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Depth field preview was mentioned as something the Nikon D40 is missing. I have done a little reading on the subject. It might be useful for macro shots that I am interested in taking.

Anyone have some opinions on the usefulness of depth of field preview? Is it something you use all the time, or just in certain circumstances?


Mark

I personally use it very very rarely, almost never, and to my thinking most macro work is done at f22 or there abouts, a preview of that DOF is going to be super dark unless you have a *lot* of light on your subject.

To be perfectly honest Mark I hardly ever use this function - if you are taking macro shots in the f/16 and up category, you would not be able to see anything useful anyway

It seems to do so little that the whole idea seems to be a wank....

Just my opinion

Never used it in two years of DSLR photography.

Hah! That was probably me

DOF preview is really just a nice to have feature, but not really vital with digital SLRs. Most times, it is easier to simply take the shot and check it on the LCD to see if you have enough DOF. However, I do very occasionally still use it when I'm setting up important shots because the LCD is not IMO high res enough to show the detail sometimes.

I know people who started on film SLRs that still use it out of habit

Mark,

This feature was once most friendly for landscape and macro work for film shooters in the old days. Since they dont have instant review of the photo, they need to know exactly what they are getting in the DOF (mostly scenic and macro works).

Now in the digital world, you take a shot, press the LCD button, your picture is shown on the LCD with ability to zoom in to see what you've got in the frame. If you need more DOF, just adjust your aperture further smaller or vice versa.

I only use it to scare people that I've taken a picture right up their face...

Thanks to all for your replies. Interesting observations on what would happen if I was taking macro shots and using DOF preview.

I did note the increased darkness after using DOF preview on an outside shot on the following site:

http://www.photozone.de/3Technology/demos/DOFbutton.htm

With macro shots you guys are saying this would be even more pronounced.


Mark

markjd wrote:With macro shots you guys are saying this would be even more pronounced.
Mark

Exactly, the further you go, the more DOF you get but the more stops of light you lose to the point where it would be so dark it wouldn't be useful (IMO).