When shooting with a given lens, how do you know which aperture is optimal for your creative vision?
Let’s say you want shallow dof, is there a place where you can learn that the sweet spot for dof and sharpness for a given lens model is when it’s stopped down by 1/2 stop?
Conversely, where would you go to learn that a given lens model goes soft after f/11?
Sure, you could create a test rig, take tons of pictures with each at every aperture and inspect them with a magnifying glass, but that seems awfully inefficient.
Thanks and I look forward to everyone’s guidance and insights…
You can study all you want, but it ultimately comes down to experience. You just go out and do it. Make mistakes and make good shots and eventually it’ll stick in your head for what works and what doesn’t.