POV
A shot where the camera sits where a character’s eyes would be and shows exactly what that character sees. It makes the viewer feel like they have become that character. It is usually placed right before or after a shot of the character looking at something.
How it feels
- Immersion
- Experience
- Urgency
- Fear
- Identification
When to use it
- Showing an experience, like a roller coaster ride or a flight
- Looking down at a map or letter in your hands
- Another character approaching threateningly
- Right after a character looks at something, showing what they saw
In the movies
Peking Opera Blues 1986
Directed by Tsui Hark. Yale’s film analysis guide explains that in a scene where a cross-dressing actor fears a soldier who wants to take him away, a cut to a wide-angle POV shot makes that fear comic.
Lady in the Lake 1947
Often cited as a film shot almost entirely as subjective shots, through the hero’s eyes.
Not to be confused with
- Over-the-Shoulder
- An over-the-shoulder shows the character’s shoulder from behind them. In a POV that character is not in frame, though their hands or feet may enter at the bottom.
- Eye Level
- Eye level is a position that looks at a character from the same height. A POV is a position that looks instead of the character.
Prompt
POV shot
POV shot. The camera sees exactly what the character sees from their own eyes; the character is not visible, and another person stands close in front, looking straight back.
Try these combinations
POV: looking down at a map in your hands
POV shot looking down at hands holding an ancient map, candlelight flickering
POV + handheld + wide angle: a roller coaster ride
POV shot as someone rides a rollercoaster, handheld, wide lens