Photography tip: Depth of field

Low Depth of Field means that only a small "sliver" of the picture will be in focus, and the remaining parts of the picture space will be softly out-of-focus. This is very helpful for People photography, as long as the point of focus is always the subjects eyes.

There are two main ways to obtain low depth of field. Purchase a 50mm f1.8 lens, and set the lens to f1.8. Focus on the subject's eyes, and everything else should go out of focus. The closer the camera is to the subject, the greater the effect.

If you currently only have a zoom lens that came with your camera, you can still get a good effect without buying a new lens. Set the zoom lens to the longest setting, such a 200mm, and the f-stop at its lowest number, such as f5.6. Similar to the 50mm lens, the closer the camera is to the subject, the greater the effect. You may need to use a tripod however when using such a long lens. The longer the focal length, the greater the chance of camera shake.

Thanks to professional photographer Mark Hemmings (www.markhemmings.com) for writing this photo tip.