Cinematography Flashcards
What is chiaroscuro lighting?
The Italian term for lighting that has strong light and harsh shadows.
What are the three lights used in three point lighting?
Fil light, key light and backlight
What is the most common lighting system called?
Three point lighting.
What are the four areas to look at when considering lighting?
Source, direction, quality and colour
What is top lighting and what effect does it have?
When the source of light comes form the top of the frame. It can be used to create unease or to give a character ‘divine’ status
What is back lighting and what effect does it have?
This is when the source of lighting comes from the back of the frame. It can be used to reduce the flatness of a frame. It creates depth and increases dramatic effect.
What is side lighting and what effect does it have?
This is when the source of lighting is either to the left or right of the frame. This can be used to add depth, set a dramatic tone or define a subjects feature/create contrast.
What is underlighting and what effect does it have?
This is when the source of lighting comes from the bottom of the frame. It can be used to create an intimidating feel.
What is front lighting and what effect does it have?
Front lighting comes from behind the photographer and it is used to create a natural feel/create the feeling of being in a well lit room.
What is high key lighting and what is the effect of it?
This is a style of lighting that results in a brightly lit frame. Soft lighting is used which creates minimal shadows and low contrast. Most of the frame is highlights rather than shadows and this results in a cheerful, positive atmosphere.
What is low key lighting and what is the effect of it?
This is a style of lighting which accentuates shadows and dark tones with high contrast. It uses a hard light source with minimal or no fil light. This means there are minimal highlights within the frame. This creates an ominous or dramatic mood.
What is hard lighting?
This is a quality of lighting where harsh, defined shadows are cast. There is a harsh falloff from areas of light to dark.
What is soft lighting?
This is a quality of light where light is diffused to avoid casting harsh shadows over the subject. The falloff from light to dark areas is gradual and this makes facial features appear smoother. It is used to create softer, more romantic feel to the scene.
What is a camera pan and what are they used for?
This is when the camera horizontally swivels from left to right or vice versa. They are usually used to establish the location of a scene or track movement of an object or character. A fast pan is called a quick pan and is used to add energy to a sequence while a slow pan alllows for the audience to take in the details of the scene.
What is a camera tilt and what is it used for?
This is when a camera moves from a fixed position either up to down or vice versa. It can be used as an establishing shot. It can also be used to observe action. .
What is a pedestal and what is it used for?
A pedestal, commonly referred to as a ped, is when a camera physically moves up or down, while still facing forwards. It is often used to frame a tall or high subject while keeping it at eye level.
What is a dolly movement and what is it used for?
This is when a camera moves smoothly backwards or forwards. It is a type of tracking shot where the camera follows the subject. The camera sits upon a piece of equipment called a dolly. When teh camera dollys towards a subject, this places emphasis upon emotions or dialogue and when it dollys away this shows emotional disconnect.
What is a tracking shot and what is it used for?
This is when the camera moves side to side but still faces forwards. The camera physically moves through the scene and follows the subject. They can be used to show the setting, hel-p with audience immersion or to enhance the plot.
What is a zoom and what is it used for?
This is when the camera stays still, but the focal lense is adjusted to create the illusion of moving closer to or further away from a subject. They are usually used to bring the audiences’ attention to a specific detail within a scene.
What is a crane and what is it used for?
This is when the camera is mounted on either a jib or a crane which extends the camera out over the tripod. Crane shots are usually used to set the scene but they are also used to large crowds or sets.
What is a steadicam shot and what is it used for?
This is a camera stabilizer that combines the stablility of a tripod with the flexibility of a handheld camera and the movement capability of a dolly. They eliminate the need for expensive crane shots and they are perfect for indoors where crane shots cannot be used.
What is a pov shot and what is it used for?
This camera movement replicate the feeling of being in the position of the character and helps with audience immersion. They are usually shot with a handheld camera.
What is a dolly zoom?
This is when a camer dollys towards or away from a subject, while zooming the lens in the opposite direction.
What is a telephoto lens used for?
They are used to emphasize blurred backgrounds and bring far way subjects closer to the camera.
What is a wide angle lens used for?
They are used to accentuate camera movement, establish a more subjective point of view or to create a larger frame for the characters and setting.
What is depth of field?
This refers to the size of area in your image where the objects appear acceptably sharp. The larager the camera sensor, the smaller the depth of field.
What is shallow focus?
This is a technique where one part of the image is kept in focus while the rest is out of focus. It helps the audience understand which part of the frame is important to focus on.
What is an extreme long shot and what effect does it have?
The camera is at its furthest distance from the subject. The subject is often quite small so tehy are usually centred so the audience can see them. This tells the audience to pay attention to the surroundings. It can hint that the character is isolated. They are also used as establishing shots.
What is a long shot and what effect does it have?
The camera is slightly closer than in an extreme long shot but the subject is still quite far away. It tells the audience to pay attention to what is around the subject such as where are they, who else is there and where are they going? It also tells them to pay attention to the character.
What is a medium long shot and what effect does it have?
Here the lower frame line cuts off the actors ankles/knees. This type of shot is usually used to show a power imbalance. It is also great at showing group dynamics as it allows the audience to see how they interact with one another.
What is a medium shot and what effect does it have?
The camera is position so that the frame cuts through the middle of the actor. This means the bcakground is no longer a dominant aspect which tells us the perosn is just as impirtant as the surroundings. There is more focus upon the character meaning we cans ee their emotions and facial expressions. It is the most natural and realistic shot.
What is a medium close up and what effect does it have?
The lower frame line passes through the chest of the actor. The character is quite close to the camer, so we can understand how they are feeling. We can see their facial expressions in great detail.
What is a close up and what effect does it have?
Here only a very small part of the background is seen and as the camera is so clsoe, we almost feel as though we are there with them. It can make a scene feel uncomfortable as we are not usually this close to soemone. It can also feel quite intimidating.
What is an extreme close up and what effect does it have?
The whole screen is taken up by a person’s face, usually just a part of it. This stresses the importance of what is in focus and feels very uncomfortable for the audience.
What is a birds eye view and what meaning does it create?
This is when the camera is directly above the subject, shooting staright down. They are often used to showcase complex movements.
What is a high angle and what meaning does it create?
Any angle where the camera looks down on the subject. It is often used to make a character seem weaker or to estbalish a location.
What is a low angle and what meaning does it create?
This is any angle that is below the subject, looking up at them. They are usually used to make the subject appear stronger and more powerful.
What is an eye level shot and what meaning does it create?
This is the most commonly use angle as it is the most natural.
What is a dutch angle shot and what meaning does it create?
This shot skews the horizontal axis and can be used to create feelings of unease or bewilderment.
