Cinematography

Cinematography

1. Shot Types

   • Extreme long shot
   • Long shot
   • Medium shot
   • Close up
   • Extreme close up
   • Establishing shot

2. Shot types

   • Medium shot
     • Presents character body language. The audience will be able to decide what the characters feel and understand their relationship.
   • Long shot
     • The whole body of the character will be visible, as will much of the setting in which they stand.
   • Extreme long shot
     • Introduces setting or indicates overwhelming nature of that setting for the characters involved
   • Close up
     • Draws attention to a specific facial expression or to an object that might have significance within a narritive
   • Extreme close up
     • Extreme proximity with a character. use for a dramatic effect.
   • Establishing shot
   • Canted angle
     • Suggest abnormality or disruption. Also suggests negativity or an uneasy feeling

3. Camera position

   • High angle
     • Insignificant
   • Eye level
     • Common. Same level
   • Low angle
     • Superior and dominant
   • point of view shot
   • Over shoulder shot
     • Used in conversation

4. Camera movement

   • Tracking
     • Mounted. Moves along tracks.
   • Panning
     • Panoramic shot. Only camera moves and not tripod. Moves left to right
   • Tilt
     • Camera moves up and down only. Used to reveal something.
   • Crane shot
     • Mounted on crane to get overhead shot.
       • Sweeping shot
   • Car mounted
     • Attached to moving car. Speed can be exaggerated in action.
   • Hand held
     • Stedicam. Shock absorber
   • Zoom
     • Only lens that moves
   • Arial shot
     • Shot from helicopter or plane. Always shot mute.
       • Establishing shot

5. Framing

   • Rule of thirds
     • Segment the frame in thirds or planes of action.
       • Where things are located across these thirds can tell us a lot about characters or narrative
         • Characters at the edges of the frame may be unstable or have lack of power/control