What does DOP mean?

<p>I know what DOF means, but I see DOP used in conversations here, and can't find the meaning of that.</p>

<p>My guess: either it's a typo or they're referring to the website "Digital Outback Photo"<br /> http://www.outbackphoto.com/index_news.html</p>

<p>Developing Out Paper...? traditional photo paper that requires developer to produce an image.</p>

<p>I used an online acronym list here:<br>

http://www.acronymfinder.com/DOP.html<br>

The most meaningful example I see is Director Of Photography.</p>

<p>In the movies a "DOP" or "DP" is a Director of Photography. That means that he/she is the chief of cinematography on the motion picture. The DP chooses the camera placement and lens in collaboration with the director, designs the lighting, and sets the exposure. Sometimes, the DP will also operate the camera as well.</p>

<p>Hope this helps the curious:)</p>

<p>......is it possible that someone simply forgot to add the "E"?</p>

<p>doesnt it stand for depth of perception?</p>

Depth of phield? Could you link to a conversation where you see DOP used so we may gather something from the context?

<p>Did you mean DOF - Depth of Field? Depth of field is a term used to describe how much of a shot is in focus. So a large DoF will have everything in focus - often used for landscapes, while a shallow DoF will have only the man subject in focus - often used for portraits.</p>

<p>I used the Photo.net search function for "DOP" and found that several instances were typos for "DOF," and others seemed to refer to either a printing process or some kind of paper used in printing.</p>

<blockquote>

<p>Did you mean DOF - Depth of Field?</p>

</blockquote>

<p>Depth of Phield? ;^)</p>

<p>Maybe it is a version of Depth Of Field Preview; this would be a function that lets a photographer see the image at the aperture that will be used to record it.</p>

<p>In some cameras, when the photographer looks at the image through the viewfinder, the aperture remains wide open by default; this lets in the most light, as a compositional aid. In Depth of Field Preview, the lens is stopped down to the aperture that will be used to record the image; the image will appear dim, but will show the same amount of focus that it will have during recording. There is usually a mechanical lever or electronic switch that actuates the mechanics of the aperture when depth of field preview is in use. </p>

<p>Otherwise, depending on lens and camera design, the aperture may only be in use for a brief moment as the image is recorded. Some older all manual cameras will only have fittings for the aperture chosen; switching over to wide aperture between shots, through the mechanics of the lens design used to be known as "automatic" aperture. There's more to this, but I don't want to bog you down.</p>

<p>If you were reading a conversation that involved using DOF preview, it's possible that someone might have abbreviated it as DOP. There is no standard abbreviation for it; in context, it would be used in a sentence in a way that reflected a change in the mechanical movements of the camera. Like, "I was checking focus, and I used Depth of Field Preview, and the subject looked alright."</p>

<p>That's my guess. Could be anything. Might be a typo. Maybe hyperlink over to a thread you had a question about if we're not coming up with what sounds like the answer. J.</p>

<p>The way I've seen it used, it seems to mean the same thing as DOF, but I wondered if I was missing something, since I couldn't find what the P could stand for. I looked up all that stuff too, and then decided to ask the pros:~) Thanks!</p>