Since we live in a three dimensional world there are really only three different ways we can move a camera. We can move it horizontally, vertically, and change the distance to the subject.
Distance to Subject
There are three basic distances.
Long (or wide)
Medium
Close
Of course there are variations of these.
There is an extreme long shot which is further away than a long. There is a medium long which is closer to medium than long but further than a full shot which is just far enough to get the subject from head to toe with a little room to spare. This is further away than a three-quarter shot which is basically a full shot cropped at the knees. Then there are the close-ups. A medium close-up is from just above the elbows up but further than shoulders up which is a close-up. A big close-up is from just below the chin to the above the hairline. And an extreme close-up is close enough to get just the eyes.
Did you get all that? No? Turns out it doesn't really matter. Everyone has different names for shot distance, so as long as you know there are long, medium and close shots you will probably be able to guess what the difference is between a "waist shot", "knee shot", and "choker".
Horizontal Angle (or side to side)
It's simple. Front angle: camera faces the front of the subject Three-quarter angle: camera is about 45° toward one side of the subject Profile: camera is looking at the subjects side Three-quarter rear: about 45° from the back to the side of the subject Rear angle: camera is looking at the subjects back.
I've also heard a reference to clock positions to describe angles. Imagine a clock face laid out on the ground with the subject facing 12 o'clock. This way you can refer to a rear angle shot as 6 o'clock and a 3/4 angle as 2 o'clock and so on.
Vertical Angle
This is sometimes called eye line. If you are above it's high and if you are below it's low. If you are at eye line it's neutral. There are a couple of cases where you have higher and lower than high. When you have an angle that looks as if you are looking down from the top of a building or out of a helicoptor, it's called Bird's-eye angle. Conversely, if you are looking from a very low position on the ground it is called Worm's-eye angle. There are also shots called overheads which are from directly above the subject. I have also seen shots from directly below in some special cases, but I don't know what they are called so I will just call them underneaths ;)
Combine the angles.
Of course we're not going to think about just one of these at a time. We are placing the camera in a three dimensional space, so we need to worry about all three dimensions. That way we have shots like a "medium three-quarter neutral" and "worm's-eye profile". Don't worry about memorizing a bunch of crazy camera angle names, you'll catch on and get used to the language. The important thing is that you realize you can put a camera just about anywhere and that a "front-angle neutral full-shot" is not the only angle. Move the camera around and be creative.
Basic Camera Angles
Since we live in a three dimensional world there are really only three different ways we can move a camera. We can move it horizontally, vertically, and change the distance to the subject.
Distance to Subject
There are three basic distances.
There is an extreme long shot which is further away than a long. There is a medium long which is closer to medium than long but further than a full shot which is just far enough to get the subject from head to toe with a little room to spare. This is further away than a three-quarter shot which is basically a full shot cropped at the knees. Then there are the close-ups. A medium close-up is from just above the elbows up but further than shoulders up which is a close-up. A big close-up is from just below the chin to the above the hairline. And an extreme close-up is close enough to get just the eyes.
Did you get all that? No? Turns out it doesn't really matter. Everyone has different names for shot distance, so as long as you know there are long, medium and close shots you will probably be able to guess what the difference is between a "waist shot", "knee shot", and "choker".
Horizontal Angle (or side to side)
It's simple.
Front angle: camera faces the front of the subject
Three-quarter angle: camera is about 45° toward one side of the subject
Profile: camera is looking at the subjects side
Three-quarter rear: about 45° from the back to the side of the subject
Rear angle: camera is looking at the subjects back.
I've also heard a reference to clock positions to describe angles. Imagine a clock face laid out on the ground with the subject facing 12 o'clock. This way you can refer to a rear angle shot as 6 o'clock and a 3/4 angle as 2 o'clock and so on.
Vertical Angle
This is sometimes called eye line. If you are above it's high and if you are below it's low. If you are at eye line it's neutral. There are a couple of cases where you have higher and lower than high. When you have an angle that looks as if you are looking down from the top of a building or out of a helicoptor, it's called Bird's-eye angle. Conversely, if you are looking from a very low position on the ground it is called Worm's-eye angle. There are also shots called overheads which are from directly above the subject. I have also seen shots from directly below in some special cases, but I don't know what they are called so I will just call them underneaths ;)
Combine the angles.
Of course we're not going to think about just one of these at a time. We are placing the camera in a three dimensional space, so we need to worry about all three dimensions. That way we have shots like a "medium three-quarter neutral" and "worm's-eye profile". Don't worry about memorizing a bunch of crazy camera angle names, you'll catch on and get used to the language. The important thing is that you realize you can put a camera just about anywhere and that a "front-angle neutral full-shot" is not the only angle. Move the camera around and be creative.