Camera Aperture and f-Stops, With a Prompt Each

Spotlight search

Find any model, tool or page and jump to it.

Aperture and f-stops

The f-stops, and what each one does to the background.

The f-stop is the size of the hole the light comes through. It settles two things at once: how much of the scene is sharp, and how much light reaches the sensor. A low number opens the hole wide, so one thin plane stays sharp and the rest dissolves. A high number closes it, so near and far hold together and the set needs more light. Name the number and a model renders the depth that belongs with it.

Wide open

3

f/1.4 to f/2.8. The hole is large, the light is cheap, and one thin plane is sharp. This end of the scale is Shallow Focus with a number on it.

f/1.4
f/1.4
The widest common stop. One thin plane is sharp and the rest dissolves.
f/1.8
f/1.8
Nearly as soft a background as f/1.4, and far easier to hold focus at.
f/2.8
f/2.8
Separates the subject and still lets the background read as a place.

The middle

2

f/4 and f/8. The band of sharpness reaches past the subject, most lenses are at their best, and the frame still has a foreground and a background rather than one flat plane.

f/4
f/4
Holds a group sharp and keeps the middle distance readable.
f/8
f/8
The sharpest stop on most lenses, with the whole scene legible.

Stopped down

2

f/11 and f/16. Near and far hold together, the set pays for it in light, and diffraction starts to take the fine detail back. This end of the scale is how Deep Focus is made.

f/11
f/11
Near and far both sharp. This is the stop deep focus is shot at.
f/16
f/16
Maximum depth, and the whole frame goes a little soft with it.

Run one of them

Copy a prompt into a video model and pay for that one run. No subscription.

Open a video model

Other techniques

Shot typesThe ways to frame a shot, and the wording that gets each one.25 shot typesCamera anglesWhere to put the camera, and the wording that gets each angle.19 camera anglesCamera movementThe ways to move the camera, and the wording that gets each one.86 camera movesCompositionThe ways to arrange a frame, and the wording that gets each one.32 composition rulesLightingThe lighting setups, and the wording that gets each one.41 lighting setupsLenses and opticsThe lenses, and the wording that gets the look of each one.17 lensesFormat and bodyThe formats and cameras, and the wording that gets each one.13 formats and camerasColour and film lookThe colour looks, and the wording that gets each one.19 colour looksTime and motionThe ways to bend time in a shot, and the wording for each one.21 time effectsCuts and transitionsThe ways to get from one shot to the next.23 transitionsIn-camera and optical effectsThe effects a camera can make on its own, and how to ask for them.57 effectsAtmosphere and weatherThe ways to fill the air, and the wording that gets each one.13 atmosphere effectsGenre looksThe genres, and the wording that gets the look of each one.27 genre looksViral looksThe looks that travel on short-form video, and how to ask for them.44 viral looks
Print stylesMaking a poster rather than a shot? The same reference, for ink on paper.

A low number opens the lens and dissolves the background. A high number closes it and brings the background back into focus. The number is the fastest way to ask for depth.