Have you ever encountered portrait photos? They're orientated vertically because the human form, either head, bust or full body, fits better and excludes distractions.

Vertical videos, if they're focused on a human, work fine for the same reason.

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smitelli 2 days ago | parent [-]

I'd be interested in seeing an example of a well-composed 9:16 portrait photo. All the ones I have found look awkward.

	▲	HankStallone 2 days ago \| parent [-]
		Yeah, portrait photos aren't as narrow as that. I just measured some of mine, and they're 5x7, 8x10, and 11x16. By comparison, 9x16 feels claustrophobic. I suspect that a still image is also different from video because, without motion, there's no feeling that if the person might move a few inches to one side and go out of frame.