P3D Re: Realist a P&S?

[Eric Goldstein <egoldste@xxxxxx>]

Andrea Blair wrote:

> Why is focus more important in stereo than 2-D? I think focus is
> important in all forms of photography. There is also *selective focus*
> in which only certain areas will be sharp. The results are subjective
> IMHO.


Andrea is attempting to clarify but I fear is having the opposite
effect. Undoubted she knows but for the benefit of anyone reading who is
new...

Flat photography as it has been historically practiced and certainly as
it is overwhelmingly practiced today is a *selective* focus medium,
where the photographer primarily forms his visual hierarchy through
choosing focus for us. Of course composition, light and color are also
used. Very long lenses (and walkie-talkies for communicating with the
model!) are the rule of commercial people-shooting today both for this
reason and for the flattening of features which flatters many faces...

Stereo photography is primarily a medium of  *broad* focus for all the
reasons previously explained; primarily because with the reconstruction
of depth comes the desire for the eye/brain to explore the scene
comprehensively and lack of focus frustrates this inclination. The
photographer must form his/her visual hierarchy only through
composition, light and color (when applicable).

Of course there are many exceptions to this (I really enjoy
experimenting with selective focus stereo shooting as was previously
discussed on the list a while back) but non-the-less in aggregate the
generalization holds true.

So yes, Andrea the principle of hyperfocus is the same in both 2 and 3 D
but the practice is very different mostly for reasons of human cognition
and to some degree the grammar of modern 2-D photography.


Eric G.


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