Cinematography - shot and movement Flashcards
pre-production
everything leading up to the actual filming.
(costume, set making, hiring, etc)
cinematographer/director of photography (DOP)
advises director on camera angles and in charge of camera technique
aspect ratio
shape of image and proportion of height to width.
(first used was 4:3)
frames per second (fps)
how fast the frames play per second to give illusion of movement
extra long shot/establishing shot (ELS)
to show a panoramic view of where the film is set - usually exterior location. Cinematographer’s equivalent to a landscape painting. VERY IMPORTANT
Long shot (LS)
shows whole body of mc/mcs but also offers background. useful to tell us who the mcs are and to introduce them
medium long shot (MLS)
cuts character off at the knees - good for walking, dancing, etc
medium shot (MS)
shows character from the waist up - implies certain intimacy if two figures in one shot
two shot
two central characters not necessarily side by side. can be in foreground or the background or one in each. depth of field can be used to draw focus
medium close up (MCU)
directs viewer’s attention entirely onto one character - only head and shoulders
(can be used to deliver emotional lines of dialogue)
close up (CU)
most important shot - moment the power is taken away from the viewer. Director controls where attention is drawn to
extreme close up (ECU)
almost too close to actor, allowing viewer into character’s intimate space to reveal subtle emotions
deep focus shot
great depth of field from front to back, all remaining in focus
shallow focus shot
one plane in focus and everything else is out of focus
depth of field
distance between the nearest and furthest objects in a scene that are in sharp focus in a shot
shot types
which viewpoint we see from the camera
(where the camera films from)
camera movement
how camera moves around action - helps to avoid making and edit (more smooth)
aerial shot
often an establishing shot - birds-eye-view
(can break the ‘spell’ of a film)
overhead shot
taken from high up looking down and most frequently used as an establishing shot - often moves down to zoom into a specific place
eyelevel shot
most natural - helps spectator identify and empathise with this character
over the shoulder shot
used to shoot a conversation - positioned behind the shoulder of one of the characters while filming the other
shot reverse shot
jumping between the two characters in a conversation - focusing the camera onto one person, then the other, etc
high angle shot
taken from roughly head height - good at making someone look small/insignificant but not always
low angle shot
lower than eye-level - makes character dominate the frame
objective vs subjective
objective = viewing the scene from an unseen observer - viewpoint doesn’t belong to any of the characters (impersonal)
subjective (POV) = camera replaces one of the characters or placed in the action - draws audience in
fixed axis - camera is attached to a fixed axis (stays rooted to the spot but can turn)
a pan = camera moves left to right (usually) - used to follow a person as they walk across the room/swing from one part of the frame to another
a whip pan = same as pan but faster - blurs image
a tilt = moves lens up and down
shifting axis - whole camera moves (precise direction)
dolly shot = camera on wheels moved in a smooth, straight line - can only be used on a smooth surface
tracking shot = dolly mounted on a track to follow a very specific route
zoom/crash zoom
zoom = lens moving - creates illusion of movement zooming in/out
crash zoom = same but faster
crane shot
camera mounted on a crane and is lowered/raised/swung sideways - like a vertical tracking shot (can be a drone instead of a crane)
handheld
wasn’t until 1950s that cameras were light enough - good for verisimilitude (sense of reality) or cinema vérité (shaky, realistic filming)
