The Language of Film Response

In The Language of Film, Michael Wohl lists many different shots and describes the impact they have. This is a summary of those shots.

Image from The Language of Film by Michael Wohl.

Extreme close up: Puts us in the character's head with their thoughts and emotions in a much more intense way than a close up.

Close up: Used best to portray intense emotion on the characters face and shows very subjectively who the character is.

Medium Close Up: Shows us who the character is and some of their environment. Not as intense as the close up, but still lets the audience see the emotion on the character's face.

Medium Shot: Displays what the character is doing and focuses on the character. It is harder to see the expression on the character's face and less focused on what they are feeling and more what they are doing.

Long Shot: Let's the audience see the environment the character is in. Less focused on what the character is thinking of feeling, but also shows what the character is doing.