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DPChallenge Forums >> Tips, Tricks, and Q&A >> What's so special about f/8?
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Showing posts 26 - 50 of 74, (reverse)
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 12/18/2006 11:53:33 AM · #26
Originally posted by fotomann_forever:
Originally posted by hankk:
Originally posted by Bear_Music:

Incidentally, when I say "f/8 and be there" is a carryover from the film days, that's because with today's sophisticated auto exposure/autofocus modes the game has changed.

R.

Sounds like the saying is more from the days before cameras had built-in lightmeters, the fact that they were film cameras was incidental.


Not really, even with built-in light meters, it takes valuable seconds to dial in correct exposure. f/8 would get you the shot.


Correct; the saying derives from the days when there was NO autoexposure and NO autofocus. Even though the cameras began to have on-board metering, you still wanted to be set to the approximate correct exposure and focus at all times for from-the-hip shots.

R.
 12/18/2006 01:05:41 PM · #27
I'm gonna try some f/8. I hardly ever go there anyhoo.
Great thread.
 12/18/2006 01:09:01 PM · #28
Ah, f/8. If you haven't tried it yet, you're gonna. How do I know? Simple, it's f8! ;-)
 12/18/2006 01:11:21 PM · #29
I'm going to try the f/8 & 1/125 when I'm out and about.

But something's been bugging me. Is it f/8 or F/8? Does it matter?

Message edited by author 2006-12-18 13:16:30.
 12/18/2006 01:14:54 PM · #30
It also works well as a good, general purpose, don't care aperture.

At F8 most stuff that you care about will be in focus, without too much depth of field concerns. It is towards the sharpest part of focus for any given lens (a couple of stops from wide open) and the best choice if you don't care about the depth of field in the scene.

Wide open makes sense if you want or need shallow depth of field for a shot. Stopped way down makes sense if you want or need lots of depth of field. F8 is great if you don't care but want a sharp picture.
 12/18/2006 01:19:20 PM · #31
The correct way of writing it is f/8 and not F/8 or F8.
 12/18/2006 01:24:02 PM · #32
f/8 is for filobits
and
F/8 is for FiloBytes

:P
 12/18/2006 01:24:29 PM · #33
Originally posted by candlerain:
The correct way of writing it is f/8 and not F/8 or F8.


or f/8.0 or f.8 or any way you like really. Doubt there is an actual 'correct' way to put it.
 12/18/2006 01:35:43 PM · #34
Maybe we should ask Bear, just to be sure. ;)
 12/18/2006 01:46:23 PM · #35
Originally posted by Mick:
Maybe we should ask Bear, just to be sure. ;)


Bear's seen it done many ways; the most common seem to be f/8 and f:8. Bear uses f/8 unless he's starting a sentence, in which case he use F/8 even though it doesn't quite look right to him. Bear is weird that way; starting a sentence with a lower-case letter looks even worse to his literary sensibilities.

R.
 12/18/2006 01:54:17 PM · #36
Gordon finds it weirder when people refer to themselves in the third person. Gordon has always found that odd.
 12/18/2006 01:55:50 PM · #37
kirbic finds it odd as well; jarring. Almost, well, unbearable. ;-)
 12/18/2006 02:00:16 PM · #38
Originally posted by Bear_Music:


One thing you learn early on in photojournalism on breaking events is "lift the camera to your eye, shoot, then start focusing", basically. Don't waste any time trying to "get it perfect" until you have first recorded it.

R.


Wow, something I am going to keep in mind, thanks!
 12/18/2006 02:22:37 PM · #39
Originally posted by lakota:
Originally posted by Bear_Music:


One thing you learn early on in photojournalism on breaking events is "lift the camera to your eye, shoot, then start focusing", basically. Don't waste any time trying to "get it perfect" until you have first recorded it.

R.


Wow, something I am going to keep in mind, thanks!


Or bear it in mind, of course.
 12/18/2006 02:58:39 PM · #40
Originally posted by kirbic:
kirbic finds it odd as well; jarring. Almost, well, unbearable. ;-)


Well, I'm glad you and Gordon found it weird, since that is how it was intended. Heck, "weird" was even in the sentence :-)

Bear rests his case and wonders what's for dinner.

R.
 12/18/2006 03:03:05 PM · #41
anything beyond f/8 and my sensor dust begins to show up!!! :0P
 12/18/2006 03:29:24 PM · #42
Originally posted by kirbic:
kirbic finds it odd as well; jarring. Almost, well, unbearable. ;-)


Spaz likes the idea. Spaz will now adopt the practice and use it exclusively.

Spaz also likes f8 and will now only use f8 and no other aperture.

Spaz is not weird, everyone else is.
 12/18/2006 03:37:02 PM · #43
Megatherian wonders why they don't make lenses with a fixed aperture of f/:.8 and label them as specialty journalism lenses and charge a fortune for them.
 12/18/2006 03:42:32 PM · #44
Originally posted by Spazmo99:
Originally posted by kirbic:
kirbic finds it odd as well; jarring. Almost, well, unbearable. ;-)


Spaz likes the idea. Spaz will now adopt the practice and use it exclusively.

Spaz also likes f8 and will now only use f8 and no other aperture.

Spaz is not weird, everyone else is.


Gordon thinks you should refer to yourself as The Spaz and not just Spaz
 12/18/2006 03:43:07 PM · #45
Originally posted by Megatherian:
Megatherian wonders why they don't make lenses with a fixed aperture of f/:.8 and label them as specialty journalism lenses and charge a fortune for them.

And I wonder why you put the idea out in the public domain instead of rushing down to the US Patent and Trademark Office ... : )
 12/18/2006 03:43:14 PM · #46
Originally posted by Megatherian:
Megatherian wonders why they don't make lenses with a fixed aperture of f/:.8 and label them as specialty journalism lenses and charge a fortune for them.


I'd love a f/.8 lens. Kubrik used a f/0.7 lens for 2001. Now that's some shallow DoF
 12/18/2006 03:46:43 PM · #47
Originally posted by Gordon:
Originally posted by Spazmo99:
Originally posted by kirbic:
kirbic finds it odd as well; jarring. Almost, well, unbearable. ;-)


Spaz likes the idea. Spaz will now adopt the practice and use it exclusively.

Spaz also likes f8 and will now only use f8 and no other aperture.

Spaz is not weird, everyone else is.


Gordon thinks you should refer to yourself as The Spaz and not just Spaz


The Spaz agrees and thanks Gordon for the suggestion.

12/18/2006 08:40:01 PM · #48
but on overcast or not-so-sunny days, f8 and 1/125 ISO100 would result in blurry photos, no? People walking in the street will have blurry hands or legs due to subject motion?
 12/18/2006 08:53:37 PM · #49
Originally posted by crayon:
but on overcast or not-so-sunny days, f8 and 1/125 ISO100 would result in blurry photos, no? People walking in the street will have blurry hands or legs due to subject motion?

Art thinks a little motion blur in photojournalism can be a good thing. Art also wonders if the Mattel Barbie Photo Designer Digital Camera even has an f/8 / F8 / f/8 / f8.0 / F/8.0 setting. Art is also not my real name, nor a reflection of my images.
 12/18/2006 08:59:27 PM · #50
Bear mentioned leaving the focus set to hyperfocal - is that the same as infinity? (Or hang on, is it that spot just before infinity, so that everything from x feet to infinity is in focus...?)
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