Jimmy Carter

Here's Why the Carters Look So Tiny in That New Photo With the Bidens

No, the Bidens have not been hit by gamma rays and suddenly grown twice their size

(L-R)Jill Biden, Jimmy Carter, Rosalyn Carter and Joe Biden
Carter Center

Honey, they shrunk the Carters.

A photo released by the Carter Center on Monday had people doing a double take as former President Jimmy Carter and first lady Rosalynn Carter appeared tiny sitting next to President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden.

Jill Biden, 69, is kneeling next to a seated Jimmy Carter, 96, while Joe Biden, 78, is doing the same next to Rosalynn Carter, 93, and the Bidens appear to loom over the Carters.

"We’re pleased to share this wonderful photo from the @POTUS and @FLOTUS visit to see the Carters in Plains, Ga.! Thank you President and Mrs. Biden!" the Carter Foundation tweeted.

No, the Bidens have not been hit by gamma rays to grow incredible proportions, and the Carters are not on some sort of Benjamin Button journey.

Jonathan Alter, who wrote a biography about Jimmy Carter, told The Washington Post that the Carters “aren’t tiny people, but they are in the medium-to-smaller size among presidents and first ladies," and the former president and first lady's heights are respectively 5 feet, 10 inches tall and 5 feet, 5 inches tall. Joe Biden comes in at a bit under 6 feet tall while "the first lady is about half a foot shorter," according to the Post.

It's most likely because a wide-angle lens was used in the photo and distorted their sizes to make those closest to the camera look huge and those farther away look smaller.

NECN photojournalist Mark Garfinkel gives some thoughts on why he thinks the Bidens look so big compared to the Carters in the photo released of their meeting last week.

"Wide-angle lenses get you closer to your subject and fit more of the scene into the frame, but in the frame, objects closest to you and on the outer edges begin to warp," TODAY senior studio photographer Nathan Congleton said.

Congleton also noted that it can be difficult for a photographer when not having a wide enough lens for a group shot like the one of the presidents and their wives.

People had some fun with it, including one Twitter user who dramatically enlarged the Carters in the photo.

"There. I fixed it," the person tweeted.

Mike Scollins, a writer for "Late Night with Seth Meyers," tweeted a still of Rick Moranis and Marcia Strassman from the movie "Honey I Shrunk the Kids" and wrote, "Joe and Jill Biden this afternoon."

Former TODAY co-anchor Katie Couric also shared the photo on Instagram, writing, "The Carters look so tiny. That's all."

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