Poll - may sound mundane, but trust me...

[Psynema]

Not to sound arrogant, but I've noticed there's a lot of misconception about depth of field, so just as a poll and out of curiosity...

Everyone tell me the main factors that contribute to depth of field (yes most of us know the answer, but I want to see how many people know ALL of them).

 

[Ryan Patrick O'Hara]

Format size is the overlaying factor, after which it's
1. Aperture/F-stop
2. Lens length
3. Distance subject is from camera

Look at this article I wrote about it, and at the end is a link to the HIGHLY recommended video by Snodart!

http://ryanpatrickohara.blogspot.com/2008/05/depth-of-field.html

Hell, I'll just toss you the link to the video directly
http://www.snodart.com/tutorials/DOF_full.mov

 

[Psynema]

Ah, first one got it...thought this may not be the best forum to post in since stuff like this is already talked to death.

Not that many people I come across seem to know the focus distance thing, only focal length and aperture...odd...depends what circle you work with I guess. To me, seems like the focus distance is the black sheep of the bunch. See a lot of people shoot a subject from 15 feet away and a wall 4 feet behind the subject expecting a shallow DOF.

 

[Ryan Patrick O'Hara]

Yeah, the subject to lens distance one is the most forgotten. He is the Ringo of the bunch.

Speaking of walls behind subjects...

I had a director who INSISTED I shoot a "dolly-zoom" shot but the subjects were sitting on a couch with a wall right behind it! I don't think I could convince the director that the trick only works when there is depth to compress, not just a white wall. After debating for a bit, I set the shot up and let the footage speak for itself.

 

[J Michael]

Not that many people I come across seem to know the focus distance thing, only focal length and aperture...odd...depends what circle you work with I guess.

Yeah, circle of confusion no doubt.