You’ve seen it. Everyone has.
It’s that mind-bending shot from May 2021 where Joe and Jill Biden look like absolute giants visiting a tiny dollhouse in Plains, Georgia. Meanwhile, Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter look like they’ve been hit with a shrink ray from a 90s sci-fi flick.
Honestly, when the Carter Center first tweeted the photo, I thought it was a bad Photoshop job. It wasn't. It was 100% real. But the physics of it felt... wrong.
People on Twitter went into a frenzy. There were Hobbit jokes. There were "Honey, I Shrunk the Kids" references. Some folks even started cooking up conspiracy theories about the Carters' health or height. But the truth is actually way more boring—and way more fascinating from a photography standpoint. It’s basically a masterclass in how not to use a wide-angle lens in a cramped living room.
The Viral Illusion Explained
Here’s the deal: the Bidens didn’t suddenly grow to seven feet tall, and the Carters hadn’t turned into miniatures. The whole "giant Biden" thing is a classic case of perspective distortion.
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White House photographer Adam Schultz was the guy behind the lens. To be fair to him, he was working in a very tight space. The Carters' home in Plains isn't exactly a sprawling mansion with high ceilings and endless depth. It’s a modest, cozy house. When you’re trying to fit four people into a frame in a small room, you only have one real choice: a wide-angle lens.
Schultz likely used something like a 16mm or 24mm lens. These lenses are great for "seeing" more of the room, but they come with a catch. They stretch everything at the edges and bloat anything close to the glass.
In this specific joe biden jimmy carter picture, the Bidens are kneeling just a few inches closer to the camera than the Carters. Because they are in the foreground and near the edges of that wide-angle frame, the lens "pulls" them toward the viewer. Jimmy and Rosalynn are leaning back into their armchairs, just a foot or two further away. In the world of wide-angle photography, that tiny distance gap creates a massive size difference.
Why it looked so "off"
- The Depth Gap: The Bidens are physically closer to the lens.
- Edge Stretching: Objects near the edge of a wide lens appear larger than objects in the center.
- The Chairs: The Carters are sitting in oversized, plush armchairs that swallow them up, making their frames look even smaller.
- The Flash: A strong, direct flash was used, which flattened the shadows. Shadows usually give us "depth cues" to tell how far away someone is. Without them, our brains assume everyone is on the same flat line.
A Family Laugh
You might wonder if the Carters were offended. They weren't.
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Actually, the family thought the whole thing was hilarious. Jimmy and Rosalynn's daughter, Amy Carter, recently mentioned that the family had a good laugh about it. They knew they were small, but they didn't realize they looked that small.
It's kinda sweet, actually. Despite the technical "fail" of the photo, it captured a genuine moment between two couples who have known each other for decades. Biden was the first senator to ever endorse Jimmy Carter for president back in the 70s. That history is there, even if the proportions are wonky.
How to Avoid the "Giant" Effect in Your Own Photos
If you're taking a group photo in a small space—maybe at a family dinner or a cramped apartment—don't let your friends look like giants.
First, if you're using a phone, try not to use the "0.5x" (ultra-wide) lens for portraits unless you absolutely have to. If you must use it, keep the people away from the very edges of the frame. That’s where the stretching is most brutal.
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Second, make sure everyone is standing on the same "plane." If one person is even six inches closer to the camera than the person next to them, the wide-angle lens will make them look significantly larger. Keep everyone in a straight line, parallel to the camera.
Lastly, watch out for the "lean." In the famous joe biden jimmy carter picture, the Carters are leaning back while the Bidens are leaning forward. This doubled the perspective gap. Tell your subjects to stay upright or lean toward each other, not toward or away from the camera.
Your next step for better photos: Open your smartphone camera, switch to the wide-angle setting, and take a photo of a chair from two feet away. Then, move back and zoom in to 2x to frame it the same way. You’ll immediately see how the "wide" version makes the chair look distorted and weirdly large. Mastering this simple distance rule will save your future family photos from becoming the next viral meme.