Extreme DoF You have ONE CLASS to work on this project.
Today, you will have the opportunity to use a portrait (50mm prime) lens. The principal advantage of this lens is that it allows the photographer to shoot at a very wide aperture, as low as F/1.8 to be exact. This permits both low-light shooting and extremely shallow depth of field.
Extreme DoF Assignment
You will submit four images for this project. Each will feature a different subject that has noticeable depth (i.e. not a picture of a wall but something 3-dimensional). You will decide how much of each subject you want in focus (choose a small element only) and then your goal is to choose an appropriate aperture width that will give you the depth of field (DoF) you need.
Example: Subject is the neck and head of a guitar. You decide to focus on one specific tuning peg. Your shots might come out like this:
1) F/4: Several tuning pegs are in focus. DoF not shallow enough.
2) F/1.8: Only part of the tuning beg is in focus, not matter how much you manually adjust the focus. DoF too shallow.
3) F/2.8: Only the one tuning peg is in focus. Success! This is the image that you hand in.
You will state your "goal" (i.e. what exactly you want in focus) on the rubric prior to inserting your completed photos.
YOU ARE PERMITTED (AND ENCOURAGED) TO CROP YOUR IMAGES TO ACHIEVE DESIRED COMPOSITION.
Camera Settings:
Mode: A (Aperture Priority) or M (Manual)
Focus: M (Manual). You need precise control that only you can deliver.
Tripod?: If necessary (if your shutter speed drops below 1/50s).
Other tips:
- You may use a person as a subject in up to two of the images. If so, focus on a very specific body part (tip of nose, earlobe, tip of finger pointing at camera).
- The 50mm lens is not the same as a macro lens, so you can't be super-close to your subject or else it won't focus. This is why cropping your images afterwards is encouraged.
- This works best with objects with more depth. The further the front of the subject is from the back, the more emphasis we'll see on the element you've chosen to feature.
Example:
"My intention was to only have the second-from-furthest tuning peg in focus."
Extreme DoF Assignment
You will submit four images for this project. Each will feature a different subject that has noticeable depth (i.e. not a picture of a wall but something 3-dimensional). You will decide how much of each subject you want in focus (choose a small element only) and then your goal is to choose an appropriate aperture width that will give you the depth of field (DoF) you need.
Example: Subject is the neck and head of a guitar. You decide to focus on one specific tuning peg. Your shots might come out like this:
1) F/4: Several tuning pegs are in focus. DoF not shallow enough.
2) F/1.8: Only part of the tuning beg is in focus, not matter how much you manually adjust the focus. DoF too shallow.
3) F/2.8: Only the one tuning peg is in focus. Success! This is the image that you hand in.
You will state your "goal" (i.e. what exactly you want in focus) on the rubric prior to inserting your completed photos.
YOU ARE PERMITTED (AND ENCOURAGED) TO CROP YOUR IMAGES TO ACHIEVE DESIRED COMPOSITION.
Camera Settings:
Mode: A (Aperture Priority) or M (Manual)
Focus: M (Manual). You need precise control that only you can deliver.
Tripod?: If necessary (if your shutter speed drops below 1/50s).
Other tips:
- You may use a person as a subject in up to two of the images. If so, focus on a very specific body part (tip of nose, earlobe, tip of finger pointing at camera).
- The 50mm lens is not the same as a macro lens, so you can't be super-close to your subject or else it won't focus. This is why cropping your images afterwards is encouraged.
- This works best with objects with more depth. The further the front of the subject is from the back, the more emphasis we'll see on the element you've chosen to feature.
Example:
"My intention was to only have the second-from-furthest tuning peg in focus."
STUDENT EXAMPLES