IPCS Word of the Day: F
May 23, 2008 by Garrett Smith
F = In optics, the f-number (sometimes called focal ratio, f-ratio, or relative aperture) of an optical system expresses the diameter of the entrance pupil in terms of the effective focal length of the lens; in simpler terms, the f-number is the focal length divided by the aperture diameter. It is a dimensionless number that is a quantitative measure of lens speed, an important concept in photography. Depth of field increases with f-number, as illustrated in the photos below:
