A growing criticism within the film industry suggests that modern movies have become overly reliant on shallow depth of field techniques, creating visuals that resemble smartphone photography rather than professional cinematography. Anthony Deveney, speaking on the Raiders Of The Lost Podcast, argues that this trend has significantly reduced audience immersion in contemporary films.

Deveney specifically points to classic films like Lawrence of Arabia, The Matrix, and The Lord of the Rings trilogy as examples of superior cinematography that favored larger depths of field. These productions allowed audiences to absorb intricate details within each scene, creating a more engaging viewing experience. In contrast, modern films' preference for artificially blurred backgrounds often results in imagery that closely resembles iPhone's Portrait Mode or Cinematic Mode features.

The criticism doesn't dismiss shallow depth of field entirely, acknowledging its legitimate artistic applications in older cinema. Classic films employed this technique strategically to convey specific emotions or narrative elements, such as dreamlike states, subject isolation, audience attention focusing, and tension building. Recent productions like the TV series "You" demonstrate effective use of shallow focus through anamorphic lenses, where the soft backgrounds serve thematic purposes related to idealization, infatuation, and obsession while creating a claustrophobic atmosphere that mirrors the protagonist's psychological constraints.

However, when major action blockbusters and streaming productions employ similar techniques without clear artistic justification, the results often appear forced and hollow. Industry observers suggest that the film industry's increasing reliance on green screens and large LED backgrounds, rather than physical set construction, may contribute to this trend. Shallow backgrounds require less detailed attention during post-production, making them a convenient choice for productions with tight schedules and budgets.

The aesthetic preference for shallow depth of field has also been influenced by current visual trends, particularly those popularized by social media and smartphone photography. This has led to a homogenization of visual styles across different types of productions, from high-budget blockbusters to independent streaming content.

Beyond the immersion concerns raised by critics, the overuse of shallow focus may be impacting audience engagement with films over multiple viewings. Soft, blurred backgrounds provide fewer visual details for viewers to discover during subsequent watches, potentially reducing the rewatchability factor that many classic films possessed. This trend extends beyond cinema into photography, where the constant use of wide-open apertures simply for aesthetic purposes may limit creative expression and compositional depth.