Eliminate Boring Establishing Shots with Two-Point Perspective

In our last post, we explained the concepts behind the horizon line, leading lines and the vanishing point, as well as their usage in composing an interesting frame. As this post on two-point perspective extends upon our previous post, I invite you to click here in order to get up to speed or should you need a refresher.

It’s my opinion that the two-point perspective is easier to master and you may be doing it without even knowing it. Two-point perspective shares the same concepts, but the difference is you now have two vanishing points! If the one-point perspective is looking at a square shape head-on, the two-point perspective is seeing the same square at a 90-degree angle revealing two sides of the cube. Using two-point perspective implies depth and dimensionality to the object.

The same concepts apply with regards to the horizon line’s elevation as with one-point perspective, but we now see a doubling of the other two elements: leading lines and vanishing points. For two-point perspective, leading lines radiate from both sides of the square to their own respective vanishing point along the shared horizon line. It should be noted that due to the scale or size of the object, these vanishing points can be off-page or out of the frame lines. Yet, their horizontal, vertical and diagonal orthogonal lines still maintain their individual angle and proportion to each other until intersecting at vanishing points.

So what does this mean to the aspiring filmmaker? Instead of shooting the flat side of a building’s exterior, shoot it at a 90-degree angle to add depth and interest to your frame. Don’t shoot against flat, interior walls unless you’re going for one-point perspective with proper blocking! Instead, shoot into a corner where the two walls intersect. This is the same concept as the aforementioned exterior; however, the resultant “cube” is inverted. Two-point perspective is sort of taken for granted in cinematography courses and rarely discussed. In fact, I had to start reading instructional drawing books to gain a better understanding of these concepts. Having said that, there are many YouTube drawing tutorials available and if you Google Image search “two-point perspective”, you will immediately grasp how two-point perspective can add depth to your composition.