Camera shots are a filmmaker’s secret weapon—they frame the action and shape how you experience a story. From sweeping aerial views that take your breath away to tight close-ups that pull you into a character’s emotions, each shot has its purpose and impact.
However, understanding these shots doesn’t just help you enjoy what you’re watching—it’s also essential if you’re creating videos, whether for a passion project, a brand, or social media. Knowing how to use wide shots, over-the-shoulder angles, or POV shots can heighten your storytelling and connect with your audience on a deeper level.
In this guide, we’ll uncover the most common types of camera shots, showing you when to utilize them and why they matter. Let’s dive in!
1. Medium shot
A medium shot is your storytelling middle ground because it’s close enough to capture emotion but far enough to keep the scene alive. Framing your subject from the waist up, this shot is all about balance. It doesn’t demand a close-up’s intense focus or a wide shot’s vast perspective. Instead, it entices you into the character’s world while subtly showcasing their surroundings.
You’ve seen it countless times: a character at a desk, gesturing as they speak, or two people mid-conversation, their surroundings just visible enough to set the tone. The medium shot is ideal for dialogue, actions, or moments that demand a human touch without losing context.
When you use this shot, you invite your audience to connect and notice how someone’s hands move when they’re nervous or how a backdrop quietly influences the mood. Essentially, this shot is a storytelling staple that keeps your visuals dynamic yet simultaneously very relatable.
2. Closed shot
A closed shot pulls you into the moment like nothing else. It concentrates on detail—capturing the curve of a smile, the flicker of doubt in someone’s eyes, or the tension in a clenched fist.
When you use a closed shot, you’re giving your audience no choice but to focus, feel, and notice the small things that tell a bigger story.
These shots strip away distractions and hone in on what really matters, whether it’s a single tear rolling down a cheek or the intricate mechanics of an object in motion. Close shots are not just about showing, as they’re about making your viewer feel what the subject feels.
Use closed shots carefully. Too many, and you risk overwhelming your audience. But when used at the right moment, a closed shot can transform an ordinary scene into something unforgettable, placing your viewer at the heart of your story.
3. POV shot
Point-of-view (POV) shorts are your shortcut to putting the audience in someone else’s shoes. Rather than showing the subject, you’re showing the world through their eyes. It’s immersive, personal, and incredibly effective when you want your viewers to feel like they are part of the story and not just watching it.
Think of it as a perspective shift; you’re no longer observing but experiencing. The protagonist looks down at trembling hands, scans a crowded room, or peers through the scope of a rifle, and you see exactly what they see. Suddenly, their fears, curiosity, or choices feel like your own.
What makes a POV shot so powerful is how it removes the barrier between the character and your audience. It’s a tool for empathy, action, and connection. Regardless of if it’s a silent moment of wonder or a heart-pounding chase, this type of shot can easily draw you in.
4. High-angle shot
High-angle shots do more than just show your subject from about. By positioning the camera to look down, you’re shifting the dynamic entirely. Suddenly, the subject feels smaller, weaker, and more vulnerable. It’s as if the world is towering over them, emphasizing their place in the bigger picture.
But it’s not just about weakness. High-angle shots can also show perspective. They’re perfect for moments when you want your audience to step back and see how everything connects. A lone figure in an empty street, a child dwarfed by a sprawling forest, or a character navigating chaos from an elevated viewpoint.
It is a subtle way to guide emotions and set the tone. The next time you are framing a shot, think about what a high angle might say about your subject. It’s not just about looking down; it’s about making your viewers feel something bigger.
5. Shoulder level shot
Shoulder-level shots are taken at eye level with your subject, offering a grounded, familiar perspective that feels like you’re standing right there, part of the conversation.
These shots don’t try to dominate the scene or draw too much attention. Instead, they are primarily focused on maintaining authenticity.
Imagine watching two friends talk over coffee, the camera hovering just over one shoulder. You become involved as if you’re the third person at the table. Shoulder-level shots let the audience see the world the way the characters do, keeping things personal and relatable.
This angle works best when subtlety is essential. It doesn’t shout drama, demand focus like a close-up, or provide sweeping context like a wide shot. Rather, it bridges the gap between the viewer and the story, quietly creating a natural flow that pulls you in without breaking the illusion.
6. Full shot
A full shot frames your subject from head to toe, placing them at the center of the action while still embracing their surroundings. It’s a shot that thrives on balance, giving equal weight to the character and the world they are moving through. Every blink, every gesture, and every change in their body language becomes part of the story you’re telling.
This type of shot shines in moments that call for physicality.
A dancer leaping across a stage, a lone figure walking down a quiet road, or a hero standing tall in the face of danger all come alive when captured in a full shot. You see, it’s about showing what they’re doing and letting their actions speak volumes, sometimes without any words.
When you use this shot, you invite the audience to take it all in, from the person, the space, and the energy between them. If anything, it’s dynamic, deliberate, and deeply cinematic.
7. Long shot
Long shots open the frame to show your subject fully immersed in their environment.
The sheer distance between the camera and the subject creates a sense of space, highlighting not just the person but how they fit into the world around them. It’s not about close details; it’s about context.
This shot is ideal for moments when the setting plays as much of a role as the character. Picture a lone traveler in a desert or a group of people dwarfed by skyscrapers. These scenes will make the viewer feel the scene’s scale, isolation, or grandeur.
Long shots excel at storytelling through contract and proportion. They emphasize relationships between characters and their surroundings and between what’s happening and where it’s playing out. They don’t rush the moment, allowing the audience to absorb the scene.
8. Establishing shot
An establishing shot is your audience’s first introduction to a scene. It sets the stage, giving them the lay of the land before the story dives deeper. Typically wide and expansive, this shot lays out the setting, mood, and even the stakes at play to give your audience a solid look at the premise of your story.
Imagine the opening of a film: a city skyline at dawn, waves crashing against a remote island, or a bustling market alive with colors and sounds. Before a single word is spoken, the viewer knows where they’re located and what kind of story might unfold before their eyes.
These shots concentrate on atmosphere and orientation. They help the audience feel grounded, preparing them for what’s to come. When done correctly, an establishing shot makes all scenes that follow feel richer and more meaningful.
9. Low-angle shot
Low-angle shots are all about shifting power dynamics. They inject needed drama and tension or give a character the stature they deserve in a moment of success.
Positioning the camera beneath your subject instantly alters how they’re perceived, making them appear larger, more imposing, or even heroic. It is essentially the visual equivalent of looking up to someone with admiration, fear, or awe.
Visualize a towering figure standing over you, their silhouette against an endless sky. A villain looking down with authority or a protagonist standing firm, their strength amplified by the angle. These shots create a sense of dominance, turning an ordinary moment into something dramatic.
What makes low-angle shots so impactful is their capacity to elevate the subject—literally. The wider environment becomes secondary, focusing attention entirely on the individual or item in frame.
10. Wide Shot
Wide shots are your opportunity to showcase the entire scene in all its glory. By capturing both the subject and their surroundings, this shot emphasizes scale and context, making the setting an integral part of the story. It’s a chance to reveal the world your characters inhabit and how they move within it.
The wide shot doesn’t zoom in on the details; it pulls back to offer perspective. With the camera panning across, envision a solo figure standing on a mountainside, framed by the unending sky, or a quiet village nestled in the valley.
This type of shot evokes emotion through space: loneliness in a vast desert, freedom on an open road, or chaos in a crowded battlefield. It encourages your audience to feel the scene’s magnitude while connecting it to the subject, creating a visual harmony that sets the tone for everything that follows.
11. Close shot
A close shot narrows the frame to focus on the subject from the chest or shoulders up, bridging the gap between personal connection and environmental awareness.
They bring the audience close, making emotions and gestures feel immediate while still hinting at the world beyond the edges of the frame.
This type of shot thrives on intimacy without feeling confined. You may notice how someone shifts nervously, the subtle life of a smile, or the tension in their posture. Simultaneously, the surrounding elements, which are in a blur, whisper just enough to keep the context alive.
Close shots are perfect when emotions need to take center stage, but the story still calls for a hint of place. They’re dynamic, versatile, and capable of drawing your audience into the character’s world without losing the bigger picture entirely.
12. Cowboy shot
The cowboy shot, framing your subject from mid-thigh up, expresses attitude and readiness to your audience.
Originating in Western films, it was designed to capture the hero’s holstered weapon alongside their poised stance to create a sense of tension and anticipation. Today, it’s a technique for storytelling that highlights confidence, action, and body language all in just one frame.
This shot balances intimacy and context.
You get to see the subject’s expressions and gestures while still feeling the weight of their physical presence. It’s a favorite for dynamic moments such as characters facing off, gearing up, or preparing to make the next move.
Cowboy shots give the viewer just enough space to sense the moment’s energy while staying tied to the character. Beyond the frame, they set the tone, hint at what’s to come and leave the audience eager for what’s next.
13. Dutch angle shot
A Dutch angle shot tilts the camera off its usual horizontal axis to create a sense of unease, tension, or disorientation. It is both a visual and psychological choice, with the title making the world feel off-balance, like something isn’t quite right. This is intended to draw the viewer into the emotional underbelly of the scene.
These shots thrive in moments where ordinary shifts to the extraordinary.
Think of someone who is descending into madness, a tense confrontation where power dynamics are challenged or a chaotic event where all control slips away. The slant tells the audience, without a single word, that they have stepped into an unpredictable world that’s as unstable and disorienting.
Using a Dutch angle isn’t about being flashy but amplifying your story. It requires intention, transforming a simple tilt into a visual alert that deepens moods and keeps your audience focused, wondering what might happen next.
14. Close-up shot
Close-up shots are a doorway into your subject’s soul.
These shots strip away distractions and force the viewer to connect with the raw emotion of significance of what’s in front of them. A well-executed close-up doesn’t just show you the unexpected. It also reveals and turns a fleeting moment into something deeply personal.
These shots work best when you want your audience to feel rather than simply see. They heighten the stakes, intensify the drama, and create a connection that can define a scene.
Furthermore, a well-timed close-up has the power to stay with your viewers long after the story ends, leaving an emotional imprint they won’t soon forget.
15. Two shot
The two-shot places two characters in the same frame, creating a sense of shared focus. This composition highlights their connection, contrast, or interaction in a natural and balanced way.
A two-shot thrives in moments where relationships drive the story. It brings the audience closer to the characters and offers a look into how they engage and react to one another. Whether playful, intense or quietly emotional, the two-shot places viewers in the heart of the interaction, making every glance and movement part of the narrative.
16. Medium close-up shot
The medium close-up frames the subject from the shoulders or chest up to balance detail and space. It’s a rather intimate perspective that draws attention to expressions and subtle gestures without completely isolating the subject from their surroundings.
This shot is often used in dialogue-heavy scenes or moments that require emotional focus. The proximity feels personal, allowing the audience to connect with the subject’s thoughts or feelings while still sensing the broader context of the scene.
A medium close-up is like a conversation, being close enough to feel engaged yet far enough to maintain a sense of perspective.
It captures nuance: the way someone tilts their head, a flicker of doubt in their eyes, or the tension in their shoulders. This framing invites viewers to tune into the details that matter most.
17. Hip-level shot
The hip-level shot positions the camera around waist height to create a distinct perspective that emphasizes posture, movement, and physicality. It’s commonly used to highlight action, like a character reaching for something, walking with purpose, or even preparing for a standoff.
This framing brings attention to the subject’s lower body and how it interacts with the scene.
The shot also creates subtle storytelling opportunities by focusing on this part of the body. It can suggest readiness, tension, or even vulnerability without a word of dialogue.
In essence, the hip-level shot invites the audience to notice what the character is doing and how those actions set the tone for what’s coming next. It’s purposeful and packed with visual storytelling.
18. Tracking shot
A tracking shot follows the subject, moving fluidly through the scene to keep pace with their actions. Through continuous motion, this shot takes the viewer into the character’s journey and makes them feel as if they’re right there, walking, running, or navigating alongside them.
Beyond capturing just movement, this shot seamlessly reveals the environment, showing how the subject interacts with their surroundings.
Tracking shots are typically employed to build momentum and tension.
The smooth motion pulls the audience forward, building anticipation and immersing them in the scene. Every step, turn, or glance becomes part of the experience and establishes a connection that feels alive and immediate.
19. Extreme wide short shot
An extreme wide shot stretches the frame to its sheer limits, placing the subject deep within the landscape. Here, space dominates. The human figure becomes small, almost swallowed by the vastness around them. This perspective turns the environment into part of the story and not just a simple backdrop.
With this shot, emotions are felt through scale rather than visuals. The viewer isn’t close enough to see facial expressions, but they don’t need to. The framing says it all: it’s a chance to breathe, take in the setting, and understand the character’s place within something far more significant.
20. Bird’s eye shot
Bird’s eye shots lift the camera high above the subject, looking straight down to turn the familiar into something new. Streets become geometric patterns, people turn into insignificant moving dots, and once-dominant figures feel smaller within the grand design of their surroundings.
The perspective this shot introduces is meant to remove the human point of view and offer a detached, almost omniscient look at the world. It can make a character seem minor, lost in a maze of city blocks, or it can emphasize order and symmetry in a carefully composed scene.
Aside from the aesthetic factor, bird’ s-eye shots change how a scene is understood. They shift power, alter perception, and force the audience to see the bigger picture in a literal sense.
21. Over-the-shoulder shot
An over-the-shoulder shot places your audience right behind a character, seeing what they see, feeling what they feel.
This type of shot is ideal for conversations because it makes interactions feel more natural and immersive. One figure is slightly blurred in the foreground, while the focus stays on the person they’re watching. The result? A shot that subtly guides attention while maintaining a connection between characters.
22. Knee-level shot
Lowering the camera to knee height shifts the focus to movement, stance, and unspoken tension. At this level, the way someone walks, pauses, or stands their ground takes on a new significance. Footsteps feel heavier, uncertainty becomes more visible, and confidence radiates from the ground up.
However, in addition to movement, a knee-level shot is meant to change perspectives. A tall figure will be more imposing, while a smaller character might seem vulnerable or determined. This doesn’t just capture action; it amplifies it, turns simple steps into storytelling devices, and makes every inch of the fame count.
23. Eye-level shot
An eye-level shot places the camera right where it feels most familiar: at the subject’s natural line of sight. Without tilting up or down, this perspective creates balance, making the character feel approachable, relatable, and real.
This framing doesn’t distort or exaggerate. Instead, it allows for expressions, gestures, and emotions to unfold naturally.
A direct look into the lens can feel like a conversation. A silent moment of contemplation can turn into something intensely personal. Every detail is seen exactly as it would be in real life, drawing the audience into the scene without distraction.
Eye-level shots work in almost any situation, from casual dialogue to pivotal emotional beats. They invite the viewer to observe without judgment, to connect without barriers, and to experience a moment as if they were standing right there, face-to-face with the character.
24. Aerial shot
With an aerial shot, you can look at the scene from a god-like height, where characters become mere parts of a much larger world.
As the camera moves high above the setting, you can witness the magnitude of a setting or the solitude of a single figure. This perspective pulls you back, letting you appreciate the space, geography, and context in a way that no other angle can.
Level up your filmmaking skills with the right camera shot types and angles
Mastering the different types of camera shots is an invaluable skill for any filmmaker or content creator. Whether crafting an emotional scene or trying to capture the grandeur of a landscape, knowing when and how to use each shot will elevate your storytelling and keep your audience engaged.
If you’re ready to take your video creation to the next level, let SplitMotion help you refine your visual content and drive success. Not only do we allow your brand the edge to stand out in a crowded digital space, but we offer a wide range of resources that will help you refine your visual content too.
