Digital Photographer - UK (2020-01)

1

Out of focus

When you

look through

the viewfinder

of a DsLR,

most of the

scene is out

of focus as the lens is at its maximum

aperture, so the DoF you can see is what

you’d get if you shot at that aperture.

2

Stop

down it’s

tempting to

just stop the

lens right

down to f22,

as with a wide-angle lens this is virtually

guaranteed to record the whole scene in

sharp focus. But doing so will degrade

image quality.

3

F11 a

much

better option

is to select

a mid-range

aperture such

as f11, which will produce a sharper image

as there will be less diffraction, then use

hyperfocal focussing to maximise depth

of field.

4

Chart

Refer to

a depth of

field chart or

app on your

smartphone

to see what

the hyperfocal distance will be for the lens

and aperture you’re using – here you can

see it’s 1.77m for a 24mm lens set to f11.

5

Hyperfocal

distance

Focus the lens

manually on

the hyperfocal

distance,

and depth

of then field will extend from half the

hyperfocal distance (in this example

0.88m) to infinity, giving you front-to-

back sharpness.

Hyperfocal

focussing

Here’s how to maximise depth

of field using the hyperfocal

focussing technique

2. For digital SLRs with a crop factor of 1.5x such as Nikon


3. For digital SLRs with a crop factor of 1.6x such as Canon

Left

Front-to-back

capture

Maximise the

depth of field to

help create a strong

impression of

distance and depth

in your images

Above left

In the

Namib dunes

hyperfocal focussing

with a wide-angle

lens will give you

depth of field from

a few centimetres

to infinity

Above

Getting a bird’s

eye view

When everything you

wish to include in your

shot is a long way off,

a wide aperture will

give you enough depth

of field

10 pRo Ways To use apeRTuRe

1

Outoffocus

Whenyou

lookthrough

theviewfinder

ofaDsLR,

mostofthe

sceneisout

offocusasthelensisatitsmaximum

aperture,sotheDoFyoucanseeiswhat

you’dgetifyoushotatthataperture.

2

Stop

downit’s

temptingto

juststopthe

lensright

downtof22,

aswithawide-anglelensthisisvirtually

guaranteedtorecordthewholescenein

sharpfocus.Butdoingsowilldegrade

imagequality.

3

F11a

much

betteroption

istoselect

amid-range

aperturesuch

asf11,whichwillproduceasharperimage

astherewillbelessdiffraction,thenuse

hyperfocalfocussingtomaximisedepth

offield.

4

Chart

Referto

adepthof

fieldchartor

apponyour

smartphone

toseewhat

thehyperfocaldistancewillbeforthelens

andapertureyou’reusing–hereyoucan

seeit’s1.77mfora24mmlenssettof11.

5

Hyperfocal

distance

Focusthelens

manuallyon

thehyperfocal

distance,

anddepth

ofthenfieldwillextendfromhalfthe

hyperfocaldistance(inthisexample

0.88m)toinfinity,givingyoufront-to-

backsharpness.

Hyperfocal

focussing

Here’showtomaximisedepth

offieldusingthehyperfocal

focussingtechnique

2. For digital SLRs with a crop factorof1.5xsuchasNikon


3. For digital SLRs with a crop factorof1.6xsuchasCanon

Left

Front-to-back

capture

Maximise the

depth of field to

help create a strong

impression of

distance and depth

in your images

Aboveleft

Inthe

Namibdunes

hyperfocal focussing

with a wide-angle

lens will give you

depth of field from

a few centimetres

to infinity

Above

Getting a bird’s

eye view

When everything you

wish to include in your

shot is a long way off,

a wide aperture will

give you enough depth

of field

10 pRo Ways To use apeRTuRe