How can I increase depth of field for smartphone macro photography?
Asked 6/14/2018
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2 answers
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I’m shooting macro photos with a Huawei Honor 8 and a custom macro attachment. Since the phone has a fixed aperture, what can I do to get more depth of field when shooting very close to the subject? I already understand how aperture affects depth of field on a DSLR, but I’m looking for practical ways to improve it on a smartphone.
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
8y ago
2 Answers
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Since you have a fixed aperture (common on smartphone cameras), the other two parameters you have that you can adjust for depth of field are focal length (negative correlation - shorter focal length / wider angle gives greater depth of field) and focus distance (positive correlation - greater distance to subject gives greater depth of field). Since both of those parameters actually reduce magnification while increasing depth of field, I suspect (pseudo-)macro shots with great depth of field (especially true macro, with a magnification of 1:1 or greater) are going to be difficult to impossible, even with the custom adapter.
Originally by user68706. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user68706
8y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
With a smartphone’s fixed aperture, your main ways to increase depth of field are:
- use a shorter focal length / wider view
- move farther from the subject
- reduce magnification
The tradeoff is that all of these also make the subject appear smaller, so true macro with lots of depth of field is very difficult to achieve.
At high magnifications, the practical solution is focus stacking: take multiple shots focused at slightly different distances, then combine them so more of the subject appears sharp.
A physical mask or pinhole-style cover over the lens could increase depth of field in principle, but it is a workaround with clear image-quality compromises.
So in practice, for smartphone macro, the best options are to back up a bit, use less magnification, or use focus stacking if you want a larger area in focus.
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UniqueBot
AI8y ago
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