Subjects' heads are cut off

Have you ever asked, "How come my pictures keep cutting off the top of people’s heads when they look fine in the camera’s viewfinder?"

CHECK YOUR CAMERA'S VIEWFINDER

The viewfinder in many cameras, especially some point-and-shoot varieties, contains a larger view area than the actual image area being photographed. Look carefully through the viewfinder of your camera, and if you see a hairline frame, corner lines or an entire box outlined on the viewfinder screen, they show the border limitations for pictures with that camera. Only the scene within the marks will be in the photograph. If someone’s head is outside or above a viewfinder's border line, it will be cut off in the picture.

PROCESSING LABS USUALLY DON'T PRINT THE ENTIRE NEGATIVE

Another reason, if you are shooting with film, could be that you are shooting too close to the border lines for many processing labs which don’t usually print the full 100% image from a negative, but often leave out a tiny margin area. So, you should not place people’s heads or important parts of your picture right on the edges of your viewfinder’s frame.

CHECK TO BE SURE YOU ARE HOLDING THE CAMERA PROPERLY

Holding the camera improperly - so you are not looking straight through the viewfinder - could also be the problem.

When you are not sure if you are doing it properly, here's a tip to check yourself. Stand in front of a mirror and look through the viewfinder. Are you holding the camera straight or is it angled slightly to one side, or up or down?

If you're unconsciously angling it down, even though you can see the tops of people’s heads through the viewfinder, the camera is going to photograph them from the nose down only.

YOU MAY UNKNOWINGLY MOVE THE CAMERA WHEN YOU SHOOT

Finally, many beginning photographers actually push the camera downwards when they press the shutter, so the resulting picture is not what they thought they were going to get. It shows more feet and foreground than heads.

Remember that the only thing that moves when you press the shutter is your finger depressing it. The camera must remain pointed at the scene you framed.

Have a friend or family member observe you closely the next time you take a picture to find out if perhaps you may be moving the camera as well as the shutter release button.

YOU MAY BE TOO CLOSE

If the frame is filled, and some portion of your subject is unintentionally cut off (as in the clown picture at top), you need to stand further back (or zoom out) to get the entire figure in the picture.

MAKE SURE HEADS ARE IN THE PICTURE BEFORE YOU SHOOT

Sometimes, heads may be cut off simply because you are concentrating on other aspects of the composition. Make it a habit to always ask yourself, "Will everyone's heads be in the picture?" before you trip the shutter release.

THE PROBLEM OCCURS LESS OFTEN WITH MANY DIGITAL CAMERAS

Digital cameras that have a viewing screen that is the same size as the resulting image are helpful in framing your subject. If you can see the entire subject in the viewing screen when you depress the shutter (and you don't move the camera at the same time), then the subject will appear intact in the image file.

PARALLAX ERROR

With viewfinder cameras, as most point-and-shoot cameras are, the viewing frame is offset from the lens. The scene viewed through the camera’s viewing frame is different from the scene the lens will transmit to the film. The difference is not noticeable for most scenes where you are several feet away from your subject, but has a greater effect as the subject becomes closer to the camera, and can result in cutting off a portion of the subject. (See viewfinder camera for more information on parallax error.)