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Photography Question 

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Depth of Feild


When shooting outside on a relatively sunny day with 400 speed film what F-stop would you use to allow the subject to be out of focus? Or could you even accomplish this through the F-stop?


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February 15, 2001

 

John A. Lind
  Sara,

This would be accomplished by setting the f-stop (aperture) for the desired DOF. The exact DOF will be dependent on that, the focal length of the lens, and the focus distance you uset.

One note about ISO 400 outdoors on a sunny day. You will be hard pressed to control DOF much with a film this fast. On a sunny day (clear sun) in the sunlight: at f/16, you would be shooting at 1/500th second; at f/11, 1/1000th second; and at f/8, 1/2000th second. Even at f/8 and closer focusing distances you will still have a sizeable DOF. I recommend trying ISO 100, 125, or 160 film. ISO 100 will allow apertures two stops wider than for ISO 400.

-- John


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February 15, 2001

 
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