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If you want to be creative in your digital photography depth of field is one aspect you must get comfortable with. This is the distance between the nearest and farthest points that appears in acceptably sharp focus in digital photography. The range within which all subjects, though located at different distances from the camera, are in focus and with an aperture setting. In digital photography this takes more importance due to the fact on some occasions focal issues change depending on your lens.

When practicing your digital photography, ss a rule of thumb, the area 1/3 in front of and 2/3 behind the subject is the actual distance in focus. If for example you were looking at an item which varies over time (such as an assembly line), will the object always be at the working distance precisely or will it tend to move farther or nearer over time to the lens/camera combination? A depth of field from five to 16 feet, e.g., would mean everything closer than five feet and farther than 16 feet would be out of focus.

Another aspect of digital photography is this; Depth of field is influenced by the focal length of the lens in use, the f-number setting on the lens, and the distance from the camera to the subject. It can be shallow or deep, and can be totally controlled by the photographer. It is one of the most creative and profound effects available to photographers.

Depth of field varies with lens aperture, focal length, and camera-to-subject distance. Depth of field depends on the lens opening, the focal length of the lens, and the distance from the lens to the subject. With a greater depth of field, more of the scene near to far is in focus. Lens aperture and scene lighting will greatly influence the D.O.F. When the lens is set to a smaller aperture, a greater depth of field results i.e. subjects close to and further away from the camera will still appear in focus. In digital photography especially a shallow depth of field allows you to focus tightly on your subject, with any background or foreground out of focus.

You can control or exploit depth of field in your digital photography by varying three factors: the size of the aperture; the distance of the camera from the subject; and the focal length of the lens. If you decrease the size of the aperture, the depth of field increases; if you focus on a distant subject, depth of field will be greater than if you focus on a near subject; and if you fit a wide-angle lens to your camera, it will give you greater depth of field than a normal lens viewing the same scene. Many SLRs have a depth of field preview control – a button that closes the lens diaphragm to the aperture selected for an exposure so that the depth of field in the image can be checked on the viewing screen first.

If you are not sure how to make interesting composition in digital photography then I recommend starting with narrowing your depth of field. The best way becoming expertly skilled in digital photography is to practice, practice, and practice!

Best wishes, Amy

If you want to Get Clear, Sharp Digital Photos With Superb Detail And Clarity Even If You Never So Much As Picked Up A Digital Camera Before In Less Than 14 Days then go to www.digitalphotographysuccess.com

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So, you’re wanting to get a new lens, but you’re not completely sure whether to get a prime lens or a zoom lens. Both of them have their advantages and disadvantages, and you want to make sure you make the right decision and buy the lens which best fits your photography needs.

In case you weren’t already aware, the main difference between a zoom lens and prime lens is that a zoom lens enables you to adjust your focal length between a certain range (for example 18-50mm), whereas a prime lens has a fixed focal length.

So you might be wondering what the point is of using a prime lens. Surely if you have the choice between a lens with flexibility and one without flexibility, then surely the flexible one is the best one, right? Well, it’s not really as straightforward as that, because prime lenses do have some good points. To start with, they are lighter than zoom lenses because they have less moving parts. Mechanically speaking, they are simpler.

In addition to this, prime lenses often have wider apertures. The aperture of a lens controls how much light the lens lets in at any one time. Aperture ratings are in ratios, for example 1:3.5 or 1:2.8, but usually when buying a lens you will see it shown without the 1 in front of it, for example 3.5. Lenses with lower aperture numbers are more expensive, because a lower number means a wider aperture. Having a wide aperture produces a shallow depth of field, meaning that only a small distance range is in focus. A narrow depth of field (a wide aperture) would be great for close-ups of flowers where you want the background blurred, whereas a large depth-of-field (a small aperture) would be ideal for landscape photos.

Okay, so how about zoom lenses?

Well, a zoom lens will give you a bigger range of distances to compose your image. This means that you don’t need to walk closer or further away from your subject to get the picture you’re after. It can also be great for taking pictures of wildlife, because you can zoom in without having to change your position, so you will be less likely to frighten the animal off.

The best way to decide which type of lens is right for you is to ask yourself what kinf of photography you are going to be doing. If you are going to be shooting a scene which remains still, such as a landscape scene, then a prime lens could be a good choice. If on the other hand you want to shoot things that are moving, such as animals, people, or sports photography, then a zoom lens is essential.

It’s not always easy trying to make this kind of decision, but no matter what you decide, a Canon 85mm Lens or a Nikon 17-55mm 2.8 Lens are good examples of the type of lenses that will always be useful to have as part of your photography kit.

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Prime lens or a Zoom lens?