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03/21/2010 12:52:49 PM · #1 |
| I would like to know on lens how do I know which F stop is the sharpest aperture? I've read that the overall sharpness aperture is usually 2 stops above its widest aperture? Also is f/8 or f/11 the sharpest aperture for landscapes? Any advise you can add Id appreciate it. Thanks!! |
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03/21/2010 01:04:00 PM · #2 |
It will depend on the individual lens. But the 2 stops above rule is a good rule of thumb.
Here is a pretty good guide: How To Find Your Lens' Sweet Spot
Message edited by author 2010-03-21 13:06:22. |
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03/21/2010 01:19:24 PM · #3 |
| The 2 stop above your widest is a general rule but it can also get you into trouble. Good lenses can be stopped down all the way and still get very sharp images. Lesser lenses will need the stop stop rule. But none of that takes into account depth of field (DOF). To get a sharp landscape from close in to infinity will require a different aperture if you are using a super-wide angle lens versus a medium telephoto. What I'm saying is that you need to consider the shot you are taking, the lens you are using and then what aperture you need to get the DOF (the part of the image you want sharp) needed. What I'm saying is the sweet spot of a lens varies depending on what you are shooting. Does that make sense? |
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03/21/2010 01:48:01 PM · #4 |
I just got a Tokina AF 11-16mm f/2.8 lens and want to start shooting landscapes but how would I know which F stop will be the sharpest?
Originally posted by jbsmithana:
The 2 stop above your widest is a general rule but it can also get you into trouble. Good lenses can be stopped down all the way and still get very sharp images. Lesser lenses will need the stop stop rule. But none of that takes into account depth of field (DOF). To get a sharp landscape from close in to infinity will require a different aperture if you are using a super-wide angle lens versus a medium telephoto. What I'm saying is that you need to consider the shot you are taking, the lens you are using and then what aperture you need to get the DOF (the part of the image you want sharp) needed. What I'm saying is the sweet spot of a lens varies depending on what you are shooting. Does that make sense? |
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03/21/2010 01:56:34 PM · #5 |
If you are going to shoot landscapes then you likely want a very deep DOF. It is not a matter of what is the sharpest F stop but more a case that you want to stop down a bit to get more DOF. A super-wide like the 11-16 can get quite a bit of DOF out of wider apertures but I think I would want to shoot at F11 or so.
Maybe  Bear_Music will come along and explain this better as he is a whiz at this stuff.
Message edited by author 2010-03-21 13:57:20. |
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03/21/2010 02:10:59 PM · #6 |
Hey Phuc!
You can check your lens at //www.slrgear.com/reviews/index.php, they have a blur index, where you can check there the ideal aperture depending on your zoom level.
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03/21/2010 02:21:02 PM · #7 |
| I've also read that you can put newsprint on a flat surface (like a wall) and take pictures of it at different apertures with your camera on a tripod to test it yourself. The camera needs to be pretty much at a 90 degree angle to the wall and the paper needs to be flat or else depth of field comes into play. |
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03/21/2010 03:38:46 PM · #8 |
Originally posted by MegaColor:
I just got a Tokina AF 11-16mm f/2.8 lens and want to start shooting landscapes but how would I know which F stop will be the sharpest? |
Superwide lenses have superwide DOF as well and the f/stop has less effect on DOF than with any other lens type. If I were you I would not worry about f/stop or the "sweet spot" at all. Just go out and shoot!
What I would worry about more is the general overall optical quality of the lens to start with. That is the determining factor, not the f/stop. If a superwide is soft overall then the f/stop or "sweet spot" won't matter at all.
My 16-35mm lens is my very best glass for landscapes. The sharpness and overall image quality is noticeably better than with any other lenses I use. And that is true almost independent of f/stop. That is because the DOF with short focal length lenses is incredibly wide compared to other lenses. (Telephoto lenses have the narrowest DOF)
With the superwide I routinely include foreground within a few feet of the lens and maintain tack sharp quality from there all the way out to infinity, even hand-held.
The trick is to properly select your primary point-of-focus between the foreground and background first to insure sharpness across the full range of the landscape. I almost always pick a primary point-of-focus between foreground and background using only the center focus point then compose the final image and finally click the shutter the rest of the way. I recommend you do that to.
Message edited by author 2010-03-21 15:40:34.
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03/21/2010 04:26:47 PM · #9 |
| thanks to everyone for their help!!! |
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