The Importance of Shooting a Wide Shot for Your Clients

By Sean Setters

I tend to see the world in a 2x3 ratio frame. That's how my camera captures the world, so that's how I'm accustomed to framing the world in my imagination (with the exception of panoramas).

I also tend to like tighter shots rather than wider framed shots. I like seeing more detail in my subjects rather than the surroundings. Generally speaking, that's just fine. However, the value of an extra-wide environmental shot should not be underestimated.

The biggest reason? Facebook. Many of my clients these days are wanting images that can be used in a multitude of ways, whether they be for conference promotion, marketing material, business cards, social media or their own business websites. The aspect ratios required for these uses vary considerably. Therefore, you have to keep in mind that your 2:3 ratio image may need to be cropped down to a 1:1, 16:9 or 851:315.

851:315 – huh?

Yep, that's right – 851:315. That's a very thin strip of your 3:2 image. But right now, it's an extremely prevalent aspect ratio – thanks to Facebook. Facebook's cover photo is exactly 851x315 pixels. Not only that, but you have to take into consideration other issues like how much real estate the profile picture takes up on the left side of the cover photo. Check out this Facebook Cover Photo Size Helper for more details.

I was specifically thinking about the Facebook cover photo requirements when shooting the image for Stamps Design Group at the top of this post. On the whole, it works well at a 2:3 ratio image. But it also works well when cropped down to the aspect ratio of the cover photo:

Yes, you lose a lot of content – the beautiful brick in the top and the scale model in the bottom portion of the image are gone – but the impact is still there when cropped down.

So keep in mind – when shooting for clients, be sure to grab an extra wide shot so that it can work well in a variety of different aspect ratios, including the almost-panoramic 851:315 aspect ratio.