The close-up is one of moviemaking’s great distinguishing features. Even in the front row of a live theater, you can’t see details such as sweat on a character’s brow or fingers plucking guitar strings. When you shoot close-ups of your subject, you not only reveal realities that are ordinarily hidden, but you also bring the audience into the action. And then there’s visual impact: Compare the power of a handshake or a kiss seen from a respectful distance with the same action viewed just inches away.

By making the small effort of coming in close, you will dazzle viewers. And this is true no matter what kind of movie you’re making. While close-ups are famously used in dramas, love stories, and horror pictures, the technique is just as powerful in documentaries, travelogues, instructional videos, commercials, music videos, and—as Irish mobile journalist Philip Bromwell demonstrates here—news featurettes.

You may be reluctant to shoot close-ups of people because you don’t want to violate their personal space. Most people aren’t like the character  Laura Desmond who—in “Sunset Boulevard”—said  “All right, Mr. DeMille, I’m ready for my closeup.” However, if you ask, most people will  be OK with your filming them close-up.

How to Do It

There are three common ways to obtain close-ups:

• Physically move your camera close to the subject. Thanks to the light weight of mobile devices, this is the easiest method, and it usually produces terrific results.
• Use a telephoto lens. A long lens is your only option if the subject is unreachable, for example an element of a tall building or an animal that would be dangerous to approach. Because telephoto lenses magnify shakiness, it’s best to put the camera on a tripod or use another stabilizer.
• In post production, use your editor’s cropping tool. The downside is that you’ll lose visual quality, so it’s best to employ this option only as a last resort. Keep such shots short so that viewers will be less likely to notice the visual cheat.

But whatever method you use, the key is that you keep your eyes open for close-up opportunities.

If you’ve shot a video that illustrates the use of close-ups, we invite you to tell us about it: info@mobilemoviemaking.com.