mommy-medic
No longer a newbie, moving up!
- Joined
- Dec 24, 2010
- Messages
- 456
- Reaction score
- 113
- Location
- Atlanta
- Can others edit my Photos
- Photos OK to edit
First of all, I have tried to do significantly less posting and more searching and reading. I have learned and grown so much and wanted to say a huge thank you to those who are consistently helpful to posters with questions. Being able to search through old threads has been most beneficial.
(Grr- accidentally hit "enter"- sorry if you're reading just the above and it makes no sense- standby- editing!)
I have read time and time again on here NOT to shoot wide open on a lens with a large aperture. I have a 50mm f/1.4 and have been reading and shooting and reading and shooting. I am attempting to really and truly *know* the lens intuitively at smaller apertures before I try opening it up. (Don't get me wrong, I've played at all ends of it, but I understand that it's going to be soft wide open, I understand that its DOF is super tiny at 1.4, and I'm trying to get a better handle on other apertures of it before I go anywhere near that end.)
"o hey tyler" and "pgriz" were very helpful in other posts with understanding focal lengths and focal length calculator.
This brings me to my question- If I am shooting a subject from a distance of approximately 4 feet, and using an aperture between f/4 and f/6.4, are there any considerations I need to think about that I may be missing now? To elaborate- at an aperture of f/4 and a camera-to-subject distance of 4 feet, the calculator says I have a focal area between 3.86 feet and 4.16 feet, or an area of about 0.3 feet (4"). If I am shooting from 4 feet at an aperture of f/6.4 it says my focal area is 3.78-4.25 feet, or about 0.48 feet (6"). My camera-to-subject distance is flexible but I will be working in a small room, so the closest distance would be about 4', and the max would be about 8'. I am wanting to capture details and delicate features, so a focal area/depth of 4" to 6" will be perfect. What would you all advise that maybe I am not factoring in? Is one going to be super sharp or crisp over the other? Is f/4 still too open and destined to be soft? I did take some practice shots this evening and I do see an ever-so-slight difference in crispness- but then again my shutter speed was a bit faster with the aperture opened up more so shake may have been a slight factor. (Sorry I don't have any test images to post).
It looks like I could even stop down to about f/11 and still have a pretty narrow DOF (less than 1'). I guess I am just looking for some feedback and advice. Obviously I will do some test shots and see what works best, but I don't want to preview images on my camera and maybe not realize that they are a bit soft until it's time to post process. So, experts- any words of wisdom? Advice?
(Grr- accidentally hit "enter"- sorry if you're reading just the above and it makes no sense- standby- editing!)
I have read time and time again on here NOT to shoot wide open on a lens with a large aperture. I have a 50mm f/1.4 and have been reading and shooting and reading and shooting. I am attempting to really and truly *know* the lens intuitively at smaller apertures before I try opening it up. (Don't get me wrong, I've played at all ends of it, but I understand that it's going to be soft wide open, I understand that its DOF is super tiny at 1.4, and I'm trying to get a better handle on other apertures of it before I go anywhere near that end.)
"o hey tyler" and "pgriz" were very helpful in other posts with understanding focal lengths and focal length calculator.
This brings me to my question- If I am shooting a subject from a distance of approximately 4 feet, and using an aperture between f/4 and f/6.4, are there any considerations I need to think about that I may be missing now? To elaborate- at an aperture of f/4 and a camera-to-subject distance of 4 feet, the calculator says I have a focal area between 3.86 feet and 4.16 feet, or an area of about 0.3 feet (4"). If I am shooting from 4 feet at an aperture of f/6.4 it says my focal area is 3.78-4.25 feet, or about 0.48 feet (6"). My camera-to-subject distance is flexible but I will be working in a small room, so the closest distance would be about 4', and the max would be about 8'. I am wanting to capture details and delicate features, so a focal area/depth of 4" to 6" will be perfect. What would you all advise that maybe I am not factoring in? Is one going to be super sharp or crisp over the other? Is f/4 still too open and destined to be soft? I did take some practice shots this evening and I do see an ever-so-slight difference in crispness- but then again my shutter speed was a bit faster with the aperture opened up more so shake may have been a slight factor. (Sorry I don't have any test images to post).
It looks like I could even stop down to about f/11 and still have a pretty narrow DOF (less than 1'). I guess I am just looking for some feedback and advice. Obviously I will do some test shots and see what works best, but I don't want to preview images on my camera and maybe not realize that they are a bit soft until it's time to post process. So, experts- any words of wisdom? Advice?
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