Cowboy Shot

The frame cuts at mid-thigh, which keeps the hands, the hips and anything worn on the belt inside it. That is the whole reason the size exists.

It also reads as stance. A person framed this way looks planted, because the frame holds enough of the legs to show how the weight is carried.

The bottom line lands between the knee and the hip, closer to the hip. The subject stands at full width with space either side, so the arms can move without leaving frame.

French critics named it the plan americain after the Hollywood westerns that used it constantly, which is where the second name comes from. A moderately wide lens is usual, so the figure keeps some weight against the background.

Use it for standoffs, for anyone wearing something at waist height, and for two people squaring up. It gives you the body language of a wide shot at a distance where the face still registers.

Skip it for sit-down dialogue. The crop is built for people who are standing.

Full body keeps the feet. A cowboy shot cuts them off. That one line settles most of the confusion between the two.

A medium shot cuts at the waist, so the hands leave frame when they drop. If a holster or a belt matters, the cowboy crop is the one that holds it.

Sergio Leone builds the standoffs in The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966) by cutting between this size and extreme close-ups of eyes, so the audience sees both where the hand is and what the face is doing about it.

Models round the crop to the nearest familiar size, which means a medium shot at the waist or a full body with the shoes in. State the cut point: framed from mid-thigh up.

The second failure is a seated subject. The size loses its meaning when the legs are folded, so say the subject is standing.