Depth of Field

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February 2, 2018

Depth of FieldDepth of Field, Week 5 of the 52-week photography project blog circle.

noun ~ the distance between the nearest and the furthest objects that give an image judged to be in focus in a camera.

If you use depth of field there’s a definite foreground and background. Your aperture is the determining factor of how deep that depth of field is.

When I first started I kept getting confused if I was wanting a high or low F-stop.  See if this diagram below helps you understand how the F-stop or Aperture gives you the different varieties of the depth of field.

depth of field

If you have an SLR camera try turning your camera dial to the A button. This signifies Aperture priority in your camera. Then select the aperture you want for the specific effect you want to achieve (review figure above).  The camera will adjust your shutter as needed and keep the aperture you chose. Now if you get an error that means that due to lighting the camera can’t make it work.  It could be too much light or not enough.  A quick look at the current image; if it’s too bright you’ll need to bump up your aperture. If it’s too dark you’ll need to raise your ISO (future lesson).

This flower image I shot at f/2.8 using my 24-70 mm lens ISO 200 1/1000

Depth of Field

The below image was taken with my 50mm f/1.4  1/250 ISO 400

Depth of Field

If you’re shopping for a new iPhone you can bet the salesperson will mention the new PORTRAIT MODE SELFIE on the iPhone X.  If you use this new feature you too can achieve this by using just your phone.


Recently I’ve been blogging about photography techniques.  Check out these topics I’ve touched on: Catchlights, Rule of 3rds, and Bokeh.


It’s a blog circle so it’s time to move on to the next photographer –>  Ursula Garrison Photography serving the Chequamegon Bay Area and surroundings.

  1. Kelly says:

    Ahhhh!!! Gotta love dogs in sunglasses!! Great job!

  2. Lisa Browning says:

    Adorable sunglasses on an adorable dog! Great information too.

  3. Kim Hollis says:

    Oh my gosh, I could’ve used the various DOF examples you used here when I was first learning photography!

  4. Kirsten says:

    sunglasses on dogs! yes!!

  5. Mike says:

    NOW I finally know what your talking about!! +2 to Intelligence

  6. I still get confused when people say wide open or closed down if that means a shallow or deep depth of field. SO many terms for the same thing.

  7. Linda Perdue says:

    I love the soft muted colors in your dog photograph – it’s very nice! I’ve always thought of the f-stop as a ‘fraction’ as this helps people to remember that 1/2 is bigger than 1/22 (especially if you tell them they are getting 1/2 of the pie vs 1/22 of the pie).

  8. John says:

    Love the images. The chart really helps explain the effect that different apertures have. Great post!

  9. Tim evans says:

    I know just about everyone has mentioned the sunglasses, but OMG–the sunglasses! I’ve got to get some for my dogs!

  10. Darlene says:

    Super cute image of the pup in sunglasses! Perfect to see on this bitter cold day! 🙂

  11. Elaine says:

    The little starlet in your first photo is adorable! Loved the chart. Great explanation!

  12. Lynda says:

    Love the sunglasses and the flowers….and the other dog too. Lol. Love all the photos. Great words too?

  13. Tracy Allard says:

    Super cute images, and I LOVE your “meet Danyel” bio, I too have an “epic” husband – maybe I need to point that out! LOL

  14. Linda says:

    Love your explanation and I think the second little dog looks like a baby kangaroo!

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