Quick Tip of the Week...about lenses

The notion that lenses are always the sharpest when set to their smallest aperture is just not the case, gasp!

I know it seems counter intuitive but tests show that lenses are usually their sharpest at the intermediate apertures, not the smallest.

True, a smaller aperture provides one with greater depth of field in the shot, but (without getting too technical here) the image tends to degrade at smaller apertures compared to larger ones.

Check it yourself by enlarging or blowing up the area you focused on with the smallest aperture and you'll see it is less sharp or softer than at larger f/stops.

The old rule of thumb, or aperture, is that lenses are normally their sharpest at an aperture 2 to 3 stops down from maximum. As an example on an F/2.8 lens the sharpness would be optimal at f/5.6 to f/8.

To be certain of your lenses range of sharpness do some experimenting with your equipment. Take some test shots to see which aperture settings give you the most sharpness and put it in your memory bank when you want your shot to beat it's sharpest.