Posted by Richard Crowley on 10/02/06 12:47

"Steven H" wrote ...
> How do you reduce the depth of field in a PD170 -
> especially for interviews
>
> I certainly can open up my lense aperture but it is still so wide, the
> background is in focus. I can increase distance ie from 50 feet away,
> which does reduce the depth of field, but that is not always an
> option.
>
> Is there any lense add on that would reduce the depth field - would a
> small macro addition do the trick?

The typical method (regardless of what kind of camera
you are using) is to use a neutral-density filter so that
you are running at a very wide apeture (low F-stop number)

Note also that some videographers who shoot the interviews
we see on TV have documented their methodologies and say
that they want at least 20-30 feet of depth to work with (from
camera to background) For example, see some of Walter
Graff's articles, both on the DV magazine website, and on his
own website.

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