This concept is valid both in photography and cinematography, the shot planes are defined as the amount of space occupied by a model or object in the picture of the image, surely many people have already heard about this when someone says take a close-up of this or look at what a beautiful general plane, anyway, I will explain each of them, despite being over understood, it is very important to know where each plane arrives and where each cut should be made.

The shot planes are divided into three sections:

To vary now in the demonstration of each plane, I will use photographs of the beautiful Marilyn Monroe, it seemed to me that she is pertinent for having so many photographs in all types of existing plans.

Detail plane:

In this plane the photographer seeks to demonstrate a detail of the model or an object, a very close detail, for those who like to take photographs with a macro this is probably their favorite plane.

It should be mentioned that the detailed plane is not always a macro; it is simply an approach to a detail as I have mentioned before.

Very first close-up

This plane is usually somewhat intimidating because of the approach, the face completely fills the picture of the image, without giving way to any distraction. The purpose of this takes many times is to capture the look of the model and the message it conveys through their eyes.

In a person the cuts are made in the middle or above the forehead to the chin, for this shot it is important to maintain a good control of the focus and depth of field.

Close-up

In this plane you can see the whole object or the face of the model even from a close view.

The cut goes from the head to the shoulders, this is the type of plane used for the photographs that go in the identifications of each person. It is said that it is the most suitable approach to portray a person's face because it shows the gestures and details of the face.

Short medium shot:

This plane is characterized by reaching the chest of the person being photographed, the ideal framing of this photograph would be the vertical directional framing, but everything depends on the photographer's intention, therefore it is not obligatory that it must be vertical.

The vertical intention of this plane is to isolate the model from its surroundings. This plane was one of those used to portray the people of royalty in antiquity.

Medium plane:

In this plane the model takes all the attention in the picture of the image, is characterized by being one of the most used planes in the fashion industry, those that are often seen in newspapers and magazines.

The cut is made from the head or a little above the head to the waist.

American plane:

Also known as three-quarter plane, it is characterized by the cut of the model, the origin of the name of '' American plane '' comes from the western genre films (cowboy movies) where the shots are usually by above or below the knees never on the knees, to have a good shot of their weapons and the moment where they draw it.

As you can see, from the middle planes the frame is usually in the vertical direction since if you photograph people is the best way, but it is to the taste of the photographer as I mentioned before.

Whole plane:

As the name says, it fits the model or object in its entirety, but without adding more, the purpose is to highlight the body of the model in its entirety, this plane is also commonly used in the fashion industry, as a sample of costumes of Vanguard.

This plane does not have cuts in the body of the model, but in the environment, because only the model or the object will matter.

To get more out of this plane, the background should be well planned, as in the example image, Marilyn is in a place that seems to be desert and there is nothing that attracts attention more than herself.

Plane set:

In this plane we begin to include the environment with the model or the object, to call it a joint plane I define it as the object or model next to the set of things that it has around it, then the environment begins to influence the theme of the photography, and the plane does not focus on a thing or a person.

This type of plans can be found in documentary photography, where the reality or the environment is shown in a dramatic situation.

General plane:

This plane seeks to give a complete vision of a whole scene, not only of the model or the object, but of its surroundings in the totality, just as the joint plane this plane also seeks to encompass more the context of its surroundings, it still has a character or object that has an importance visually.

This shot plane is found not only in documentary photography, but also in fashion, and travel.

All the pictures I used of Marilyn you can get them here

Great general plane:

This shot plane is usually used to obtain shots of places, natural landscapes, cities, and large scenes. The characters are not so important in these planes, what matters is the environment, as shown in the image, the subjects are minimized in contrast to the great environment that surrounds them.

This plane as well as all the general planes is used a lot in cinematography, to have a clear vision of a whole, as for example, to demonstrate the geographical location of a place.

Although this publication is full of technicalities, I want to remind you that photography is free, technical issues are nothing compared to the soul that each one puts to their photographs, my purpose is to educate but also to impel them to dare; Once you learn all the techniques, use them to create new rules and new compositions.

All the aforementioned things in terms of the types of frames, types of angles and shot planes should be mixed with the idea that each photographer has in mind, then when exploring, that not only are you looking to comply with those rules, but that in using them appropriately to transmit messages with each of your photographs.

Photography is not only a means of marketing, it is art and it is an expression of being, just like other artistic expressions.