Shearography is a growing industrial field in both quantitative mechanical characterization and relatively qualitative non-destructive testing. In shearography, shear distance is the most important parameter to control measurement performances. In this paper, the role of the shear distance is systematically investigated, focusing on the application of full-field mechanical characterization. A modified Michelson interferometer is considered as the shearing device, which is most commonly adopted for mechanical characterization applications because it enables easy and precise shearing and phase shifting. This paper also includes theoretical and experimental investigations of the relationship between shear distance and performance issues such as the immeasurable zone in the target with discontinuity, signal-to-noise ratio, sensitivity and shear distortion. In addition, this study is verified with actual shearographic results and a phase-shifting grid method capable of full-field displacement evaluation in the submicrometer regime.