The ratio is typically the most popular set of dimensions for photographers to shoot and work with, with enough room for the images to be cropped in post-processing if needed.
It still makes me wonder, though, what it was like to be a photographer back in the early days when 35mm film rolls were the film in use, the 3:2 aspect ratio was the image format to print with, and photographers had only the choice of a fixed lens on their camera to work with.
The image aspect does make for very versatile compositions, and it is well-suited for a variety of subjects, including landscapes, portraits, and environmental shots. While providing a balanced frame that can effectively capture both the subject and its surroundings, as used for documentary photography or creative storytelling.
The 3:2 ratio is also well adapted to physical photo print sizes, such as 6x4-inch prints, where the images can be printed without significant cropping or loss of detail.
To experience the ratio and the constraints it set, if any, I did a street shoot recently, not with a vintage 35mm SLR camera mounted with a legacy manual focus lens, but rather with a more modern counterpart, a 2x crop-sensor Micro 4/3 Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH2, mounted with an autofocus Lumix G 14mm f/2.5 Asph. lens.
While the DMC-GH2 has a feature that allows the camera to capture images in different aspect ratios while retaining the same image diagonal, the lightweight and compact Lumix G 14mm f/2.5 is officially recognized as the world's lightest interchangeable prime lens.
Though still short of the equisentials of the art and craft, and the flair of a wiser street photographer, these are the images I manage to capture, a valuable lesson to lay the roots on.
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