[Zephos]

I just learned about hyper-focal points here: Understanding Your Camera’s Hyperfocal Distance

My college photography class let me down. Taught me about rule of thirds, perspective, but they missed this bit.

[vonBaloney]

I just learned about hyper-focal points here: Understanding Your Camera’s Hyperfocal Distance

My college photography class let me down. Taught me about rule of thirds, perspective, but they missed this bit.

Because of autofocus? Lenses don't even have depth-of-field scales anymore, and using different sensor sizes makes things more confusing as well. (If using old full-frame lenses that do have the marks on APS-C cameras, you should assume one stop less DoF than the marks indicate).

[disconnekt]

Nowadays it's going to be rare for schools to cover it, due to the fact that many schools don't have film classes anymore.

[Zephos]

Because of autofocus? Lenses don't even have depth-of-field scales anymore, and using different sensor sizes makes things more confusing as well. (If using old full-frame lenses that do have the marks on APS-C cameras, you should assume one stop less DoF than the marks indicate).

That calculator on the website I linked to takes into account crop-factor. Pretty handy I think!

[dms]

When using an AF. lens w/o distance scale you can still use hyperfocal distance (H). Just AF onto an object that is H distance way. Means you have H values at few important f stops and FL's. As mentioned by VonBaloney can use 35 mm (FF) values at 1 f stop more open--e.g., if taking at f/16, use H value for f/11 on FF.

Or use following (for APS-C)

at f/16 H= 3.5 ft at 21mm, 5 ft at 24 mm, 7 ft at 28mm, and 10 ft at 35 mm
at f/11 H= 5 ft at 21mm, 7 ft at 24 mm, 10 ft at 28mm, and 14 ft at 35 mm
at f/8 H= 7 ft at 21mm, 10 ft at 24 mm, 14 ft at 28mm, and 20 ft at 35 mm
at f/5.6 H= 10 ft at 21mm, 14 ft at 24 mm, 20 ft at 28mm, and 28 ft at 35 mm

H for longer FL or larger aperture (>5.6) are not usually very useful.

P.S., hard to type a nice table here--but can do and stick on a lens hood.

[dms]

Here is an example of what I paste on a lens hood. FF (full frame) and HF (half frame) refer to 35 mm and APS-C, and the H values (5, 7, etc.) are in feet. (This happens to be on wide angle lens so I did not include f/16, and any way the values at other f stops are pretty obvious from the values here.)

[Alex645]

I teach both film and digital photography at a high school and our 5th assignment in both media is about depth-of-field. It's challenging because DOF is affected by not just aperture and hyperfocal distance, but also the focal length of the lens.

DSLRs with a depth-of-field preview button help as do lenses with the DOF scale. But I also find web sites and apps like dofmaster.com helpful as student photographers can use their cell phones to calculate hyperfocal distances.

Many photo classes get much more into the aesthetic and compositional side of photography, but I've always started my students with technical mastery. I figure most teens want to know how, not why. And if you know how, then when you finally have something to express or share or try to capture, you know the limitations and possibilities of the tools.

[Igelkotten]

A modern camera should know all information needed to calculate and show DoF with real live values in the VF or at the display in case of Live View.
Focal length, Sensor size, Aperture, Active Focus Point (distance to object should be possible for the camera to know) and therefore it should be possible to give the DoF inside the camera.

I would love any manufacture to implement this, and why not Pentax that are usually including some additional functions not found in other brands.

So far I use some experience, guestimating or if I really want to know exactly I use an app in the iPhone.

[MJSfoto1956]

I always thought this site was pretty clever: Bokeh simulator & depth of field calculator

Michael

[normhead]

I just take an image using hyperfocl focus for multiple times with different DoFs. I rarely find the DoF value I think will produce the best image actually does. I like finding a point to AF on that has 1/3 of the scene I want in focus and two thirds of what I want in focus behind. For landscape, just knowing APS-c, I use the concept of hyperlocal, not the math.

Shooting this pond, understanding what a hyper-focal distance is, I simply pick a spot part way along the reading shoreline that could represent my hyper-focal point, focus on that point, and let the APS-c DoF advantage give me a razor sharp image shot at ƒ5.6, the sharpest ƒ-stop on the lens (an 18-135). No math, but an understanding of what hyper-focal distance is, is critical to focusing the image. Also no multiple images on shots like this. I use multiple in=mages for macros, where I'm balancing DOF , subject clarity and the appearance of the OOF areas. I'm still looking for a hyper-foci point, but it's very difficult to predict how your f-stop is going to affect the overall appearance of an image. Sometimes ƒ11 is the best subject image, but the background is just too messy to use. you have to compromise, go for the total image appearance, not necessarily the best use of hyperlocal understanding to get a sharp subject focus.

[gfurm]

A modern camera should know all information needed to calculate and show DoF with real live values in the VF or at the display in case of Live View.
Focal length, Sensor size, Aperture, Active Focus Point (distance to object should be possible for the camera to know) and therefore it should be possible to give the DoF inside the camera.

I would love any manufacture to implement this, and why not Pentax that are usually including some additional functions not found in other brands.

So far I use some experience, guestimating or if I really want to know exactly I use an app in the iPhone.

Ricoh GXR does that, It has distance scale on left side of the live view screen and green band on it showing depth of field amount. Lenght of green bar changes when changing aperture. I guess GR and GR II has that too.

Edit: http://www.waloszek.de/gxr_focus_e.php
scroll half way dwn and you can see example how it works.

[wissink]

I think Hyperfocal is only useful under certain circumstances--landscapes for instance. If you're looking for sharpness in say a portrait, the focal plane is sharper then the DOF indicated by a DOF calculator. At least I've read about this.

[normhead]

I think Hyperfocal is only useful under certain circumstances--landscapes for instance. If you're looking for sharpness in say a portrait, the focal plane is sharper then the DOF indicated by a DOF calculator. At least I've read about this.

That would certainly coincide with my experience. Portraits are governed by "focus on the nearest eye." The maybe that formula was determined using Hyperfocal awareness, but at this point, it has nothing to do with any theory, it's just a long noted observation of something that works a high percentage of the time. Hyperfocal is for landscapes and sometimes macros, but the concept does creep in from time to time in other shooting. I'd say hyperfocal awareness probably impinges more on my shooting than the rule of thirds say. One of the most critical parts of any image would be "what's in focus, that's out of focus" and it takes an understanding of hyper focus to even begin to address that.

[BrianR]

I think Hyperfocal is only useful under certain circumstances--landscapes for instance. If you're looking for sharpness in say a portrait, the focal plane is sharper then the DOF indicated by a DOF calculator. At least I've read about this.

That's pretty much it, things on the plane of focus (usually not quite a flat plane) are the sharpest and as your subject moves away from this plane they get gradually more and more out of focus. The DoF is just the region where this 'out of focus-ness' is within some set tolerances, and these tolerances will vary with many variables (viewing conditions, print size, eyesight, etc.). There's no magic cut off at the edge of the 'DoF'.

More reading at the Cambridge in Colour website Understanding Depth of Field in Photography and their calculator (hit "show advanced" to muck around with viewing conditions): A Flexible Depth of Field Calculator

[Igelkotten]

Ricoh GXR does that, It has distance scale on left side of the live view screen and green band on it showing depth of field amount. Lenght of green bar changes when changing aperture. I guess GR and GR II has that too.

Edit: http://www.waloszek.de/gxr_focus_e.php
scroll half way dwn and you can see example how it works.

Great, hope we get that in an Pentax DSLR in a near future.

The link didn't work....