Great video. Just a hobby photographer here. When I first started with an ILC camera, and got my first f1.8 lens, I began shooting portrait shots wide open to get the most background blur. It didn't take long before I learned to stop down to get the person's whole face in focus. I now have determined that f2.5 seems to work best for me shooting family gathering photos of my kids and grand-kids.

Just discovered your channel. It's about photography itself. Not about the gear. Thank you!

Great explanation of aperture. This may be beyond the scope of this video, but it is important to understand what diffraction is and how it affects image quality at very small apertures. Some viewers may think they need to stop down to the smallest aperture to get the sharpest image, when in fact this may actually degrade the image quality. A good rule of thumb is to stop down 2-3 stops from the widest aperture to find the sharpest f stop. Doesn't work for all lenses, but it's a good place to start. Thanks again, Alex.

You’ve taken a technical topic and still managed to turn it into a discussion of art. Beautifully done and simply incredible. This is why your channel is one of my favorites.

I think this video was the one that I FINALLY came to an understanding of aperture, how it's used most effectively and what the aperture scale looks like. I'm a newbie film photographer and this channel has been an absolute godsend. I especially love how you can take very technical things and explain how one can use them to achieve an artistic and creative goal, which is the whole reason I got interested in photography in the first place. As a musician, I find that understanding aperture is to a great photo what learning scales and chord structure is to a great song. To me, music and photography share a common way of thinking about things. Thank you for the great videos!

As many Aperture videos as I've seen, almost no one really explains what Depth of Field really is. Once I realized it's simply how deep your focus area is, front to back, it made everything much simpler to understand.

I see that "bokeh" has now completely evolved from meaning the way a lens rendered out of focus highlights to mean any blurred background, in the same way that "macro," which once meant 1:1 ratio, now means "closeup."

DOF is an important aspect i've come to learn. Wide open is cool and all BUT as you said, DOF is razor thin. Learn to get all of what you want in focus. Those middle F- stops are huge if you know how to use them. Great video.

Contrary to what newbies believe, DOF is not just affected by the f-number, but a lot more by the focal distance and the distance to the subject. If you photograph a group of people with a 35 mm lens and a few meters of distance, you don't need f11 to get everybody sharp, probably f 5.6 will do ! The benefit is you don't need longer shutter speeds or higher Iso.

very easy recipe for me: i set my shutterspeed that suits the movement (or lack there of), choose my aperture that creates the look i want, and let auto ISO handle the exposure. if i need it darker, i use exposure comp instead of fiddling with ISO manually - thats it ^^

I am new to photography and just bought my first camera, Canon EOS M, and I really appreciate this simple visual explanation of what I previously thought was cult wizardry. Thank you so much for the epiphany!

Would love a video exploring basic editing properties. For example, the difference btw exposure and brightness, what clarity, vibrance does etc.

Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge and experience in way only you can do! I may think I understand something pretty well and you "bring me closer" to it. You're an extraordinary teacher, Alex!

You're really good at explaining aperture and exemplifying it in simple terms. Wonderful examples of what you mentioned

This is excellent advice, I basically learned how to run my camera and the exposure triangle and all the other fun photography titbits that I could gather from KZfaq. This explanation on aperture is exactly where I ended up, the math quite frankly with digital cameras is kind of useless but playing around and learning the different focal lengths and adding in aperture adjustments makes it fun and interesting the artistic end of things is about learning how to feel what you’re doing. For lack of a better term I guess.

Another outstanding vlog. To help my students understand aperture and make it easier for them to understand, I explain that the smaller the f\stop number, the smaller the depth of field and the higher the f\stop number, the higher (deeper) the depth of field. My students seem to understand the concept more easily. What are your thoughts?

Thank you for this video! This sis something I have been struggling with for some time and this will help. I really do appreciate you directly and immediately addressing the issue ins the title of the video. Too many You Tubers take too long, if ever, getting around to talking about what the title of their video purports to be. I get impatient and just turn off the video . this time, you immediately got to the subject at hand which is great and so much appreciated.

Very well explained I truly had forgotten about f.4 and above but will definitely change things around. Great video for the beginner.

This is the best explanation of aperture settings I've ever seen. Thank you!

Thanks for this, bookmarked for when I need inspiration! Can't wait to try it out! Like what attracted me to photography in the first place, all those years ago. Changing your perspective to capture something special!

I've come to think that Aperture is compared to a Cinematic lens. Where the wide open gives you more Bohke but the narrow Stepping down remains in focus. Great explanation on Aperture and Focus Alex !

Autofocus plays a trick on many people trying to get deep DOF. Most cameras would focus on the closest subject, so your DOF will suffer because the closer you focus the shallower it is. By focusing behind the closest object (or hyperfocal distance) you can get a deeper DOF with acceptable sharpness even of the foreground as well.

The more I learn about photography the more I am amazed at what we can do with it. Thanks for the video.

Thank you so much for this. When I finally got my upgraded camera and lens I was so excited to go out and just shoot wide open, get as much light in the lens as possible, and get that beautiful bokeh every single time,, but now I see the importance of getting more natural separation in my photos. I think my skills just moved up a notch thanks to you 👍

Imagine how many images one would have to go through to pick such mag one's, simple yet entertaining video. Enjoyed it

I absolutely love your channel. As relatively new photographer I find all your videos so helpful and the style and skill in which you present them is just perfect. Liked and subscribed

I have seen so many people talking about aperture, and trying to sales you something mmh , but you make it so simple and feel like is a second matures . Thanks for sharing

Thank you for this, and all of your videos. You've been a big help and inspiration after a 25 year break from photography.

This is incredible. I'm a music professional getting into photography; the way you taught aperture in this video has made me rethink certain things about mixing music as well. I've seen tons on videos on this subject, but no one who's been able to relay information in such a practical way without making overly generalizing statements that might not hold true for every situation. The way its explained here really lets me use this tool to in a wider way. Thank you.

I loved learning about the middle areas and why they’re beneficial too! Thank you for this!

Thank you for the lesson. I really liked how you connected the different f-stops with artists, who use them often.

I really like how you explored the evocative meaning behind the aperture setting, not just the maths.

Alex, very excellent explanation of the concept of aperture and the use of different f-stop. Like all your videos and being following your channer for a long time and I think the there no one that can express the concept of photography like you do. Keep up the outstanding a very educative work creating there video clips of information about the photographic world.

As I beginner in photography I always was looking for more and more light and the blurriest background possible, even tho I knew the theory behind the aperture this video make it more clear for me realize what is my subject and the best f-stops to use

It's an incredible feeling being able to walk away with knowledge everytime I watch a video from this channel

"This is why 'Maverick' is such a brilliant pilot!" Well done and brilliant video! Cheers

I love the images you choose.

This has opened my eyes SO MUCH.

Oh i love your video 😍😍😍 thank you ! I woke up this morning with aperture dilemma in my mind ! And here is it , solution ! Thank you so much 🥰

Thank you for this fine explanation. I have often thought some photos to have too much bokem. Where as the viewer has no idea where the subject is located. City,country, elevator. I loved how you showed the wine bottles at different f stops . That drove the concept home for me. Thank you.

You are such a good teacher! Thank you for your work.

Best explanation for me so far. We are not all wannabe experts. Now to put it into practice.

Absolutely great explanation. Thanks a million.

Perfect timing! I accidentally left my camera on f/3.5 for a group photo the other day and half of us are out of focus 😭

Thank you so much for the explanation!😊

Finally! I am kinda tired of so many people thinking you don't have "professional" gear unless you have a 1.4 or 1.2 lens. My favorite is my 50mm 1.8 (I own two!), and I RARELY shoot at 1.8. Most of the time I start at 2.0 or 2.8 and stop down from there. The great thing about it is that the so called non-profesional lenses are MUCH cheaper than their counterparts. Thanks for posting!

I've seen tons of videos about photography and no one ever told me this. Thanks a lot!

Thank you very much for this great and detailed master class!!!

Thank you for your wonderful explanation… it’s made it so much easier to use the F stop on my camera without worrying about the maths…. It’s made it more fluid. Thank you.

I love your videos. Thank you. I have learnt so much.

Great video. Also maybe worth mentioning that aperture's impact on DoF varies significantly according to focal length and the focus point relative to the effective hyperfocal distance. f/2 at 14mm might have pretty much everything in the frame still in focus depending on the focus point, whereas f/2 on a 50mm might have most out of focus if the focus point is well ahead of the hyperfocal distance. One needs to understand that relationship for it to become somewhat second nature.

love the video! aperture refenrence from now on!

Very thoughtful video. Correct importance given to the priority of purpose and story telling over tech and gears. My best mentors always told me that I might take the best and most important pictures of my life with a Polaroid or point and shoot, if the moment, the intention, and the execution are right. I stick to that teaching. Excellent video

Thank you so much for this video! This was awesome and super helpful!

Thanks this great tips on aperture choosing!

This really made the whole apature concept so clear to me. The technical discription has always blocked my mind, but your visual explaination really helped me understand it. Thanks so very much for this, I have had my camera stashed away for sometime and now I want to start exploring photography all over again.

I love your conversation. Thank you for these videos.

Wow, great explanation of apeture. It makes sense now! Really excited to experiment with this stuff :D

Brilliant,thank you for the clear concise uncluttered direction on this oft confused topic.

A master speaks……………… and every detail is artistic inspiration

Well said, good stuff. I especially love the long street photo when you got to the smaller apertures. That's my home town, Albuquerque, New Mexico. I graduated from a high school 2 blocks off screen right of the photo, a couple lights up from Carlisle. Injured my shoulder badly riding a mountain bike down the opposite side of Central Ave (That's the long one that heads into the photo) AT Carlisle. Wow, the memories. I've always loved this photograph for so many reasons. Thanks for using it, it's a great illustration of your small apertures point. Cheers🙂

Funny you said that. 5.6 is my most used aperture, especially on the gfx system. Good to know that I work on the forgotten f-stops😉 cool Video 👍🏻

Enjoyed that. At the moment I am a fan of shooting f8 -f16 on both film and digital. Especially Medium Format film. DOF is gorgeous on big negatives. I did have one day of shooting everything at f1.4 via my EF 50mm which was well interesting, but for now am settled on f8 - f16 for most images. I wish you well.

Thank you for these videos! I feel like I’m at photography school. Fantastic! 📸👍

This chanel inspire me to go out and take photos.

Love your videos, very insightful, love the examples you show as well

Thank you so much Alex for the great tutorial on Aperture!

Really great video. Liked how you used examples by famous photographers to teach about aperture/ aperture to teach about photographers

plane of the focal point is what makes this work!

I used my depth of field preview button on my manual camera to check depth of field when I was learning. I still use it for macro shots, but on the whole, I use experience to judge depth of field now.

Your video has just made me, who is not interested in taking photos, very intrigued in taking photos with my dad’s A7R camera. Sir, this video was very refreshing to watch and thank you very much.

Thanks for sharing this information...I always struggle with settings & this video has helped me understand more....I will try your suggestions & be a bit daring with my photography as I am only a hobbyist but always willing to learn more.... cheers from Australia 😀

Thank you for an extremely enjoyable video on a subject that can be as dry as cold toast. I'm a wanna-be travel journalist attempting to learn as much as possible about the art of photography and your ten-minute video has been the best investment of my time to date. Merci, gracias, and thank you.

This was great! Thank you!

for F Stop, put a 1 where the F is to understand why smaller numbers is actually bigger. 1/1.8 is much larger than 1/8 which is larger than 1/16.

Thank you for taking time to share this knowledge so effectively.

Well, wasn't this a timely video and thank you. I have been experimenting with aperture over the last few weeks because I was realizing that I had become a bit lazy about it. Between my ever worsening eyes and decreasing steadiness of hand, the camera and I are fast becoming adversaries in the area of sharpness. I may give aperture priority a try for a few weeks to see if it helps. If nothing else, it should give me more practice. 😊

Very nice explanation. Helped correcting many mistakes I was doing as I learned photography on my own. Everyone needs someone like you as a mentor.

This was always a subject of challenge when using film slr and also ovf dslr - I’ve just bought my first FF EVF DSLR and was amazed it showed me the DOF effects for current aperture used immediately - I definitely learned the diffraction rule very early on using FF DSLR which correct me if I’m wrong around F11

Wonderfull video as always !, thanks Alex !.

I truly enjoyed your explanation of this important concept. Thank you 😊

Brilliant content and delivery! Thanks so much for all you do. 🎉

EXCELLENT TUTORIAL ON APETURE...THANK YOU!

Just the topic that has been difficult to explain as if we adjust one element then ISO and depth of field. I have always looked at f stops from shooting sports in snow. Thank you for explaining and illustrating as I've always had difficulty explaining this topic to others from images taken by Ansel Adams and one of my other favorites Steve McCurry to a skiier traveling at 120klm/hr with a totally white back ground with snow flakes falling at various places within my frame as I isolate the skiier.

Great help, thank you!

Thank you, this was great, much appreciated and the best explanation of aperture that I have heard.

I love how you transmit your knowledge, what is your thought about post manipulation (lightroom, Photoshop)?

@7:31 the fly that is flying around your head made me chuckle. Great video so far. Thank you!

Loved this video!!! Great work!

Excellent explanation. I really appreciated you reminders of “ forget the math.” This truly emphasized the creativity and not necessarily the technology. As a novice amateur this was most helpful. Thanks for putting this video on.

I find it helpful to think about my old pre-Ai lenses which have color coded DOF range smartly and simply built into the aperture control ring. Only part of the variable but useful to think about.

Best video on aperture I’ve seen.

Brilliant!! Thanks so much for this very informative video!

Funny thing I was just thinking about aperture then, your video pop up . Scary! New sub!

Stellar video sir. It made my day to see the photo of Rt66 from what im guessing is the mid-70s from Ernst Haas. Its a section of the highway that becomes Central Ave here in Albuquerque and I grew up blocks away from where it was taken.

Amazing lesson! 👏 thanks so much 🙏

Appreciated and noted the disclaimer about what you don't discuss here. I don't think it necessarily has to be scary - as implied by the word "mathematical". The word "aperture" literally means "opening" - in my language we more commonly reference the "mechanism" that delivers the opening rather than the opening itself. That mechanism is called "diaphragm". As the number for the aperture or diaphragm is written as f/number, the "f" in f/number is the focal length of the lens we use. That should be the actual focal length. And the "number" in f/number represents the diameter or radius of the aperture. And in our communication we leave the f/ bit away. This presents us with a couple problems. Because f/number is just the geometrical relation between focal length and diameter of aperture, this says >nothing< about how much light comes through the lens. Replace the glass elements of a lens by almost black glass and you could still get the same f/number. This is why "we' have the "T-stop" that represents actual light transmission. For example, a 1.2L lens of brand C may have a transmission of 1.5 T-1.5 at f/1.2 and a 1.4G lens of brand N also has a T-stop of 1.5. In all walks of photography where we do not measure light through the lens, this is relevant. (And when you shoot with a leaf shutter in each lens then these shutters add to the deviation that you need to figure out and internalize.) The second problem is that classical lens designs have a fixed array of lens elements and when we focus closer by than infinity, the focal length increases and the image gets narrower. We call this "focus breathing" but the T-stop effect is much more important. As we do not change the diaphragm when focusing closer by, and say we extend a 50mm lens to 60mm, this means the f in f/number is no longer 50, but 60. This means that aperture f/2 now has become f/2.4 and that is a ~serious darkening of your image. IMO, the aperture breathing is uglier in cinema than focus breathing. This means that the Depth of Field (DoF) that we attribute to the f/number is not a hard number cast in concrete. For most lenses in the world, the f/number is as flexible as soft rubber. Enter "cinema lenses". As a director of photography does not want a take to get darker when the focus puller changes focus from far to close by, lenses got developed that have no focus breathing - i.e. no change of image angle, and so these have constant focal length, and constant f/number. Well, if such lenses are developed as "prime" then optically, these lenses are subtle zoomlenses that precisely counter the effect of focusing closer by than infinity. That is why they have more elements. As more elements give more internal reflection, generally, these lenses are not so good in contrasty backlight. They'll give glare and flare, easily. You want sun-trails? Take an older design cine lens and even the ones selling for 10,000 or 20,000 currencies will do it. Easily. That does not work for most photo-/video-graphers and so new lenses have been developed with many more elements than their focal length ever had, but with so little glare/flare and other optical problems that you may need to add a sun-trail in post. Or keep an old lens on the side, or rent an expensive cine lens. Which triggers another DoF problem. Yes, it is a function of real focal length, distance and real f/number, BUT that's not the complete picture. There are several parameters in the DoF formula that we can bundle in one parameter: "Circle of Confusion" (CoC). CoC bundles these following parameter values: - size of presenting (printing, displaying) your image - make it larger and CoC gets smaller, DoF shallower. - distance of watching the presented image - make it larger and DoF gets deeper because CoC gets larger (watch at 200% in LrC on a 4K display at 30cm/12" distance and CoC gets small causing DoF to be shallower) - resolution of sensor or film - more resolution makes the CoC smaller and hence DoF shallower - resolution of lens - more resolution makes the CoC smaller and hence DoF shallower - resolution impact of processing - do it better and CoC gets smaller so DoF shallower (this applies both to processing of film as per chemistry and processing digital) - presence of an anti-aliasing filter in the digital camera - having one reduces contour sharpness and makes CoC larger, DoF deeper And this all means your DoF calculator app is probably worthless if it gives the same DoF if you change camera and other things. Most of them abstract viewing distance away, presentation size away, camera away, etc. and actually do not have good enough data on differences between lenses. So the numbers are "ballpark" and the assumptions about what is abstracted away must be understood if you want to take the data from these apps seriously. One of my very recent and very modern design lenses has its DoF guesstimate calculated and can display that in its display (on the lens). This takes camera, sensor, AA filter, into account but not viewing and presentation size aspects. There's easily a full f-stop change in going from infinity to closest by with this lens. And while the real f/number for the real focal length is indicative for DoF, resolution and sharpness are really critical too. A soft f/1.2 lens from one brand may have more DoF than a very sharp f/1.4 from another brand (ceteris paribus). I remember moving from an older 1.8 to a very sharp 1.4 and all of a sudden I could no longer use single point AF plus recompose because the eyes would be out of focus, just from the marginal distance changes following from a bit of rotating of the camera when recomposing. And, what looks blurred at 200% on your perfect 4K display may look pretty sharp when you print that image to a 5"*7" paper format or export it to something JPEG of that effect. The moral of the story is that irrespective of math, you need to really make test shots with subjects that are representative of the work you intend to do in all cases where DoF is a critical aspect of your work. If you need a depth of field so shallow that in a portrait one eye will be sharp, and not the other - for example to blur less healthy skin in camera already - then you really need to test that for the distance (i.e. effective focal length), the aperture, the camera with ISO setting and the lens you will use and include presentation size and distance, as well as processing (think sharpening, clarity, texture) and note that one post-processing app may do a lot better than another in these respects. But this can go the other way around too. You can make your lens softer by closing down aperture completely. From and beyond f/11, lenses generally get softer (full frame format and very good lenses). But you want a blurred out background. Well in a studio that background may be evenly colored seamless paper. But your effect (light) on the background becomes too sharp. Well, if you have an optical spot, just defocus the effect pattern in the spot, rather than the camera. Or shoot the background separately at the desired blur aperture and swap backgrounds in post - that's very easy in a controlled environment. As Alex says in the video - test it. Forget the math, just be aware of the parameters at play and how these interact. And test again if precision is called for. Until you get to the 10,000th time and don't need to think about it anymore.

finally, I get it! thanks!!!

Good. I will explore more those forgotten apetures

Thisisthe best video i have seen on this subject and is exactlywhat i was looking for with amazing examplesandvary clear explanatio thank you