Depth of Field (DoF)
Definition
Depth of Field refers to the range of distance within a shot that appears acceptably sharp and in focus. A "shallow" depth of field (achieved with a wide aperture, long focal length, or close subject distance) means that only a narrow plane of the image is sharp, with the foreground and background appearing blurred. This technique is widely used to isolate a subject from its environment and draw the viewer's attention. A "deep" depth of field (achieved with a narrow aperture or wide-angle lens) means that a large portion of the image, from near to far, appears sharp.
Contextual Usage
The DP explains the visual strategy to the director: "For the intimate scenes, I want to use a very shallow Depth of Field — shooting wide open at T1.4 — to create a sense of vulnerability and focus. For the action sequences, we'll stop down to T8 to keep everything sharp and give a more documentary feel."
About this section
Production — or "principal photography" — is the phase in which the film or video is actually shot. It is the most visible and, typically, the most expensive phase of the entire process. Every day on ...
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