Left is shot from 30-plus feet away with what would be the equivalent of a 600mm lens on a full frame sensor. Lots of compression on that focal length (it’s a telephoto lens, so the chair 10” behind his head looks like it’s literally painted next to him, etc..... the right picture is a standard to wide angle lens of about 28mm-50mm equivalent and he’s no more than 4 feet away (seems closer.) This would greatly exaggerate the features closer to the lens (nose) and display far greater separation on an object further back (ears, etc.) The easiest layman’s example is actually more complex, but most people recognize the getting-torn-apart by a black hole concept.....when you are that close, it ‘stretches’ you faster, closer....

It’s really basic lens/framing/photography, and known to everyone until we suddenly all stopped learning basics and became professional iPhone selfie taker photographers....ask your grandpa about his Kodak brownie or Polaroid 4x5 and he can explain.

5e rest is basic lighting with bounce/fill from desks and a diffuse, closer light source on the right.

....look at the pic of the goat after you scroll a bit and then actually see the progression with the next series of portraits in the same setting with the girl. https://photographylife.com/what-is-lens-compression

Left is shot from 30-plus feet away with what would be the equivalent of a 600mm lens on a full frame sensor. Lots of compression on that focal length (it’s a telephoto lens, so the chair 10” behind his head looks like it’s literally painted next to him, etc..... the right picture is a standard to wide angle lens of about 28mm-50mm equivalent and he’s no more than 4 feet away (seems closer.) This would greatly exaggerate the features closer to the lens (nose) and display far greater separation on an object further back (ears, etc.) The easiest layman’s example is actually more complex, but most people recognize the getting-torn-apart by a black hole concept.....when you are that close, it ‘stretches’ you faster, closer....

It’s really basic lens/framing/photography, and known to everyone until we suddenly all stopped learning basics and became professional iPhone selfie taker photographers....ask your grandpa about his Kodak brownie or Polaroid 4x5 and he can explain.

5e rest is basic lighting with bounce/fill from desks and a diffuse, closer light source on the right.