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How to Calculate Hyperfocal Distance

When a photographer wants to get the greatest depth of field in an image, he needs to focus at the hyperfocal distance. The area in focus in a picture is called the focal plane. One-third of the focal plane is ahead of the object being focused on and two-thirds behind. When a photographer is focusing at the hyperfocal distance, everything in her image will be sharp, from a near object in the foreground to the furthest object in the background, also called infinity.

Things You'll Need

Camera and calculator

Instructions

- 1
  Compose the image. A photographer must know what he wants in his image before he can decide where to focus.
- 2
  Determine which aperture (f-stop) to use. A large aperture will give a much narrower depth of field than a smaller aperture.
- 3
  Find the lens focal length and the lens aperture f-stop.
- 4
  Determine the circle of least confusion, which is the acceptable sharpness in an 8x10 print at normal viewing distance. The generally accepted numbers are .02 for digital cameras, .03 for 35mm cameras and .15 for 4-inch by 5-inch medium format cameras.
- 5
  Plug those numbers into the hyperfocal distance formula: lens focal length times lens focal length divided by f-stop times diameter.

Photography