Understanding Depth of Field (Oct 11)

Date: October 11, 2025

Meeting: Saturday, 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM CST

Location: Online Zoom Classroom

Cost: $90 (HCP members can receive a 10% discount)

Instructor: Christine Callahan

Skill Level: Beginners

In this workshop, participants explore creative possibilities utilizing depth of field (DOF), lens choice, and selective focus. We will cover all aspects of aperture settings, focus options, and effects of multiple focal lengths. Participants will partake in several photographic exercises to explore the relationship between aperture settings, distance to the subject, and creating emphasis through intentional points of sharpness. Additional topics include ISO, manual exposure, low-light situations, and dynamic camera angles.

Objectives:

• Explore the relationship between aperture and depth of field 

• Discover how lenses’ focal lengths affect the depth of field 

• Practice photographing to achieve great depth of field and maximum sharpness 

• Practice photographing to achieve shallow depth of field and selective focus areas 

• Practice using manual and auto-focus options

Prerequisites: 

Photography I or working knowledge of shutter speed and ISO settings. The ability to share your computer screen via Zoom.

Course Prep: 

Please have your DSLR or mirrorless camera ready to photograph during the online session. We will be running our classroom using Zoom software (free). Please download it in advance: https://zoom.us/. To view images, we will use the screen-sharing option in Zoom. Please set your computer settings to allow for sharing (see this link on screen sharing https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/201362153-Sharing-your-screen-or-desktop-on-Zoom).