The frame, simply put, is the area that a camera “sees”. It is whatever the lens can capture.

One common mistake made by many beginner photographers is that what you see is what the camera sees. This is not the case.

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The single largest difference between a camera lens’ view and your view is that you have peripheral vision; the camera lens does not.

You can easily simulate a camera lens’ view by holding your hands in front of you and making a square with your thumbs and forefingers. This will create a box you can look through. While it’s true the camera lens is round, the photo itself will be square or rectangular. When looking through your self-made box, this will give you a much more accurate representation of what the camera will shoot. Granted, it’s not perfect but it is better than outright guessing.

How to properly place a human subject in a frame

Here will be described how to shoot a human subject that is standing. Your shot will consist of shooting the subject from the chest to the top of the head.

A classic mistake made by many beginner photographers is that they will place the subject’s head at the very top of the frame. This is wrong because the focus of a human subject is the eyes. Does this mean you place the eyes in the center of the frame? No. You place the nose in the center of the frame. Doing this will place the subject properly in the middle of the frame.

Dependent on how close you are to the subject, the top of the head may be slightly “chopped off.” If this is the case, this is okay as the subject of your photo is not the person’s hair.

Your goal is to place the human subject directly in the center of the frame. With the nose in center, the eyes are places properly slightly above the nose, the mouth near the bottom. This will create a natural look (most desired).

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