

These shots indicate to the audience that what they are seeing or hearing is important. The close-up shot is your go-to move for any emotional, dramatic scene that needs to convey what the characters are thinking to the audience. While the image will be intimate, you should be able to recognize the imagery in the composition. In a sentence or two: A close-up is a shot taken at close range that displays greater detail to the viewer. The longer the focal length, the closer you can get into the actor’s face without the need to move your camera forward.ĭavid Fincher has become a master of extreme close-ups, and you can see them use in this video essay. Therefore we recommend you use a lens with the focal length of 50mm and above. However, if your subject is an actor, this will make for an uncomfortable experience as you would quite literally need the camera up in their face. If you had a wide-angle macro lens, you could, in theory, position your camera right up close to the subject to obtain an extreme closeup. Whereas a close-up may still show some elements of the background.Īlternatively, if the subject is of an inanimate object, such as a newspaper, an extreme close-up would likely take us close enough so we could see the texture of the newspaper and ink. Typically this is what differentiates an extreme close-up between a standard close-up all contents fill the entire frame.

Whether that’s a specific marking on a character, or a small detail too tiny to notice otherwise, you won’t be able to miss it in extreme close-up as it will crowd the entire frame. There’s no hidden meaning behind these shots, as the director tells the audience exactly what to look at. This type of shot is generally for directing attention to a specific object or motion.

It’s usually something small (or a little feature on someone’s face) made huge. You’ll know when you see an extreme close-up shot. In a sentence or two: an extreme close-up will frame a subject closely, capturing minute detail not seen in normal circumstances.
