Perspective is a beautiful thing. Not only does it refer to our state of mind, it also applies to photography. And since they represent a viewpoint from which things are seen in a particular way, both can be altered.

For the photographer, perspective is a summation of the relationship between objects in a photograph. The photograph is a two-dimensional representation of that three-dimensional world. So when we look at a photograph, we figure out spatial relationships by looking at the objects in the frame. Thanks to the camera, we are able to see a transition of a 3D scene that it captures to a 2D scene, which is its automatic and basic function.

But sometimes anomalies happen and the viewers encounter perspective distortion. It is a warping or transformation of an object and its surrounding area that differs significantly from what the object would look like with a normal focal length, due to the relative scale of nearby and distant features.

And when it comes to the perspectives we have in mind, they are something fundamentally unique to every person. It’s our interpretation of information gathered through our senses of sight, sound, smell, taste and touch. This is woven together to form a picture that is then tinted and shaded by society, culture, education, family beliefs, and the media as well as our individual ‘evidence’ gained throughout life.

This is the reason why family members, husbands and wives, and best friends can interpret the same situation totally differently. Moreover, some of our perceptions are heavily influenced by assumptions which may or may not be correct. This is why we’re often burdened by feelings of negativity, anxiety, and frustration.

The good news is that changing perspective, your own interpretation of reality, is what will make you move forward past the challenges.