The CREATIVE

Question 1

What is the definition of composition as it relates to film?

Answer 1

The placement or arrangement of visual elements or ingredients in a photo or frame of video.

Question 2

What is rule #1 of composition?

Answer 2

Fill the frame.

A common mistake is

Question 3

What are some common mistakes for rule 1st of composition?

Answer 3

Filling your frame with to much dead space or unnecessary details.
Also having your subject(s) be to small in the frame.
Having distracting subject matter in the background.

Question 4

What are the solutions to fixing common mistakes of rule 1st in composition?

Answer 4

Zooming in or getting closer. Getting closer generally being the higher quality option.

Getting closer makes your audience feel like they are actually there.

Also having a lower aperture lens to blur out the background.

Question 5

What is rule 2nd for composition?

Answer 5

The Rule Of Thirds

Question 6

For landscapes where (in general) do you want your horizon to be?

Answer 6

On the top or lower third depending on what’s more important. The sky or ground.

Question 7

When filming people where (in general) do you want them to be?

Answer 7

On the left or right vertical line while keeping their eye line on the top third (for tight shots).

Also make sure to give them enough lead or looking room.

Question 8

In regards to head room, where do you want to keep people’s head?

Answer 8

Around that top third. Not giving to much or to little head room.

Question 9

What is unconventional framing?

Answer 9

Framing that doesn’t follow the rule of thirds. For example when important subject matter is behind the subject, you might want to leave more head room to show that off.

Just make sure to have a creative reason so it doesn’t come off as bad framing.

Question 10

When filming a tight shot of someones face, do you cut off the mouth or top of the head?

Answer 10

The top of the head, the mouth is more important for convening motion, context, and emotion.

Question 11

What is the 3rd rule of composition?

Answer 11

Symmetry

Question 12

When do you follow the 3rd rule of composition?

Answer 12

When the subject mater/elements within your frame have symmetry.

Question 13

What is the 4th rule of composition?

Answer 13

Create Depth

Question 14

What are the twp most common ways to create depth in your image?

Answer 14

Use a lower aperture and have foreground in your shot.

You want to combine these for the most depth and higher quality image.

Question 15

What is the 5th rule of composition?

Answer 15

Leading Lines.

Question 16

What’s the purpose of leading lines in your image?

Answer 16

To have those lines lead to the center of your image or your subject. As well as create depth.
Bridges, fences, natural lines around you.

Question 17

What is the 6th rule of composition?

Answer 17

To balance diagonally.

Question 18

What does it mean to balance diagonally?

Answer 18

To have equal weight in your image opposite diagonally from your subject.

Question 19

What is the 7th rule of composition?

Answer 19

Patterns and Repetition.

These are aesthetically pleasing to the eye and can be found in man made structures. Having them in your image makes things look more interesting.

Question 20

What is the 8th rule of composition?

Answer 20

Framing

Question 21

What are some common mistakes for the 8th rule of composition?

Answer 21

Having crooked lines, not enough head room, not enough lead room, and including unnecessary subject matter that doesn’t need to be in the frame.

In general try and keep the lines in your subject matter vertical and horizontal.

Question 22

What is the 9th rule of composition?

Answer 22

Dominant Subject.

Ask yourself what the clear dominate subject matter is in your image. A person, their face, holding hands, jewelry, an animal, an object, the entire landscape, etc.

Question 23

What is the 10th rule of composition?

Answer 23

Focus

Question 24

How many camera angles should you shoot from?

Answer 24

In general as many as you can. This gives you more flexibility in the editing room and a more dynamic video for the audience.

Question 25

What is focal length?

Answer 25

Is it he distance in mm from your camera sensor to your lens.

Question 26

What focal length is most complimentary for people’s faces?

Answer 26

70mm-100mm

Question 27

What focal length is ideal for landscapes or for filling the entire frame with subject matter that is spread out?

Answer 27

Wide angled lens. 16mm on a full frame camera.

Great for starting off videos to establish the location. This gives the audience context for the rest of the video.

Question 28

What focal length is ideal for architecture?

Answer 28

Wide angled lens. 16mm on a full frame camera.

This is great for real estate videos because it make the space look more spacious.

Question 29

What focal length is ideal when you want to show the top half or lower half of a person but still show off the background?

Answer 29

Wide angled lens. 35mm on a full frame camera.

Want to stay about 3-4ft away to not distort facial features.

Question 30

What is unique about the 50mm focal length.

Answer 30

It is similar to what the human eyes sees.

This focal length is great for situations where you want the audience to feel like they are there watching. A musical performance, documentary, interview etc.

Question 31

What focal length is ideal for filming couples hugging or kissing or anytime their face is the dominate subject matter?

Answer 31

70mm-100mm.

This focal length does not distort people’s faces creating complimentary images of our subjects.

Question 32

Why would you shoot at 200mm?

Answer 32

When you can’t close to your subject. Situations like Salaries, sporting events, or when it’s raining or snowing so you can still the individual drops of snow and water.

Question 33

What’s a good rule of thumb for knowing when to use wide or telephoto focal lengths?

Answer 33

If your background isn’t interesting use telephoto so you can focus in on what you want your audience to see.

Question 34

Is the best focal length or shot always practical?

Answer 34

No, sometimes you have to sacrifice quality because the resources you have at your disposal (time, equipment, experience) are limited.

This is where skill comes in to play. Knowing what your limitations are so that you don’t sacrifice more quality then you needed.

Question 35

What is the 1st Glidecam movement?

Answer 35

Push In

Use a 16mm lens and get a nice wide establishing push in shot.

It’s important to have foreground elements when you can for more movement.

You can also have a more telephoto lens with a low aperture and reveal a person’s face by pushing them into focus.

Question 36

What is the 2nd Glidecam movement?

Answer 36

Pull Out:

Good for ending videos to resolve the story and help the audience feel like they are leaving the scene or to reveal something in the shot.

Question 37

What is the 3rd Glidecam movement?

Answer 37

Parallax:

Rotate around the subject while keeping them in the same spot in the frame. Subject stays as the focus of the shot but ads a lot of movement in the background.

Question 38

What is the 4th Glidecam movement?

Answer 38

Rise UP;

Start low with your knees bent and rise up (don’t go to fast) with your off hand on the shaft. This mimics the shot a jib would make.

You can also tilt down when using a drone.

Question 39

What is the 5th Glidecam movement?

Answer 39

The Reveal:

Use something to reveal something else.

Question 40

What is the 6th Glidecam movement?

Answer 40

Tilt Down

Start high and go low while pushing in. This is also a reveal shot.

You can also start low and tilt up while pushing in.

Question 41

What is the 7th Glidecam movement?

Answer 41

Focus:

Constant Focus. Set focus and maintain distance for the entire shot. The subject can be moving for a tracking shot or still (rotate around them).

Change Of Focus: Set your focus at the distance you want the end of your shot to be at. Walk farther away and move into that same distance. This is a reveal and push in shot. The challenge with this shot is you have to guess where that distance is. This will likely require a few takes.

Continuous Focus. Here you change your distance to the subject several times while changing your focus manually or with auto focus. When doing manual focus you can’t get smooth shots on the glidecam (unless you had a remote follow focus operator) so you would choose manual focus if you wanted a more hand held look.

Question 42

What is the 7th Glidecam movement?

Answer 42

Tracking:

Lead Tracking. You are tracking your subject but you are leading the way.

Follow Tracking. Your subject is the leader and you are following them.

Side Tracking: You follow your subject from the side.

For these you are wanting to maintain the same distance so you can keep them in focus.

A great alternative to panning so your audience feels like they are there.

Question 43

What is the 9th Glidecam movement?

Answer 43

Transitions.

Whipping.

Two shot foreground mask. Use a foreground element at the end of your shot that takes up the whole frame and blocks your subject. For the second shot you don’t need another foreground element but the key is to keep the same speed and camera angle as the first shot.

Question 44

What is the 10th Glidecam movement?

Answer 44

Low-Mode

Same as all the 9 previous movements, just upside down.

For these shots you want your off hand to hold the bottom of the shaft towards the weights.

Question 45

What are the 4 different ways to keep your subject in focus?

Answer 45

1. Maintain the same distance.
2. Handheld continuous focus pulling.
3. Higher Aperture
4. Auto Focus - Need a quality camera for this.

Question 46

What’s a quick way to get focus of your subject?

Answer 46

Switch from video mode to photo mode and grab focus like that.