Why do depth-of-field calculators change with sensor size, teleconverters, and focal reducers?
Asked 2/23/2022
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I’m confused about how sensor size, teleconverters, and focal reducers affect depth of field. I’ve seen the claim that sensor size by itself doesn’t change DOF unless you change framing by moving closer/farther or using a different focal length. But most DOF calculators give different results when I change only the sensor size.
Why does that happen? Is it because sensor size is built into the circle of confusion assumption, along with output size and viewing distance?
Also, calculators seem inconsistent about teleconverters and reducers: one says they don’t change DOF, another says they do. What assumptions are they making? For example, with a 2x teleconverter on a 50mm lens, should DOF be calculated as if I’m using a 100mm lens, or as the original 50mm lens with an attachment?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
4y ago
2 Answers
5
I understand the basic concept that a larger sensor doesn't change DOF.
Just because you understand a certain proposition does not make it a correct proposition. In this case, your understanding is incorrect, given some unspoken assumptions that almost all DoF calculators make:
Images taken with the
- same focal length with the
- same lens at the
- same aperture from the
- same shooting position will be
- enlarged to the same display size
every DOF calculator I can find changes the results when I change the sensor size. Why?
Because every one of them assumes you will display all images at the same display size, usually 8x10 inches or 8x12 inches from a distance of 10 inches.
To get to the same display size an image from a smaller sensor must be enlarged by a greater factor than an image from a larger sensor.
The more you enlarge, the larger you make the same blur measured as it was projected by the lens onto the sensor.
Furthermore, I've tried two calculators that support teleconverters and reducers. One of them shows no difference in DOF and the other one does. Which is correct?
The Purple one.
Seriously, until we know what all of the other assumptions are for both of them, we have no way to properly answer the question.
Update in response to a comment from the OP:
Assume that I insert a teleconverter between the lens and camera. I change nothing else. Does DOF change?
Yes, for three reasons.
- Focal length actually changed with the addition of additional refractive surfaces between the front of the lens and the sensor.
- Because focal length changed but the entrance pupil size did not change, the f-number is also changed. For a 1.4X TC the f-number is one stop higher with the same size e.p. For a 2X TC the f-number is two stops higher. For a 0.71X reducer, the f-number is one stop lower (0.71 is the reciprocal of the square root of 2).
- Unless you refocus your lens after changing the focal length, your focus distance has also changed and your subject is no longer in focus.
Originally by user15871. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user15871
4y ago
0
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DOF calculators usually assume the final images will be viewed at the same print/display size and distance. Under that assumption, sensor size matters because a smaller sensor image must be enlarged more, so the acceptable circle of confusion is smaller and the calculated DOF changes.
So the apparent contradiction is about assumptions:
- If you keep lens, aperture, and camera position the same, the optical blur at the sensor doesn’t change just because the sensor is bigger or smaller.
- But if you compare final images at the same display size, sensor size affects the amount of enlargement, so calculators show different DOF.
Teleconverters and focal reducers affect DOF because they change the effective focal length (and framing/magnification behavior). A 2x teleconverter makes a 50mm behave like a 100mm for calculation purposes. If a calculator gives a different result, it may be treating the entered focal length as either the bare lens value or the effective value after the converter.
In practice, DOF depends on the full set of assumptions: focal length, aperture, subject distance, sensor size/crop, and especially final display size and viewing distance.
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