One of the hardest things I have ever come across, and yet the simplest, is the notion of Depth of Focus. While I had often got lucky with photographs, occasionally I was left with photos that looked blurred, and I couldn’t figure out the reason for it.
Steady hand, fast shutter, no camera shake… I couldn’t figure out why some photographs were blurred … until today. Depth of F**king Field… That must be the reason.
Thanks to St. John for really helping me clear that misunderstanding up. I was often taking pictures of scenery with a shallow depth of field, and not getting the results I wanted.
Once I got my head around the notion that with more open apertures, the depth of field became shallower, everything started to make sense. So I went out and shot some shots that I hope exemplified a more sensible use of the concept.
Finally, I have some control over a basic concept on my camera; so I can stop blaming my camera for my own shortcomings!
The next challenge I have to figure out in my head is the relationship between depth of field and zoom! I know there’s an impact there… can anyone explain? Thanks!
