Research: Cinematography Ms Begum

What is Cinematography?

Cinematography is in general the art or technique of motion-picture photography. It is looking at the way the camera shot is framed, the angle it is taken in and the movement of the camera. All these things give the audience a different representation of the character or scenery and allow the audience to respond in different way for example an establishing shot of an abandoned warehouse would get the audience to respond in an anxious and scared way.

When it comes to filming there are 3 main elements of cinematography:

·         Camera shots/sizes

These shots each have their own way of portray a character or scenery

·         Camera angles

Camera angles are use to portray the superiority or inferiority of the characters in the film

·         Camera movements

Camera movements are use to specifically accompany what the character is doing

Camera shots:

·         Establishing shot (ES) or (XLS)

Establishing shots also known as extreme long shot are use to take a photo of the scenery or a building. Extreme long shots are pretty much the same except it focuses on the characters and the scenery around them. You usually get an establishing shot at the beginning of the film or if the film changes scene to introduce the area.

·         Long shot (LS)

A long shot shows the whole character. It is used mainly to show what the character is wearing and what they are holding. It is usually to show a character posing or to show the full extent of the actions of the character. A long shot is used to stress the environment or setting of a scene.

·         Medium long shot (MLS)

A medium long shot is used for similar properties as a long shot except the shot is taken from either the knees or the thighs upward. This gives you the opportunity to show some of the environment, but also allow multiple people to easily interact.

·         Medium shot (MS)

 

The medium shot is the most common shot used in movies. The benefits of using medium shots are that they allow you to have more than one character in the frame at a time. Another benefit of the medium shot is that it allows you to capture body language which the close up doesn't allow you to capture. However, the medium shot is close enough that you still have access to the facial expressions of the actor.

·         Medium close up (MCU)

 

The medium close up is half way between a mid shot and a close up. This shot shows the face more clearly, without getting uncomfortably close. A character shows emotion more than in just the face. They have body language too. The MCU is good because it allows the actor to show emotion in more than just the face.

·         Close up (CU)

 

 

A close up usually means a close up of a persons face. A close-up of a person emphasizes their emotional state. Whereas a mid-shot or wide-shot is more appropriate for delivering facts and general information, a close-up exaggerates facial expressions which convey emotion. The viewer is drawn into the subject's personal space and shares their feelings. This famous shower scene from Psycho is a perfect example. Here you can clearly see on her facial expression that she is terrified and that make the audience feel scared for her. around about this time dramatic and fast pace sound would be played to build up tension in the scene.

·         Extreme close up (ECU)

 

 

The extreme close up (or ECU) gets right in and shows extreme detail. You would normally need a specific reason to get this close. It is too close to show general reactions or emotion except in very dramatic scenes. It can be also used to show iconography or to zoom in on what the character is doing e.g. writing a death threat.

Camera angles:

·         High angle

 

High angles make the object photographed seem smaller, and less significant (or scary) or less superior. The object or character often gets swallowed up by their setting. They become part of a wider picture. For example a hero sizing up to a hugh villan.

 

·         Low angle

 

 

 

These increase height and give a sense of speeded motion. Low angles help give a sense of confusion to a viewer, of powerlessness within the action of a scene. The background of a low angle shot will tend to be just sky or ceiling, the lack of detail about the setting adding to the disorientation of the viewer. The added height of the object may make it inspire fear and insecurity in the viewer, who is psychologically dominated by the figure on the screen.

Camera movements:

·         Panning shot 

 

Panning is a camera movement technique that involves moving the camera horizontally to the right or left. With this technique you can scan round the whole room in that scene. You can do the pan shot hand held but using a tripod will be much more stable for example you would use a pan shot if you were to scan the area for something.

·         Tilt shot

 

 

 

The tilt shot is similar to the pan shot, but the tilt shot moves vertically instead of horizontally. Like the pan shot, the tilt shot can be done hand held or with a tripod For example, imagine being at the bottom of a building and then tilting the camera upwards to capture the entire building structure

 

·         Crane shots

 

 

A crane is a large, heavy piece of equipment, but is a useful way of moving a camera - it can move up, down, left, right, swooping in on action or moving diagonally out of it. This is very useful if you want to get a large overhead view of the setting or if you want to follow something over greater distances instead of using a tracking or a dolly shot.

 

·         Zoom shot

 

Zooming means a shot which moves closer to, or away from, the subject using the lens rather than moving the whole camera in or out. It means altering the focal length of the lens to give the illusion of moving closer to or further away from the action. Zooming is effectively magnifying a part of the image either to zoom in on what they are doing or on a facial expression.
this example demonstrates it well. It is the earth being zoomed in.

·         Point of view

 

A point of view shot (also known as a POV shot) is a shot that shows a view from the subject's perspective. It is a short film scene that shows what a character is looking at. It is usually established by being positioned between a shot of a character looking at something, and a shot showing the character's reaction. It is usually edited in such a way that it is obvious whose POV. You see this technique use alot in first person video games as the example above shows.

·         Over the shoulder

 

 

This shot is framed from behind a person who is looking at the subject. The person facing the subject should usually occupy about 1/3 of the frame. This shot helps to establish the position of each person, and get the feel of looking at one person from the other's point of view. It's common to cut between these shots during a conversation, alternating the view between the different speakers. This example is from a scene in the Dark Knight. You can clearly see the joker over batmans shoulder.



There are plenty of other camera shots, angles and movement that i havent gone over for example:

 

·     Two shot

·         Aerial shot

·         Dolly shot etc.

The video below will show you these shots and many others.

 

Conclusion


This lesson has really helped me as it has shown me many different types of camera shots, angles and movement. Furthermore it has given me ideas on what camera shots are conventional for a thriller film and what shots i may want to use for our thriller opener.