Originally posted by Cynog Ap Brychan I have followed the debate about DoF with interest (and not a little bewilderment at the technicalities of the erudite arguments). I think it would be revealing if we could have a poll on the lines of "why I bought a FF camera" or maybe "why I want/need a FF camera". When I bought my D800, DoF was not even near the top of my list of considerations.
DOF control was probably third or lower on my list as well when I bought my D700 in Jan '10. I had a K20D with some very sweet lenses (still do), and for my low-light indoor AF needs I had a D90 with a few lenses as well - D90's AF was so much better, but for everything that didn't depend on AF I liked the look of my Pentax glass.
I eventually wanted better tracking, even better AF, and I was going to upgrade D90 --> D300... But just decided to spend a little more and get a bigger upgrade, as long as I was taking out the wallet.
I was also influenced by a short conversation I had with a pro standing at the counter of National Camera Exchange. I noticed he had a D700 and asked what lenses he used on it, and he kinda sheepishly said that he probably used his 50 1.8 the most, and then some other kinda pedestrian lens that I don't remember, and he talked about why for a bit... anyway, it actually made me excited to hear that because it was sort of like a real-world affirmation about what I'd been reading about, about how FF can bring your glass new life. It's one thing to know the math involved, it's another to hear real-life practicalities from a real-life shooter.
So, I got the D700. I did notice the DOF/FOV factor, especially with my Tamron 28-75, 50 1.8 and 180 2.8. It still isn't/wasn't the most important reason I wanted FF, but it is a nice bonus. (In 2012 I bought the D800 in a fever of
want vs
need when I saw those specs and read early usage accounts.
)
As I've said before, the DOF control thing is misunderstood, false claims get made about it, so it gets discussed/explained so much. This leads casual observers to conclude that it's
just really super important, because it's talked about so much.
.