Shot types in film: a visual guide to every camera shot

This guide covers camera shots in film and video, not video game or golf shots. It includes a shot size table, an abbreviation list and a way to write shot types into an AI video prompt.

Definitions were checked on November 3, 2026, and where sources disagree, we say so. For how the camera moves during a shot, see our guide to camera movements and angles.

What are shot types in film?

A shot type is the label for how a single shot is composed, and a shot itself is a series of frames that runs for an uninterrupted period of time. Most confusion comes from mixing four different questions into one list.

One shot can carry a label from every axis at once: a low angle medium two shot with a slow push-in is a single shot. According to MasterClass, shot size is the size of the frame relative to the figures in it, and lens focal length plus camera-to-subject distance decide what's visible.

Shot sizes from extreme close-up to extreme wide shot

Shot sizes run from the extreme close-up, which shows a face or less, to the extreme wide shot, where the person may not be visible at all. B&H Explora sorts them into three groups: Long, Medium and Close. The table below uses a person as the reference, since that's how crop points are usually defined.

Close-up and extreme close-up definitions come from Wikipedia's shot article, which also lists the extreme long shot for epic views and panoramas. StudioBinder's shot size guide puts the medium wide shot at roughly the knees up and the medium close-up at roughly the chest up. Some guides, like StudioBinder's main hub, split full shot and wide shot into two sizes; others treat them as one. For more on the widest end, read our wide shot guide.

The cowboy shot has a disputed origin. Backstage says French critics coined the name "plan américain" for a framing Western directors such as Howard Hawks used to get holster and face in one frame, while NFI says John Ford pioneered it. Neither claim settles who came first.

Shot types vs camera angles: what's the difference?

A shot type usually means size (how much you see), while a camera angle is the height and direction the camera looks at a subject from. Wikipedia adds that an angle is the specific spot where the camera is placed, and one scene can be shot from several angles at once. So a close-up can be low angle, high angle or eye level.

• Eye level: the camera sits at the subject's eyeline. StudioBinder notes true eye level is less standard than people think, since directors often place the camera at shoulder level.
• High angle: the camera looks down, which can make the subject seem smaller, weaker or more vulnerable. See our high angle shot guide.
• Low angle: per Adobe, any shot that looks up at a character counts, whether the camera is inches below the eyeline or down by the feet. StudioBinder says it's often paired with a high angle on the other character to show power. More in our low angle shot guide.
• Dutch angle: the camera is rotated so the horizon tilts, mainly to create unease, and it's strongly linked to German Expressionist cinema (Wikipedia). Our Dutch angle guide has examples.
• Overhead, POV, reverse and profile: Adobe also lists these as angles.

Framing shots: single, two shot, over-the-shoulder and POV

Framing shots describe who is in the frame, not how big they are. NFI names the single shot, two shot and three shot by the number of people, and StudioBinder files over-the-shoulder (OTS) and point-of-view (POV) under framing too. An OTS shows one character past the back of another's shoulder, and a POV shows what a character sees.

Backstage's list of 9 shots groups the tracking or dolly shot, the two shot and the OTS "by field size," which is why so many people think they're sizes. A tracking shot is a camera movement, and the two shot and OTS are framing. A two shot can be a wide shot or a medium shot depending on how close you are.

Shots by purpose: establishing, master, insert, cutaway and reaction

Purpose shots are named for the job they do in the edit, not their size or angle. Adobe's purpose group includes master, establishing, insert, cutaway, reaction and push-in or push-out shots.

• Establishing shot: sets up the scene's context and location, such as a skyline or a building exterior (Backstage).
• Master shot: a single shot from one position that covers the scene's action from start to finish (MasterClass).
• Cutaway: cuts to something outside the main action.
• Cut-in: per B&H, like a cutaway, but a close-up of something visible in the main scene.
• Insert and reaction shots: Adobe lists both in this group; a reaction shot shows how a character responds.

Shot types list with abbreviations

Shot lists and storyboards use short abbreviations, and the table below collects the common ones in one place. If you plan shots on paper first, our guide on what a storyboard is shows where these go.

How to use shot types in AI video prompts

You can write shot types straight into an AI video prompt, using the pattern [shot size] + [angle] + [subject and action] + [camera move]. On Klakix, Text to Video generates one shot per clip, so each line of a shot list becomes its own generation. No source measures how closely each model follows size or angle words, so treat this as a pattern to try, not a guarantee.

• Extreme close-up, eye level: coffee pours from a tiny copper pot into a thimble-sized cup, slow push-in, soft window light.
• Extreme wide shot, high angle drone view: white limestone terraces at sunset, a small figure walking along the edge, slow forward glide.
• Medium shot, low angle: a baker in a flour-dusted apron lifts a tray of bread toward the camera, static camera.
• POV: a goalkeeper's view as the ball flies toward the net, quick dive to the right.

These work because the framing comes first and the movement comes last, so size, subject and camera move don't blur into one long description. Keep one size and one move per prompt; asking for a wide shot that becomes a close-up is really two shots.

1. Write the shot list: Write one line per shot with its size, angle, subject and camera move, for example "MS, low angle, baker lifts tray, static."
2. Open Text to Video: Go to Text to Video and pick a model. MiniMax H3 Max Turbo costs 20 credits at its default (5 seconds, 768p), and Seedance 2.0 Mini costs 48 credits at its default (5 seconds, 720p).
3. Set the format: Choose 16:9 for widescreen or 9:16 for vertical; Kling 4.0 also offers 21:9. Vertical 4:5 video isn't available.
4. Paste one prompt: Paste a single shot's prompt, starting with the shot size and angle, and generate it.
5. Review and adjust: If the framing is off, change the size word or add a crop point such as "waist up," then generate again.
6. Assemble in an editor: Cut the clips together in the Video Editor (beta), where you can also add captions, or download them for another editor.

Here's our math on cost. The Mini pack is $5 for 75 credits, about 6.7 cents a credit, so a 48-credit Seedance 2.0 Mini clip is about $3.20 and a 20-credit MiniMax H3 Max Turbo clip is about $1.33. A five-shot list at Seedance 2.0 Mini defaults is 240 credits, which fits in the Standard pack (275 credits, $14, checked November 3, 2026; may change). There's no free video, the 20 free signup credits work only for voiceovers, and credits for a failed generation are refunded automatically.

If you want to plan the camera move precisely, 3D Scene (beta) builds a simple blockout from your description and lets you give each shot one of 16 camera moves; the camera work is free, while the blockout and final video cost credits. To animate a test frame instead, make it with the AI image generator and bring it to Image to Video.

This post was drafted with AI assistance. Facts were checked against the sources above, and model, credit and price details were checked automatically against the site's current price list.