Question about using high f-stop

[LuckySe7en]

This may seem like a silly question but I'm curious. I shoot a lot of portraiture and I find that my f/number is very rarely over 8. I'm always trying to seperate the subject from the background so I use wide apertures. Am I missing out by sticking to this theory?
When do you guys use high f/numbers like f16-22 in portraiture? or any style of photography?

Thanks

 

[480sparky]

Small apertures help in landscapes and macros.

 

[analog.universe]

I go to f/16 and f/22 in landscape when I don't have a choice... Sometimes I need something in focus at infinity, and also half a meter from the lens. Sometimes you need to do it in macro just to get a few centimeters of field. On most lenses though, once you get past 11 you start to pay the price of diffraction, so I'll only go there if I need to. When I shoot portraits I'm rarely over 8 as well.

 

[Derrel]

"High f/stop" is not a correct term to use: I think you mean use a "high" f/number, like f/16 or f/22, which actually refers to a tiny aperture...a very small hole...one that makes a lot of the picture from near to far, come into good focus. f/11,f/13,f/16,etc--these settings are useful when you want to get as much in-focus as possible, such as when doing close-up photos, or landscapes,etc.

Think of the 16 or 22 as a fraction: think of it as allowing in only 1/16 as much light as the lens can possibly collect. Or think of it as the lens being only, "one-sixteenth of the way open." (this is a shorthand method many beginners will find useful.)

THe way you are using the terms is a bit newb-ish....when you say your f/stop is "rarely over 8"--it's not clear what you mean by "over". By traditional,conventional use of the terms relating to f/stop and aperture, the term "over" refers to a LOWER NUMBER, and a higher light-gathering capacity. "Over" means "allowing in more light"....as in "over-exposing". Apertures "under" f/8 would be f/11,f/16,f/22, etc...

 

[o hey tyler]

This may seem like a silly question but I'm curious. I shoot a lot of portraiture and I find that my f-stop is very rarely over 8. I'm always trying to seperate the subject from the background so I use wide apertures. Am I missing out by sticking to this theory?
When do you guys use high f-stops like f16-22 in portraiture? or any style of photography?

Thanks

I try to never use f/22 unless it's absolutely necessary. The farther you stop down most lenses, the more pronounced diffraction will become. I don't use small apertures when shooting portraits generally, unless it's a studio portrait.

There was a guy on here who shot portraits of hip hop artists and DJs in urban environments near dusk using a small aperture and a single speedlight aimed at the subject. The compositions were generally pretty bad and it was accentuated by the prevalence of the background in the images. Of course, everyone fawned over them because they recognized hip hop artists, but they were actually REALLY bad (IMO).

f/8 is about what I'd suggest shooting studio portraits at if you're not concerned about background control.

 

[jwbryson1]

"High f/stop" is not a correct term to use: I think you mean use a "high" f/number, like f/16 or f/22, which actually refers to a tiny aperture...a very small hole...one that makes a lot of the picture from near to far, come into good focus. f/11,f/13,f/16,etc--these settings are useful when you want to get as much in-focus as possible, such as when doing close-up photos, or landscapes,etc.

Think of the 16 or 22 as a fraction: think of it as allowing in only 1/16 as much light as the lens can possibly collect. Or think of it as the lens being only, "one-sixteenth of the way open." (this is a shorthand method many beginners will find useful.)

Derrell, I'm glad you posted this. The other day, somebody referred to a high f/stop in a question and I didn't respond because I figured I'd get flamed if I misunderstood what they meant.

 

[2WheelPhoto]

I'm still TEED my Sigma 1.4 won't go past f/16! I want maximum diffractional hellish distortion, f/16 just isn't enough pain

 

[Big Mike]

This may seem like a silly question but I'm curious. I shoot a lot of portraiture and I find that my f-stop is very rarely over 8. I'm always trying to seperate the subject from the background so I use wide apertures. Am I missing out by sticking to this theory?
When do you guys use high f-stops like f16-22 in portraiture? or any style of photography?

Thanks

Besides exposure, we use the aperture to control the depth of field. So if you want to separate your subject from the background, with selective focus, then you will tend to use larger apertures. There are times when you might want your background to be in focus as well, so you would choose a smaller aperture. There are many times/types of photography where you want to maximize your DOF, rather than limit it. Close up/Macro photography, landscapes, architectural, products, industrial etc. It's largely a creative choice, so there usually isn't a wrong or right.

But there is something else to consider, which some are hinting at. The smaller your aperture, the more you will run into image quality loss due to diffraction. It typically starts to set in once you go smaller than F8 or F11. By F16 it's likely to be fairly noticeable and by F22 or F29, it's probably getting pretty bad.

This is why it's beneficial to understand hyper-focal focusing. This will allow you to calculate the aperture which will give you the DOF that you want/need, so that you don't just use the smallest aperture as a default.

 

[LuckySe7en]

Thanks a lot guys. And Derrel, I apologize for the improper term usage. I really wanted to say f/number but thought that wasn't correct lol I'm still taking in knowledge, thanks.
I thought about using a high f/number in an attempt to get a natural vignette for a certain shot but didn't try it. I dont' even know if this is possible.

 

[480sparky]

Thanks a lot guys. And Derrel, I apologize for the improper term usage. I really wanted to say f/number but thought that wasn't correct lol I'm still taking in knowledge, thanks.
I thought about using a high f/number in an attempt to get a natural vignette for a certain shot but didn't try it. I dont' even know if this is possible.

The lens' aperture generally doesn't cause vignetting.

 

[analog.universe]

Thanks a lot guys. And Derrel, I apologize for the improper term usage. I really wanted to say f/number but thought that wasn't correct lol I'm still taking in knowledge, thanks.
I thought about using a high f/number in an attempt to get a natural vignette for a certain shot but didn't try it. I dont' even know if this is possible.

Some lenses will vignette when shot wide open, or close to it. This is mostly typical of fast wide primes, but occurs elsewhere as well. The only success I've had with intentional vignettes has been by hand with multiple layers in post. ymmv...

 

[jake337]

You could use a smaller aperture and still separate your subject from the background by using longer focal lengths. Or by making sure your subject to background distance is huge.

 

[LuckySe7en]

I guess in general for portraiture, I'm actually gaining instead of losing by keeping a wide aperture. I just wanted to make sure I wasn't missing out on some creativity

 

[jake337]

I guess in general for portraiture, I'm actually gaining instead of losing by keeping a wide aperture. I just wanted to make sure I wasn't missing out on some creativity

Well that entirely depends on the image you want to create. Do you want your whole subjects head and hair in focus or do you want the nose and ears to be OOF and just the eyes in focus. Using a shallow DOF can look strange on a subject when they are turned 45 degrees because their back eye will be OOF. Also everything that is OOF will gradually become magnified, so the OOF ears and nose may become enlarged. This could depend on the size of your subjects nose and ears of course. If it's already big it doesn't need to be magnified more.

 

[KmH]

Lens aperture is only one of the adjustments a photographer has control over that affect DoF.

The lens focal length, focus point distance, and distance from the focal point to the backgrond are factors that also have to be considered.

DoF seems to be one of the main technical subjects many amateurs have difficulty understanding.