Mark Roberts wrote: > I think it's a waste of time as far as previewing the depth of field is > concerned but that's not what I use it for. I use DOF preview all the time > to judge how *out* of focus the background is. I find it indispensable for > macro work and wouldn't buy a camera without it.
Same here. It really comes in handy for any shallow-DOF work including some scenic work, macro, wildlife and definitely portraiture. Very often I'll find something distracting in the background that I would otherwise have missed. Using DOF preview it takes about half a second to check out approximately what the out-of-focus stuff is going to look like, and your eye doesn't need to leave the finder. BTW as others have noted, "DOF preview" was probably not the best term to use. The DOF scales on many lenses are useless on macro or long telephoto lenses. For example, the F* 300mm f/4.5 only shows DOF marks for f/32 and they're _very_ close together. Also, the scales only give the lens manufacturer's approximation of what will look sharp on a print when viewed from a certain distance. Your own eye might not agree (which is why I go 1 stop further when I do use the scales). I have also been known to use the DOF preview to see approximately what the flare pattern is going to look like if I have the sun in, or close to, the frame. I also would not buy a camera without DOF preview. I still wish the Z-1p did this properly as its a real pain if I'm in HyP mode. The MZ-S looks like a great camera but I prefer the Z-1p flash system (compensation in the body). BTW DOF preview is the major reason I use an SLR in preference to a rangefinder... Cheers, - Dave http://www.digistar.com/~dmann/
