Hi All,
My question is about the best technique to get adequate depth-of-field without losing adequate sharpness. I have been stopping down to about f/45 recently. My DOF app tells me I should have adequate DOF but there is a fuzziness about my images. It could be shake from a low shutter speed. (It seems I am often shooting leaves and tall grass in wind). I do have a what I think is a decent Benro tripod. But I wonder about diffraction at f/45. I have a Schneider APO Symmar 210/5.5 and a Fujinar W 150/6.3.

For example:
If I was using the 150mm at f/45 focused at 20 feet, I should be in focus from about 9 feet to infinity. I guess it would be better to use a slightly wider aperture and a little front tilt to minimize diffraction, but I am still practicing getting near and far in focus using front tilt. I just bought 2 fresnels and hope that helps focusing. I do have a nice old Nikon 7x lupe. I presently have a Calumet C403, but have a 4x5 Intrepid on order.

So how do you'all manage the combination of tilt and stopping down to get the wanted DOF with minimizing the effects of diffraction (if diffraction is really an issue)? I would think keeping the lens at f/16-f/22 would be optimum.

Thanks in advance,
Steve Pituch (In the middle of TS Harvey)