Olympus® PEN E-PL1 For Dummies®

Chapter 7. Manipulating Focus and Color

In This Chapter

• Controlling the camera's autofocusing performance

• Focusing manually

• Understanding focal lengths, depth of field, and other focus factors

• Exploring white balance and its affect on color

• Investigating other advanced color options

To many people, focus has just one interpretation when applied to a photograph: Either the subject is in focus or it's blurry. But an artful photographer knows that there's more to focus than simply getting a sharp image of a subject. You also need to consider depth of field, or the distance over which objects remain sharply focused. This chapter explains all the ways to control depth of field as well as how to take best advantage of the myriad focusing options on your camera.

In addition, this chapter dives into the topic of color, explaining your camera's White Balance control, which compensates for the varying color casts created by different light sources. You also can get my take on the other color features, including the Color Space option and Picture Mode settings, in this chapter.

Understanding Focusing Basics

One of the most important advantages you gain from stepping up to a camera like the E-PL1 is access to an array of focusing features. Although I cover all the focusing options in this chapter, the two most critical to understand are the following:

• AF Mode: Use this setting to specify whether you want ...