(Please note that ‘live view,’ in the Canon 40D, Mark III, and new Nikon D3, may adjust the light – more on that in the next Blog. However, if you’re like most of us who don’t upgrade equipment every 6 months, then you’re stuck with a bright viewfinder.)
Shouldn’t the image get darker?
You’re using a smaller opening, such as going from f 5.6 to f 11.0 and this lets less light into the camera so the actual image is darker but what you see through the viewfinder remains bright because the lens aperture doesn’t change until you press the shutter.
We know that increasing the f-stop also increases the depth of field. This means that more objects will be in focus.
Here’s an simulated example of a shot taken at f 8.0 and f 16.0. It’s apparent that the f 16.0 shot on the right does a better job of keeping both flowers in focus.
Likewise, if you’re shooting a landscape, you’d like to keep the trees, rivers and mountains sharp – after all, nobody wants to see a crisp mountain top with the rest of the scene blurred and smudged.
To see a larger image of this picture, click here
Here’s a solution: press that strange looking button near the bottom of the lens (if you’re a canon owner) and look through the viewfinder.
The scene will not only darken but also show the actual DOF. Don’t have owl’s eyes?
Yes, this is tough to see but DOF buttons have been around for generations. The camera companies kept the tradition going on their digital models.
Some still find it useful...
Examples are:
1. Using DOF preview on a macro lens
2. Using this with a ND filter to correcting position the transition
3. Impressing your friends who don’t have SLR cameras
Stay tuned: We’ll talk more about using the DOF button with the new live view feature on the recent Canon and Nikon models.
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