Is this ok??

[TamiAz]

What don't you understand?

I don't understand near and far limit and the total.

I plugged in 50mm lens, f.28 and subject distance 3 feet.

 

[Dominantly]

You should input different distances and watch the limits change. Also read the entire page top to bottom.

Like this part:
"Image clarity or sharpness is not just a matter of focusing a lens on the subject. There is an area in front of and behind the sharp focus plane that is also sharp or clear, and the extent of this area changes, depending on the focal length of the lens, the focusing distance, and the aperture used. This three-dimensional area of sharp focus is called depth of field. "

So your Depth of Field for any given aperture, is more then the exact focal plane you have chosen (IE an eye). There is an area just before it, and just after it, that sort of fade IN/OUT acceptable sharpness and clarity. This goes from tiny to grand depending on your subject distance and your aperture.

 

[ph0enix]

This is one thing I wish I had someone to talk to about.. I don't completely understand it.

Search the forum. DOF has been discussed in detail many times.

 

[Dominantly]

What don't you understand?

I don't understand near and far limit and the total.

I plugged in 50mm lens, f.28 and subject distance 3 feet.

SO it tells you that you had a depth of field of .12' which is fairly tiny. If you had focused on her left eye, you had .6' in front of, and .6' behind that, that was acceptably sharp.

It's important to remember that with this thin of a focal plane, if you are shooting at an angle, or you focus and recompose, you can change where that focal plane lands.

 

[thereyougo!]

Tami, what was your aperture on this one?

It was 2.8. It was getting dark and I didn't want to increase my iso, which was at 400. Would it have been better to increase my iso and use a deeper dof?

I would have increased the ISO personally and got it more in focus. Unless you are a pixel peeper the shot looks better if it's correctly focussed. If you get the exposure correct you'd hardly notice any noise. You just have to watch your contrast levels. ISO of say 640 would give you a bit of scope to go to f/4 or f/5.6 which would give you more DOF

 

[TamiAz]

What don't you understand?

I don't understand near and far limit and the total.

I plugged in 50mm lens, f.28 and subject distance 3 feet.

SO it tells you that you had a depth of field of .12' which is fairly tiny. If you had focused on her left eye, you had .6' in front of, and .6' behind that, that was acceptably sharp.

It's important to remember that with this thin of a focal plane, if you are shooting at an angle, or you focus and recompose, you can change where that focal plane lands.

Thank you.. I've read about depth of field and I actually downloaded a calculator on my phone. I just wasn't sure how to apply it. I'm going to be practicing this weekend so I'll pull out a tape measure and the dof calculator and play.

 

[TamiAz]

This is one thing I wish I had someone to talk to about.. I don't completely understand it.

Search the forum. DOF has been discussed in detail many times.

Trust me, I've read and read and read... I understand the basics of dof, but I didn't understand how to use the calculator.

 

[Ms.Nash]

but does shallow dof ever work for you in a portrait situation or is it a complete no-no?

 

[MTVision]

but does shallow dof ever work for you in a portrait situation or is it a complete no-no?

http://christinenash.smugmug.com/Nature/Photoforum/20938916_gFn8hv#!i=1670919665&k=PpkR993&lb=1&s=A

If you can nail focus and get both eyes completely sharp.....

 

[photog4life]

but does shallow dof ever work for you in a portrait situation or is it a complete no-no?

If you can nail focus and get both eyes completely sharp.....

which she didnt...

 

[MTVision]

which she didnt...

Which was my point

 

[ph0enix]

but does shallow dof ever work for you in a portrait situation or is it a complete no-no?

You can have shallow DOF in a portrait but usually you want to get the entire face in focus. It does not work in this photo.

 

[MTVision]

Tami -
Anything at 3 feet is going to give you a really shallow DOF. At f/12 you are still going to have less then 6" of DOF. You are better off backing up - then cropping closer after.

 

[Ms.Nash]

thank you

 

[Ms.Nash]

but does shallow dof ever work for you in a portrait situation or is it a complete no-no?

If you can nail focus and get both eyes completely sharp.....

which she didnt...

I am aware it's not in focus but I was just asking if (and obviously it's never) acceptable. The same thing happened here - I missed focus on the left eye? and the shutter was too slow but I thought maybe creatively on the other one perhaps