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Perspective
the way an image creates a sensation of volume, space, depth, distance, and scale
Perspective—the relationship of the objects to each other in a photograph to create a real sense of scale, size, depth, and distance.
This includes their relative positions and sizes and the space between them. In other words, perspective in the composition of a photograph is the way real three-dimensional objects are pictured in a photograph that has a two-dimensional plane.
In photography, perspective is another illusion you use to produce photographs of quality composition. When you are making pictures, the camera always creates perspective. Because a camera automatically produces perspective, many novice photographers believe there is no need to know much about it. This attitude is far from correct.
Visual clues are used to gain perspective in photography, but remember, it is also gained by memories and knowledge that individuals have of size, scale, and depth from their experiences
When you know the principles of perspective and skillfully apply them, the photographs you produce show a good rendition of the subject's form and shape, and the viewer is given the sensation of volume, space, scale, depth, and distance.
Additionally, the photographer can manipulate perspective to change the illusion of space and distance by either expanding or compressing these factors, therefore providing a sense of scale within the picture
There are seven (7) primary types of perspective involved with photography…the first three are exclusive to photography with perspectives created by specific lenses…the last four are classical compositional perspectives used in the visual arts
Remember, It is possible to have multiple forms of perspective present in the same image
Linear Perspective - this is a zoomed-in perspective...the human eye judges distance by the way elements within a scene diminish in size, and the angle at which lines and planes converge (things appear larger in the photo than they would normally to our eyes.
This image uses linear perspective (1) by zooming in really close to the puppy at 200mm...which keeps the him in clear focus, but also makes the background (a field of tulips in the case here) blurred and artistic (blurred background is known as a "bokeh"...using linear perspective in this way really places extra emphasize on the subject of the picture, the puppy, who is in sharp focus.
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linear perspective is used with this image (2)...this helps this composition by zooming in closer with the camera, you are compressing the space between the viewer and the subject of the picture, the lighthouse, this puts you closer to the lighthouse and makes the flower field seem more full, with all the flowers more packed together
Rectilinear Perspective - this is typical of what the human eye sees. not wide angle or zoomed in, just straight like the eye would see the scene
Most lenses produce rectilinear perspective. The human eye sees at the equivalent focal length of about 50mm. Rectilinear perspective is achieved at about 35-70mm. This is to say that lines that are straight in the subject are reproduced straight in the picture. This is the most common type of perspective. Most pictures you see have been captured with a rectilinear lens, especially images taken with cellphones.
rectilinear perspective is used with this image (1)...image was shot and captured at 50mm, so this is how big the lighthouse would look to your eyes if you were standing right in the same spot...btw and fyi, the ghosting effect happens as a result of a longer exposure and the person is only in the image for a little bit longer than half the exposure time (they just move out of the frame and let the camera continue to expose the shot)
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rectilinear perspective is used with this image (2)...this was captured at a focal length of 58mm, which is pretty close to how the human eye sees in focal length...this gives you more of the feeling of being right there, seeing this scene the same as when the image was taken
Cylindrical Perspective – this is a wide-angle perspective (things appear smaller in the photo than they would normally with our eyes)…
Fish-eye lenses and the lenses used on panoramic cameras produce a false perspective. A panoramic lens produces panoramic or cylindrical perspective.
In other words, all straight horizontal lines at the lens axis level are recorded as straight lines, and all other straight horizontal lines either above or below the lens axis level are reproduced as curved lines. The other false perspective is produced by a fisheye lens in which all straight lines in the subject are imaged as curved lines toward the edges of the picture.
cylindrical perspective is used in this image (1)...this image is created from 15 images all taken in portrait (vertical orientation), the images are all stitched together using photomerge in adobe photoshop cs to create a single composition with an extremely wide angle perspective that is a 1:5 panoramic with about a 270 degree field of view
cylindrical perspective is used in this image (2)...this is an ultra wide-angle shot at 14mm to bring a different artistic perspective into the image with a field of view close to 180 degrees
cylindrical perspective is used in this image (3)...this image is created from 4 images all taken in landscape (horizontal orientation), the images are all stitched together using photomerge in adobe photoshop cs to create a single composition with an extremely wide angle perspective that is a 1:2 panoramic with about a 180 degree field of view
this is a cylindrical perspective (an extra-wide angle view) of the same scene, notice how tiny the soda can looks in this when compared to the other two images of the same scene (above) taken with the other two different lens perspectives
this is a rectilinear perspective (regular human eye view--not zoomed or wide angle) of the same soda can scene, notice the size of the soda can when compared to the other two images of the same scene (above and below) taken with the other two different lens perspectives
this is a linear perspective (zoomed-in close-up view) of a soda can on the kitchen countertop, notice how large the soda can looks when compared to the other two images of the same scene (below) taken with the other two different lens perspectives
These next 3 photos show nicely when looked art collectively just how each of the 3 different lens perspectives (linear, rectilinear, cylindrical) makes the same scene look different...notice how the size of the can changes from one to the next
Overlap Perspective - When subjects within the picture are on about the same line of sight, those objects closer to the camera viewpoint overlap more distant objects and partially hide them...
It is obvious to the viewer that the partially obstructed object is behind the unobstructed object. This overlap is repeated many times within the picture and gives the viewer a sense of depth and a perception of the relative distance of objects.
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this image uses overlap perspective (1) as objects are partially covered up, you get the idea they are father away from you…like the trees in the background in this image. Btw, this image also uses Cylindrical Perspective with a panoramic ultra wide-angle view
Dwindling Size Perspective - when subjects of familiar size are included in a photograph, they help to establish the scale of the picture. Scale helps the viewer determine or visualize actual size or relative size of objects in a picture
Through the experience of vision, you are aware of the size of many common objects, such as people, trees, cars, buildings, and animals, this gives the perception of scale.
For example, you are aware that most adults are about 5 to 6 feet tall; therefore, when two people are shown in a picture and one appears twice as tall as the other, you cannot assume that one is in reality taller than the other. Instead you assume the taller person is closer and the shorter person farther away from the camera viewpoint.
In this same manner, you make a size relationship evaluation of all familiar objects. Thus you can make a distance determination from this size relationship evaluation. The farther away an object is from the viewpoint, the smaller it appears; therefore, when subjects of familiar size are included in a photograph, they help to establish the scale of the picture.
dwindling size perspective (1) is used in this image...scale is gained as to just how big this sea cave is by the size of the dog in the image being so small...you know how big a golden retriever is from experience of seeing them in real life, so your mind creates depth and scale based on your memories
Vanishing Point Perspective - lines that are parallel to each other give the sensation of meeting at vanishing points, giving the impression of depth as the closer these lines get to each other.
When parallel lines are perpendicular to the lens axis (top to bottom of image), the vanishing points are assumed to be at infinity.
Other lines, those which are parallel to the lens axis (left to right in image), and all other parallel lines at all other angles to the lens axis meet at definable vanishing points.
Lines that are parallel to the lens axis, or nearly parallel, start in the front of the picture and meet at vanishing points within or at finite points outside the picture.
vanishing point perspective (1) is used in this image as the two parallel sides of the dock seem to get closer and closer together as you move into the middle ground of the image, thus giving a strong sence of depth and scale
Height Perspective - is the effect that is created when something is seen as higher up in an image, this gives the effect that it’s distance from the foreground is farther away…
The place where the base of an object is located on the ground in a picture is a clue to its distance from the camera viewpoint; for example, in a landscape scene, the ground or ground plane rises toward the horizon. The higher up in the ground area of the picture (up to the horizon) that the base of an object is located, the further away it seems from the viewpoint and the greater its height perspective.
This image uses height perspective (1), as the tops of the trees are higher up in the image, so you know that they are farther away from you, giving you the perspective of distance, plus the feeling you are looking upward