Hi Wendy,
A few days ago we were discussing (somewhere) wanting smooth, distraction free backgrounds for close up shots, I think you started it with two shots of a parrot (or similar) taken at different focal lengths at about f5.6.
When you (or I) posted a 300mm(?) shot at minimum focus distance of 1.5m, you wondered (out loud) how the background would look if shot with the macro 105mm at f2.8 somewhat closer to get the same subject size. I promised to post some comparison shots.
(32589)
![Comparison of DoF between lenses](http://www.pbase.com/dhumphries/image/130107171/original.jpg)
Nikon D5000 + Nikon 70-300mm VR: 1/90s
f/5.6 at 300mm iso200
F11 and click image to see at 1,500px × 996px
(32596)
![Comparison of DoF between lenses](http://www.pbase.com/dhumphries/image/130107172/original.jpg)
Nikon D5000 + Nikon 105mm f2.8 VR2: 1/500s
f/3.2 at 105mm! iso400
F11 and click image to see at 1,500px × 996px
and here, for comparison, is the 105mm at f5.6;
(32599)
![Comparison of DoF between lenses](http://www.pbase.com/dhumphries/image/130135428/original.jpg)
Nikon D5000 + Nikon 105mm f2.8 VR2:
f/5.6 at 105mm
F11 and click image to see at 1,500px × 996px
In the first, I am at the minimum distance of 1.5m, but obviously in the second (105mm) shot, the camera must be about 0.5m to the subject (I forgot to measure and in fact looking at it now, I am a bit too close).
At that focus distance, f3.2 is as open as the f2.8 lens goes, it is only f2.8 at infinity - all lenses do this, but only on macro lenses does it become of real significance. Although Nikon show this reduction in aperture, not all makes of lenses do, but they are nevertheless, all subject to it.
I probably could/should have done a better job; e.g. used a tripod, picked a day with more consistent lighting - the sun was in and out and behind variable thickness clouds.
Posted in this DSLR forum as I'm not looking for C&C on these shots, they are just test shots, so traditional suggestions for composition/cropping are irrelevant.
Trying some other variations; here's the 105mm lens at the same distance I stood with the 300mm, at 1.5m.
(32595)
f/3 at 105mm cropped from 1.5m
F11 and click image to see at 1,333px × 899px, note this is 1:1, or 100% with no downsizing
(32595)
f/3 at 105mm uncropped from 1.5m
F11 and click image to see at 1,500px × 996px
Here, for the record, is the background, which was always 1.5m behind the subject in the shots above;
(32535)
Cheers,