Snowdrops in the Vale - Depth of Field Explained

Depth of field is a term that is used in photography that describes the amount of distance between the nearest and farthest objects that appear in acceptably sharp focus in a photograph. Depth of field is referred to a 'DoF' in some camera manuals or texts.

Depth of field is controlled by the aperture setting.  A small aperture (high 'f' number - ie f22) will give a large depth of field or a wider area of sharp focus and a large aperture (low 'f' number - ie f4) will give a small depth of field or a narrower area of sharp focus.

The images below, of Snowdrops in the Vale of Belvoir, were taken on a Nikon D800 with a 60mm f2.8 AF-D micro lens and mounted on a sturdy tripod.  The first image was taken at f7.1 and the focus point was the snowdrop on the left of the image.  As you can see the DoF is very shallow, with just the front Snowdrop in focus.  In fact the DoF is so shallow not all of the flower head is perfectly sharp.

Aperture on the lens is set for f7.1 and produces a shallow depth of field

In this image the aperture on the lens was set to f32 and as you can see the DoF is now a lot bigger, with more of the background in focus.

Aperture on the lens is set for f32 and produces a deep depth of field

Like all things in photography, the perfect amount of Depth of field in an image can be quite subjective. What is adequate for one photographer may be unacceptable for another. It is all a matter of personal taste when selecting the appropriate use of DoF to enhance an effect in a photograph.  

Personally I love portrait and street photography images that show a shallow depth of field but for landscapes front to back sharpness is very important in my work.

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