Get in close when shooting wide

Wide angle lenses are great for capture wide sweeping vistas, but often when used with people in the frame… the person gets squished down and almost becomes a secondary part of the image. Or even when shooting a landscape the foreground is overlooked while trying to capture the middle ground and background. Don’t forget that a lot of times the viewer’s eye loves something in the front area to act as a starting point to help the visual story begin, and this works really well when you get really close to a subject with a wide angle lens.

If we were to compare it to music, it would be like having a great melody or harmony line running through the song, but to really grab the listener, you want a great hook or bridge. (I am not a musician, so if I just murdered that analogy… I apologize to you all.) The point is, put something close up and the wide angle will pay off even more.

Here I wanted to show my son along with the water, plants, trees and clouds. the problem is Sam gets lost and is only a bit player in this story.

Even when I crop in, there is just not a lot of drama or zing to the image

Because I was nearly kicked in the camera by my son’s foot I know I was close and the impact and the drama of the shot is increased. I still get the water, plants, trees and clouds, but they are just parts of the drama and the boys are the heroes.

So just remember when using a wide angle… our tendency is to stay back and try to get everything in frame, when sometimes the best thing you can do is get in close to add to the drama.