 Bryan Baars |
Understanding Focus On the other hand, when zooming in, the focus distance increases dramatically: i.e. full-zoom provides .5m to 50m, then infinity. While this helps, a lot of the landscape I may have wanted to capture in the picture is lost. Realizing I can move my position from where the picture is shot, there will (and have been) times where that option is not available. I've experimented with using small aperatures at wide-angle to deepen the depth of field, but with limited success. Even though I can get a decent depth of field, if the focus isn't set, the pictures will always be blurry. Is this simply the way focus distance and focal length works? Or could this be a limitation of the camera I'm using (Minolta Dimage 7i)? Do other cameras provide more 'flexibility' in regards to focus at wide angle? Thanks in advance to any responses. Best regards,
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Peter K. Burian |
I must admit I don't really understand the question, but your camera/lens is no different than any other in terms of focus, depth of field, etc. Try this if you want maximum depth of field with any lens. Focus on a point about a third of the way up from the bottom of the frame. i.e. about a third of the way into the landscape. Set a small aperture such as f/16. Most everything in the foreground/background should be reasonably sharp, esp. when using a wide angle lens. Also, review these articles on the Web: http://photos8.xtramsn.co.nz/editorial/EditorialStart.phpx?article=PhotoQuiz§ion=FEATUREDPROJECT AND http://photos.msn.com/resources/targeted/en-us/editorial/ExtendYourCreativeEye_p.htm Cheers! Peter Burian
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Bryan Baars |
I apologize for the confusion. I guess my question was strictly on focus (I'll keep DOF out of the equation). At wide-angle, when I use the manual focus, I can only focus on things that are within ~1ft to ~6ft of my shooting position (this is indicated on the LED when turning the focus ring). This is a problem with landscape shots as most subjects are well over 6ft away. E.g: Attempting to focus on a house and yard that's 50ft away would be futile effort - it will always be blurry. On the other hand, if I zoom the lens, I can now focus on subjects that are ~1ft to ~150ft (or further) away. However, when I zoom in, I would lose a good portion of the subject that I'm shooting. The million dollar question - why is the focusing distance so different between wide-angle and zoomed shots? By the way, those websites are a very good resource. Thanks!
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Peter K. Burian |
Bryan: I guess I don't understand the problem. << I can only focus on things that are within ~1ft to ~6ft of my shooting position (this is indicated on the LED when turning the focus ring). >> Any lens lets you focus at any distance up to infinity. I just don't understand what's stopping you from doing that. (LED??) Infinity focus is rarely the ideal distance for landscapes, unless the entire scene is very far away. See my suggestion about focusing a third of the way into the scene. Cheers! Peter Burian, http://www.betterphoto.com/reviews/reviewItemDetail.php?reviewItemID=786
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