Published: November 18, 2024 | Last Updated: December 4, 2024
deep-focus shot Definition & Meaning
A deep-focus shot is when everything within the frame, from the foreground to the background, is sharply in focus. It’s used when the action happens at multiple depth planes and is equally vital to the narrative or when an event happening in the far background is to be highlighted. Deep-focus contrasts with shallow-focus shots, where only a specific area is in sharp focus while the background or foreground is blurred.
When to Use a Deep Focus Shot
Deep-focus shots are usually used when composing complex scenes. They allow multiple points of interest to be presented within the same frame without cutting between them. For example, a character in the foreground may be engaged in dialogue while important background action unfolds.
However, multiple actions don’t have to be taking place at once. Deep focus can also be used to show a journey from background to foreground or vice versa—for example, an ongoing conversation or a vehicle approaching.
Deep Focus Movie Examples
The most famous use of deep focus is in Orson Welles’ Citizen Kane (1941), where it’s used throughout the movie. The most famous scene that shows this technique is where Kane’s parents discuss his future in the foreground while young Kane—innocent and unaware that his fate is being decided for him right now—plays in the snow, clearly visible through the window in the background:
Image Source: Film-Grab
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However, there are many more great examples from cinema history. Take, for instance, these shots from Dunkirk (2017):
Another famous example from cinema history is Kubrick’s use of deep focus in 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968):
Image Source: Film-Grab
How to create deep focus
The most common way to create a deep focus is to combine a small aperture on wide-angle lenses (creating a large depth of field) and careful lighting of each plane.
This doesn’t mean that you can’t create deep focus on longer focal-length lenses, but since deep focus is often used in landscape scenes, wide lenses are common.
It’s also crucial to know your lens’ hyperfocal distance, which is the closest distance a lens can be focused while keeping objects at infinity acceptable sharp. Read more about what hyperfocal distance is and how to calculate it.
Summing Up
Overall, deep-focus shots are really useful when you wish to create multi-layered compositions that require your audience to engage with the entire frame and composition or tell multiple stories at once rather than focusing on one isolated part.
Up Next: The most common lenses and focal lengths used in Hollywood movies.
