Depth of Field

  I had an interesting learning experience the other day. I was at a friend's house for a cookout, and he and his wife have been an inspiration to me since the day we met. They are just good-natured, down-to-earth people, and I absolutely love them! They both are never depleting fountains of knowledge, and they are always willing to share new information and old experiences. They both are great mentors to me. Anyway, he is a Vietnam vet, and as I have recently discovered, he was a photographer during the war. As we started to talk a little shop, he brings out this really old 35mm camera, and begins to show me the different scales on the lens. He showed me what dials adjusted for exposure, and which one controlled depth of field and how to measure that. Wow, what a useful tool! Why did manufacturers quit doing that? I am now on lookout for an older lens that will work with my DSLR. It is definitely on my wish list. I have been struggling with combining different concepts to get the depth of field that is desirable for different effects in different shots. After he showed me the dials, all the explanations began to click. Now, I think I have got it, and I am off to practice!