Photography Calculators

Optics & depth of field

Hyperfocal Distance Calculator: Sony A6700 + Sony FE 50mm f/1.8

This page is pre-filled for the Sony A6700 + Sony FE 50mm f/1.8 (APS-C, 26 MP, 50 mm at f/1.8). Stop down to push H closer; wide open pushes it farther.

Hyperfocal sits far on the Sony A6700 + Sony FE 50mm f/1.8

50 mm at f/1.8 on APS-C (CoC 0.02 mm) has H = 69.5 m. Wide open this barrel pushes H a long way out. Stop down if you want near-to-infinity in one focus.

The Result is indicative and educational. It does not constitute a design, a technical opinion or medical advice and does not replace calculations or verification by a person with the appropriate qualifications and authorisations. Before purchase, installation or use in practice – in particular in electrical installations – the Result should be verified by a qualified specialist. Details: Terms of Service, point 4.

Inputs

Units
mm

Barrel focal length, not 35 mm equivalent.

f/

Taking aperture. f/8–f/11 is the usual landscape starting point on full frame.

mm

0.030 mm full frame is the common print CoC.

Results

Hyperfocal distance
69.54m

Focus distance from which the far limit is infinity.

Hyperfocal distance
69,544mm

Same distance in millimetres, useful if you tape the ground.

The Result is indicative and educational. It does not constitute a design, a technical opinion or medical advice and does not replace calculations or verification by a person with the appropriate qualifications and authorisations. Before purchase, installation or use in practice – in particular in electrical installations – the Result should be verified by a qualified specialist. Details: Terms of Service, point 4.

Example products

Product links are Affiliate Links to Amazon websites. Using them does not cost you anything extra, and if you make a purchase we may receive a commission. Details: Terms of Service, point 5.

Calculation method

Convert focal length and CoC from millimetres to metres. The thin-lens hyperfocal measured from the lens is H₀ = f² divided by (f-number times CoC), plus f. Focus scales and a tape start at the sensor plane, and at that focus the lens sits H₀·N·c/f — just over one focal length — in front of the sensor, so the calculator adds it: H = H₀·(1 + N·c/f) = f²/(N·c) + 2f + N·c. That is the same focus distance the depth-of-field calculator treats as the start of infinity. The millimetre output is H times 1000.

Exact formula

H₀ = f²/(N·c) + f from the lens. From the sensor plane H = H₀·(1 + N·c/f) = f²/(N·c) + 2f + N·c, f and c in metres. Hyperfocal in mm is H×1000. Limits: Thin-lens CoC model; the near limit at H is about H/2, a subject at H is not ‘everything sharp’, and diffraction at small apertures such as f/16–f/22 is omitted.

Double-distance shortcut

If you do not have a tape, focus on something about twice as far as the nearest object you need sharp, then stop down. It is a field approximation of hyperfocal, not a replacement for the number.

Focus stacking

When the near object is closer than half of H, one frame will not cover it. Stack or move the camera. Hyperfocal is not a stack substitute.

Frequently asked questions

Where do I actually focus?

On a point at distance H, or a hair closer if you want a safety margin on the near side. Do not focus at infinity — that throws away the near half.

Why is H more than f²/(N·c)?

The often-quoted f²/(N·c) is the near limit when you focus at infinity, measured from the lens. The exact thin-lens hyperfocal adds f, and measuring from the sensor plane like the focus scale adds about one more f. At 50 mm that is roughly 10 cm on top of tens of metres; on a 14 mm at f/8 it is about 3 cm on 0.82 m, so the correction matters more on wide lenses.

Is f/22 sharper because H is closer?

Hyperfocal drops, but diffraction eats microcontrast. On modern high-MP bodies, f/8–f/11 is usually sharper than f/22. Check a test shot.

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