I’ve been going over the nature photography I’ve done in the last two years. Wow, I love that narrow depth of field. When I nail it, I nail it. But there are so many photos where it’s just a little too razor-thin. (And plenty where it’s way too thin.)
I think it’s time to nudge up the ISO by a stop so I can then stop down the aperture and bring more of the subject into the photo.
Old man moment: When I was in college, cameras weren’t computerized, so you always saw exactly what you were going to get. There was no need for a DOF preview button. And lenses were wide enough that you could see. Now, electronic lenses force you to compose and then keep hitting the DOF preview button until you like the results. It sucks; you lose a lot of spontaneity, you lose the moment. And when a lens’ biggest aperture is ƒ/4.5, well, it’s almost like it was designed to block more light than it lets in. That’s more than two stops you’re losing over an ƒ/2. I’ve been shooting with this camera for more than two years and I’m still not used to or happy with that. I’m still slowly adapting.