Photographing the
Overall Garden:
Three Strategies for Focusing
STORY AND PHOTOS BY RON THOMAN, PENNSYLVANIA
PHOTO
TIP #3
Rule of Thumb Focusing: Larry and Debbie Westfall Garden; Focal length 18 mm, f/7.1, 1/200 sec, ISO 1800; Focus point is about 10 feet past the Buddha.
When taking a photo of the overall garden, it is
normally desirable to have everything in visually sharp
focus. The focusing method is important in accomplishing
this.
When focusing on a point, the visually sharp focus
extends a distance behind and in front of the actual focus
point. The total distance—the depth of field—increases
with smaller camera apertures and wider focal lengths.
Reducing camera movement is another key to sharp
photos. Since I find that carrying a tripod into the garden
is burdensome, I hand hold my Nikon D5200 DSLR
camera. I compensate by using higher shutter speeds
to freeze the action. Furthermore, my 18-mm to 105-mm
zoom lens has excellent vibration control.
There are three focusing strategies which are worthy
of consideration:
16 AIS Bulletin Winter 2019