Photography tips

Using depth of field creatively

View of the Chapel Bridge and Water Tower in Lucerne with Mount Pilatus in the background under a cloudy evening sky.

Controlling Depth of Field

The choice of aperture significantly determines how sharpness is distributed in your image from foreground to background. By consciously adjusting your aperture settings, you control the range that appears sharp and set accents within your composition.

Precision in the Close-up Range

When you combine foreground objects, such as flowers or building details, with a distant background, a high depth of field is essential. A closed aperture ensures that both near elements and the distant subject remain rich in detail.

Consistent Image Sharpness in Architecture

When photographing architecture, a small aperture ensures that entire buildings or alleyways remain sharp from the first to the last plane. This allows for an objective representation of complex structures, where no detail loses definition.

How using depth of field changes your photography

White cherry blossoms in the foreground with the stone Musegg Tower in Lucerne in the background
62 mm · f/22 · 1/125 s · ISO 500

Connecting image planes

By selecting a closed aperture, you connect near foreground details directly with the background. This creates a consistent sharpness that leads the viewer's gaze across the entire depth of the subject.

View of the Wasserturm and the sculpture on the Lucerne station in front of a mountain
400 mm · f/25 · 1/400 s · ISO 640

Capturing architectural details

A small aperture is essential for architectural subjects to keep both nearby elements and distant parts of the building in focus. This keeps the spatial structure of the subject clear and precisely defined.

Christmas lighting of the Chapel Bridge and Wasserturm in Lucerne at night
70 mm · f/20 · 15 s · ISO 400

Light and sharpness

In fading light, maintaining depth of field requires a conscious balance of settings. The choice of the correct aperture influences how clearly defined light points, such as those on chains or objects, are rendered.

Three concrete examples

View of the hotel and mountain station facilities on Mount Pilatus in daylight
f/13
Water tower and section of the Chapel Bridge in Lucerne against an autumnal sky.
f/18
Close-up of the stone lion paw at the Lion Monument in Lucerne with side lighting
f/10

Key tips

  1. Use a closed aperture starting from f/11 for wide-angle or architectural shots to ensure foreground and background are sharp throughout.
  2. Utilize a small aperture up to f/22 to maximize depth of field across the entire distance of the subject, provided the light allows.
  3. Choose a closed aperture consciously in difficult lighting conditions to maintain the necessary depth of field across different image planes.

Photographs on this topic

20 photographs with tips

The exact camera settings for each shot are shown below it - a starting point for recreating the look yourself. Click through to a photograph for detailed photography tips on that specific shot, under "Photography tips for this image".

All subjects City Architecture Mountains Landscape Lucerne Pilatus Lake Lucerne Central Switzerland
Lake Lucerne in the orange light of sunset with cloudy sky 45 mm · f/16 · 1/100 s · ISO 250 View across Lake Lucerne towards Mount Pilatus at sunset 12 mm · f/16 · 1/60 s · ISO 640 A single green tree stands on a meadow in front of Mount Pilatus under a clear blue sky. 45 mm · f/18 · 1/125 s · ISO 200 Panoramic view of the city of Lucerne with Mount Pilatus in the background under a blue sky 12 mm · f/16 · 1/160 s · ISO 200 Wide angle view of Lake Lucerne with the city skyline and Mount Pilatus in the background under a blue sky. 12 mm · f/16 · 1/160 s · ISO 200 Close-up of white cherry blossoms with a bee in Central Switzerland 150 mm · f/16 · 1/320 s · ISO 400 Close-up view of complex shaped ice crystals on snow 45 mm · f/8 · 1/320 s · ISO 200 Close-up of complex ice crystals in winter daylight 45 mm · f/8 · 1/320 s · ISO 200 Daisies in green grass overlooking Lake Lucerne and the mountains near Lucerne 17 mm · f/22 · 1/50 s · ISO 100 Pink flowers in the foreground and view across Lake Lucerne to Mount Pilatus in Lucerne 24 mm · f/16 · 1/60 s · ISO 125 Glass sphere placed in front of a vertical, shaded rock face 30 mm · f/6.3 · 1/60 s · ISO 200 Atmospheric sunset over Lake Sempach with a single bird on the water 28 mm · f/16 · 1/160 s · ISO 400 Sun low over the calm Lake Sempach at twilight 20 mm · f/25 · 1/25 s · ISO 100 Silhouettes of sailboats on Lake Lucerne with Mount Pilatus at sunset 15 mm · f/22 · 1/2 s · ISO 800 View from the Bürgenstock over Lake Lucerne and Mount Pilatus 15 mm · f/8 · 1/500 s · ISO 100 Wide angle view of Lake Lucerne from an elevated perspective at Bürgenstock 15 mm · f/4.5 · 1/800 s · ISO 100 Panoramic mountain view of Lake Lucerne with Mount Pilatus in the background 15 mm · f/9 · 1/1250 s · ISO 400 Reeds on the shore of Lake Lucerne looking towards the snow-capped Pilatus mountain 18 mm · f/22 · 1/250 s · ISO 400 Stones in the shallow water at the shore of Lake Lucerne at sunset 22 mm · f/22 · 1.3 s · ISO 400 View through a steel frame standing in the water towards Mount Pilatus near Lucerne 22 mm · f/22 · 1.6 s · ISO 400

Related topics

  • City
  • Architecture
  • Mountains
  • Landscape
  • Composition
  • Camera settings
  • Light
  • Perspective
  • Lucerne
  • Pilatus
  • Lake Lucerne
  • Central Switzerland
  • Evening light
  • Sunset
  • Fog
  • Snow
  • Rain
  • Night
  • Blue hour
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