Depth of Field

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Short Depth of Field

One thing I find particularly eye-catching about Diane Arbus’ is her focus on the subjects she shoots. The moment I opened her page, I noticed all of the faces of her subjects and how each one has a distinct depiction. From happy to sad and nonchalant to anxious, she provides a wide collection of expressions through her photography. One key element of these photos is that most of them have a short depth of field. For example, her photo of the Veteran with a Flag represents a person with solemn expression on his face and a blurred background to emphasize this idea of a short depth of field. her focus is sharply on the person, making viewers more inclined to feel the expressions of the person emotionally. The effect of a short depth of field allows the focus to be within a few feet, making whatever is in the background irrelevant. Ultimately, the strength of this photo comes from Diane’s ability to turn the viewer’s attention to the one man in focus.

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Long Depth of Field

Frank’s photography includes images that have a long depth of field. I specifically chose this photograph because of where my eyes were drawn to as soon as I looked at it. In comparison to Diane’s photograph which lead me straight to subject, Frank’s photograph made me focus on the full shot, due to the fact that nothing is blurred out and each subject leads to the next, which is a little further back each time. The four people get farther and farther away, pushing my focus not only to them specifically, but also the cars in the foreground, which are clearly visible. The sharpness of this photograph is universal and allows viewers to glance at everything in the shot whether it is close or far away. As a result, the emphasis is on the long depth of field.