Or, rather, the lack of it. Winter means shorter days and less sunshine. Most houseplants will be pretty disappointed about this. So, what can you do? Location, location, location: Move your plants as close to a window as possible. South-facing windows are the gold standard, but any window that gets decent light will do. Rotate, rotate, rotate: Turn your plants regularly. This helps them get even light exposure and prevents them from leaning towards the sun. Consider a grow light: If your plants are really struggling, or you don’t have a sunny spot, think about in...
Post a Comment
Read more

GTM Strategy Should Align with your Customer Journey

A Go-To-Market (GTM) strategy is a comprehensive plan that outlines how a company will launch a product or service to the market, attract customers, and achieve competitive advantage. It integrates marketing, sales, distribution, and customer engagement efforts to ensure a successful market entry and sustainable growth. The core strength of an effective GTM strategy lies in its tight alignment with the customer journey, which typically consists of several stages: Awareness: Potential customers become aware of your brand or product. Consideration: Customers evaluate your offering against alternatives. Decision: Customers decide to purchase. Retention: Post-purchase engagement to ensure satisfaction and loyalty. Advocacy: Satisfied customers become promoters of your brand. Targeted Content and Conversion Tactics at Each Stage Awareness Stage: Use educational and broad-reaching content such as blog posts, social media campaigns, and paid ads to attract attention. Consideration Stage: Prov...
Post a Comment
Read more

Building a Model Railroad Doesn’t Have to be Expensive

In an ideal world, we would always buy quality over quantity and every item in our collection would be new equipment. In today’s market, you can spend hundreds of dollars for the highest quality locomotives. To cut costs, you may consider buying a lower priced locomotive. Be aware that while many budget priced engines may be well detailed and look good, that can be lacking in dependability in their inner workings. You may tell yourself that you will upgrade later, but that is a false sense of economy. The money you spent initially will not be recovered. While there is no substitute for quality equipment, there are ways to economize on your purchases. One way to save on your purchases is to buy locomotives on an internet auction site, such as eBay. With a little research of vendors and the products they are offering, it is possible to buy a ‘gently used’ locomotive for a fraction of the price of a new one. By dealing with reputable vendors who are generally cautious with their trains, y...
Post a Comment
Read more