Unit 57 Blog Essay For Shallow And Large Depth Of Field

1. By Chelsie Brandrick Page 1
Unit 57 Blog Essay for Shallow and Large Depth of Field
By Chelsie Brandrick
A camera can only focus its lens at a single point when taking a photograph. The zone
of sharpness within a photo that appears in focus is called the depth of field. Some
images may have small zones and some large. If a part of an image is in focus in the
foreground that is a shallow depth of field and if everything in the photo is in focus
that’s a large depth of field. Shallow depth of field is great for making the subject of a
photograph stand out from it’s background, whilst large depth of field is better when
capturing a large scene and want everything to be viewed equally in the photo.
Shallow depth is typically used for wildlife photography and large depth is the most
common technique used in photography as all point and shoot cameras will capture
images using it when on auto mode. To create a depth of field, the aperture will need
to be high and the f-stop number will be low. A low f-stop number and large aperture
will produce a very shallow depth of field and a small aperture and high f-stop will
create a large depth of field.
Tim Laman is a wildlife photojournalist from Japan who regularly takes photos of the
mountains and oceans using shallow and large depth of field techniques. Tim’s large
depth photos are often of vast landscapes and are very inspiring and capturing.
Whereas his shallow depth photos are personal, intimate and transport you to the
scene. I was inspired by his photography when taking my images as I wanted to try
and take photos that were both interesting to look at and had a personal feel.
Shallow Depth of Field Large Depth of Field

2. By Chelsie Brandrick Page 2
I took my large depth of field photographs at night around Westminster, London, as I
know the architecture there is amazing and it would be quiet after 8pm. I
experimented with angles and found that looking up at the buildings created a better
image especially once edited. As my images were taken outside I used natural lighting
but because it was pitch black I had a high ISO to counter balance the darkness. I
wanted to take photos of the National Gallery in Trafalgar Square as the Westminster
Attack vigil was there and I thought the contrast of one of London’s most famous
landmarks in contrast to a vigil would make a good personal photo. During the edit I
added purple and green highlights to my photos as I thought they improved the
images and contrasted the black night background. I like using colour to differentiate
my images from what has already been captured.
Large Depth of Field
Aperture: f/8.0
ISO: 800
Shutter Speed: 1/50
Focal Length: 14.0 mm
Equipment: Panasonic Lumix G Camera
My shallow depth of field photos where captured during my stay in the countryside. I
went for a walk one morning and took my images along the way. I experimented with
different subject matters and found that I needed to contrast the foreground with the
background to take a more interesting image. I especially like the photo I took of a
wooden gate as I think the blue-sky contrasts the darker gate, which sets the scene
well. Flowers and plants were the easiest to demonstrate this technique on as they are
still so it was quicker to set up my cameras settings accordingly. As my images were
taken outside I used natural lighting but because it was early in the morning I had a
low ISO to balance out the bright sun. During the edit I didn’t alter my images very
much, I increased the exposure and saturation slightly to make the green surroundings
brighter. I didn’t feel much editing was needed, as the subject matter is natural I
wanted to keep the editing natural too.
Shallow Depth of Field
Aperture: f/3.6

3. By Chelsie Brandrick Page 3
ISO: 160
Shutter Speed: 1/160 – 1/325
Focal Length: 33.0 mm
Equipment: Panasonic Lumix G Camera