For the past two weeks, my boys have been repeating the Depth of Field exercise from my last post.   Since the first exercise was designed with a small DOF, each one eventually came to the same conclusion, “How do we increase the DOF?”

This week’s exercise explores the connection between DOF and aperture.

Depth of Field Exercise No. 2

Supplies: Yardstick, 4-5 similar size toys, great lighting.

Camera Settings: Aperture Priority, Wide Aperture, (I started with the smallest aperture my lens allowed, f/5.0).

• Just as in the first exercise, place your camera at the beginning of the yardstick.
• Next,  place the first toy at 14”.  (This was the closest distance at which my lens could focus.  You may need to adjust this distance based on your lens choice.)
• Spread the remaining toys out at 20”, 26”, 32”, and 38”.

If your child doesn’t know how to change the aperture on your camera, now is a great time to teach him!

• Beginning at the widest aperture, shoot the scene.
• Change the aperture after each shot, but never move the camera.
• Work from the widest aperture all the way to the narrowest aperture.

My son went from f/5.0 to f/32, snapping a shot at multiple stops between the two.

Finally, compare the photographs.  What does your child notice?  Guide them to see the differences in the depth of field.  Look for details to emerge in the toys as the aperture number grows bigger.

Again, it was my 7 year-old who really enjoyed this process.  Also, he made a huge leap in comprehension when he said, without any prompting, “Oh I get it now! If I want my guy to stand out, I use a small f-number.  If I want to see the whole picture [in focus], I use a big f-number, right?”

That was a proud mama moment for me.

Be sure to share your child’s project with us in the Kids’ Gallery! 

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