Camera becomes a character's eye perspective—shows the world from their viewpoint, emotional state, fear. Lynch masters this, even in extreme forms.
Subjective Camera
You're sitting behind the camera, asking yourself: Whose eyes are these? Who is really looking here? The subjective camera answers this unequivocally — it becomes the eye-level perspective of your character. Not a neutral observer, but the extended gaze of a person. The viewer doesn't see that someone is looking, but looks themselves — through the eyes of that character. This is the crucial difference from an objective shot, which always maintains a distance.
In practice, this means: camera height follows the character's stature, eye-line becomes the picture line, movements follow their visual intent, not the dramaturgy of a neutral narrative. If your character is tense — the camera shakes. If they become paranoid — focus wavers, speed increases. The character's emotional state becomes optical information. Lynch mastered this: in Eraserhead or The Elephant Man, the camera isn't just an eye — it's fear, disorientation, the unconscious made visible light.
On set, you distinguish between two techniques here: First-Person (directly from the character's perspective; what they see, we see) and Third-Person Subjective (the camera follows the character closely, but also shows them in the frame — slightly closer to objectivity). The first approach is more radical, more isolating. The second gives you room for irony, for distance. In editing, this becomes even clearer: subjective camera without a cut counterpart feels voyeuristic, with quick cuts to the reactions of others, it feels dramatically questioning.
A common mistake: beginners confuse subjective camera with tracking shots or simply a tight framing. This is incorrect. Subjectivity lies in the intention — in the question of who is perceiving and how. A static shot can be subjective if it only shows what the character truly sees. A fleeting camera movement can remain completely objective if it serves a dramaturgical purpose, not a perspectival one. The line is fluid, but perceptible.