Camera shot sizes explained: wide, medium and close-up

Seven common sizes, from widest to closest

Terminology varies between crews and courses, so use these descriptions as a shared starting point. For a person, body framing is a convenient reference. For a cup, bicycle or building, think about the whole object and the amount of context around it instead.

• Extreme wide: the location dominates and the subject is small within it.
• Wide or full: the whole subject is visible, with enough surroundings to understand the setting.
• Medium wide: for a standing person, often around the knees upward; it gives more room for action than a medium shot.
• Medium: often around the waist upward, useful when the upper body and surroundings both matter.
• Medium close-up: often around the chest upward, bringing the face into greater emphasis.
• Close-up: the face or a specific object fills much of the frame.
• Extreme close-up: one small feature, such as an eye, a texture or a button, dominates.

Size is different from angle

A high angle looks down on the subject and a low angle looks up. Either can be wide or close. Camera movement is another choice again: a stationary close-up and a moving close-up have similar size but different behaviour. Naming the choices separately makes a shot list clearer.

For example, “medium shot, eye level, steady” tells a collaborator more than “cinematic shot”. Add the action you need to show: “hands folding the paper” or “person explaining the result”. The label supports the plan; the action is the reason the shot exists.

A three-shot practice sequence

Choose a simple task, such as wrapping a gift. Adobe’s sequence-shooting guide recommends obtaining wide, medium and close views of a scene. Try the following original exercise, then put the clips together in that order.

• Wide: show the table, paper and person so we know where the task happens.
• Medium: show the upper body and hands wrapping the gift.
• Close-up: show the fold, knot or finishing detail that the wider views could not reveal.

Change the frame deliberately

Move the phone or change lenses when available, then inspect the preview. Getting physically closer changes the viewpoint as well as the framing. A digital crop changes what is included but does not move the camera. These are different tools, and the best choice depends on the space and picture you want.

Keep important hands, faces and tools inside the frame during the action. A close-up that loses the fingers at the key moment is less useful than a slightly wider view. For an ultra-wide lens, watch faces or straight lines near the edges; step back or choose a narrower view if the distortion distracts from your subject.

Write a useful shot list

Give each shot a purpose, a size and an action. For the gift example: “establish the table / wide / lay out materials”; “show the method / medium / fold the paper”; “show the result / close-up / tie the ribbon”. This list is specific enough to shoot and small enough to remember.

After filming, compare the views. If all three give the same information, make the close-up more specific or the wide shot more contextual. If you have missing steps, record those before adding decorative images. The goal is a sequence someone can follow, not a collection of labels you have ticked off.