|
1. Depth of field
The wider your aperture (meaning the smaller the number), the more shallow your depth of field. As you saw in the example video, when shooting at f/22, both Eve and the background were in focus. However, opening up the aperture to f/1.4 allowed a more shallow depth of field, where Eve was in focus while the background was not.
Remember that when you change your aperture, you'll need to compensate in some way to maintain your exposure. Since, when shooting on an DSLR, you usually want your shutter speed to remain at 1/50th or 1/60th of a second (depending on your frame rate) you can compensate for a shift in aperture by changing your ISO.
If you're shooting outdoors on a bright sunny day and your ISO is set as low as possible but you still can't open the aperture as wide as you'd like to attain shallow depth of field, try using a neutral density filter to decrease the amount of light hitting the sensor so that you can still keep your aperture open. This fun video by stillmotion offers further explanation.
2. Backlighting
Sometimes adding depth is as simple as backlighting. As you saw in the video, when Eve had the sun behind her, a natural line of light around her head and shoulders helped to draw her away from the background and visually separate her from it. The same principle is behind the back light in a three point lighting system. When using artificial lights indoors, the back light helps the eye distinguish the subject from the background and adds depth.
3. Foreground elements
Adding an element to the foreground is another simple way to add depth. Placing something closer to the camera gives context to the shot and the placement of your subject, so the viewer can see how close or far away the subject is from the camera
4. Perspective
Changing up your shot composition and getting creative with angles can also add depth. The shot with Eve in front of the shed was all on one visual plane. However, simply by moving the camera to the side and shooting at Eve down the line of the shed, the vanishing horizontal lines of the structure created depth and helped to draw the focus toward her.
5. Parallax
It might sound like a debilitating disease, but it's not! Parallax is a property of visual perception whereby an object looks different when viewed from varying angles. This effect was attained in the example shot by moving the camera along a glide track. As you saw, the foreground elements moved faster than the background elements. This contrast accentuates the difference between the two planes and therefore adds depth.
6. Smoke and Haze
I bet you weren't expecting this one! However, smoke or haze is used to add depth. In the video, the air behind Dave was filled with smoke. Since there was less smoke between the camera and Dave than there was between Dave and the wall, Dave popped — becoming more discernible from the background.
Adding depth to your shots can help to increase the production value while helping to emphasize where you want to lead your viewers and focus their attention. While depth of field may be the most obvious way to do this, it's not the only way. On your next shoot, challenge yourself! Combine the different strategies you've learned here and think outside the box! You may attain some unexpected results. Things could get deep!
|
