Cameras Do Lie
Jan 19th, 2007 by John Setzler
People like to say that cameras don’t lie, but I think they do in some cases. I was shooting a basketball game tonight, and as always, I was sitting on the baseline just off center from the net. Tonight I was using my Canon 24-70L f/2.8 lens @ 1/500″ and f/2.8. This photo was shot at 70mm, and the camera angle, along with the position of the player creates something that seems to bend reality to some degree. When I reviewed this photo, the first thing that came to mind is how this basketball player looked like a dwarf from this particular angle. Since he’s facing almost 90 degrees from my camera plane, with his legs spread fairly wide and his arm extended towards me, his body appearance is distorted to a point where we see something that is quite out of the ordinary.
Most photographers realize that creative use of a camera can change reality. We can make things appear much differently than they actually are. Various lenses and focal lengths, coupled with depth of field and shutter speed variations, can completely change a scene from reality into fantasy in a hurry.
The distortion in this photo was not created intentionally. I couldn’t duplicate this if I tried. It’s just one of those rare instances where something unique finds its way into your viewfinder, without help from the photographer’s vast knowledge and creativity…
lol…now that’s one strange looking shot. reminds me of those gatorade commercials where the kids have the adult sized heads