Depth of field in photography: you should know that
Depth of field is a good design tool for photos - whether large or small. With it, the focus of the viewer can be directed and therefore makes up a large part of the composition, especially for demanding images. By the way: The terms depth of field and depth of field are used colloquially.
Tip # 1: You have to keep this in mind on your camera when it comes to depth of field
- The larger the sensor, the more defined the focus range: With DSLRs, it is much easier to focus only on a certain depth section of the image than with a compact or smartphone camera.
- If you also want to get a sharpness effect on your smartphone, there are various tricks and apps to be able to adjust the effect. The Google camera, for example, offers a focus effect that achieves relatively good results.
Tip # 2: This is how the choice of subject affects the depth of field
- The distance to the subject has a major impact on the focus: the closer the subject, the smaller the focus. In the case of distant objects, on the other hand, a large part of the surroundings in front and behind is also shown sharply.
- For good macro photos, it is difficult, but desirable, to achieve the greatest possible depth of field in order to have the motif (e.g. a flower) displayed sharply in its entirety. Objects far away, on the other hand, are all the more difficult to distinguish from the background because the focus range in the distance is much larger - be aware of this if, for example, you want a distant tree to be the only one in focus.
Tip # 3: How the focal length affects the composition of the picture
- The larger the focal length, the more defined the depth of field: With telephoto lenses with a long focal length, it is much easier to focus only on a small section of the image. In contrast, the focus range for wide-angle objects is naturally wider - here you basically have all image areas in focus.
- This also explains the choice of lens for different photo areas: The classic "portrait lens" with a focal length of 85mm is ideal for portraying the face against a blurred background. If, on the other hand, you were to photograph the portrait with a wide-angle lens (e.g. with a 35mm focal length), it would be a lot more difficult to blur the background and thus make it unimportant.
Tip # 4: The aperture setting as the most important factor in the depth of field
- The more open the aperture, the more defined the depth of field: If you only want to focus or crop a small area of the subject, open the aperture as far as possible (for normal objects, e.g. f / 4). If, on the other hand, you want to achieve the largest possible focus range for close-ups, a small aperture such as f / 16 is best
- Bright lenses offer more scope here. For example, fixed focal lengths with a maximum aperture of f / 1.4 are a good addition for the DSLR in order to obtain a defined depth of field in relatively normal subjects and lighting conditions. You can read about the available lenses in this article.
Conclusion: understand and use the depth of field for the composition
The above factors affect the depth of field of your photos - how you use them is up to your artistic freedom. If you want to focus on special things in your image, make other areas of the image disappear. However, if you want to create a general overview or if, for example, all parts of the image are of equal importance for panoramas, try to avoid depth of field by choosing and adjusting your camera and lenses accordingly.