For this exercise we were asked to take three photographs of a scene with depth, with a focal point at different depths in the scene. Unfortunately due to time pressures the photographs are not the most beautiful or interesting, but they do illustrate the concept of “Shallow depth of field” quite well.
So which of the photographs do I prefer? It would have to be the first photograph were the focal point is deep in the photograph and the lamppost and building are sharp and in focus. It’s the most visually appealing photograph because compared to the other two there is more interesting subject matter in focus. The closer the focal point gets to the camera, the more the building and lamppost are thrown out of focus, and this makes for a less engaging photograph. That is not to say that the first photograph is an attention grabbing or show stopping image. Below you will see an portrait of my daughter were I have used a shallow depth of field and leading lines to draw attention to her as the subject of the photograph.
I find a photograph of my daughter or interesting than the three above because; –
- it has my daughter in it
- it’s more colourful
- it hasn’t been taken to illustrate a technical point in photography
- I find people more interesting than lampposts.