CAMERA TERMINOLOGY

(IMAGES AND LINKS TO IMAGES)

By Safiyah Bennington

Extreme Close up (ECU) ◦ Extreme Close-ups (ECU) lets you

focus (most commonly) on specific body parts at a time. Eyes, feet, mouths, hands and ears are most commonly seen in this shot but is also on objects and animals.

◦ The un-natural closeness of the shot intensifies how the feeling and convinces the audience to feel empathy or some form of connection with the character on screen. It highlights the dramatic importance of the scene

Big Close Up (BCU)◦ A big close up (BCU) consists of a

persons entire face filling the shot. These shots are very intense. The BCU is too close to show general reactions or emotion which makes it even more dramatic. It is used to show the detail and facial expression of the character.

Close Up (CU)◦ A close up shot (CU) consists of the

persons full face and the top of the upper chest but is also used on an object at close range and overall contains no or very little background. This shot is used to heighten tension in the scene and can introduce a character. It also means that the character can show emotions clearly.

Medium close up (MCU)◦ A medium close up (MCU) shows the

top of the head to the lower chest and is commonly used in conversational scenes between characters. There is more in the background than in a close up but the sharpness of the background isn’t as strong.

Medium Shot (MS)◦ The Medium Shot (MS) shows the

upper half of the body from the top of the persons head to the waist. This shot is used to show the body language and facial expression that the character is trying to convey to the audience.

Medium Long Shot (MLS)◦ A medium long shot (MLS) shows the

top of the head to just below the knee (roughly the knees.) This shot is used a lot in moving shots because it allows the audience to see the character but is also close enough for the audience to see the facial expression and where the character is.

Long Shot (LS) and Very Long Shot (VLS) ◦ The Long Shot (LS) shows the full body

of the person but the is dominated most by the background. This shot is used so that the audience is able to understand the relationship between the person and the environment they are in.

A Very Long Shot (VLS) shows the full body of the person and but also has a space at the top and bottom of the screen. This shot is used to show the atmosphere of the scene and tells the audience where the scene is set.

Long Shot

Very Long Shot

Two Shot (CU/MCU/MS)◦ A Two Shot (CU/MCU/MS) is a shot of

two people. A two shot is good for establishing the relationship between the characters on screen. The two shot is a way to naturally introduce two people . A two shot can involve movement and is a good way to focus on the objects on the screen rather than the background.

‘Over the shoulder’ shot ◦ An over the shoulder shot is framed

from behind the person who is looking at the other subject. One third of the frame is taken up by the person who is facing the subject. This shot is most commonly used in conversational scenes

Walking Room◦ A walking room also known as Lead

Space is a shot is where there is more space on the side of the frame of the direction that the subject is going in or facing.

◦ The camera pans as the person walks and keeps a constant amount of space in front of the subject. It is used in scenes of movement.

High Angle Shot and Low Angle Shot ◦ A high angle shot is where the frame

is shot from above the subject, generally used to show the subject is inferior

◦ A low angle shot is where the frame is shot from below the subject, generally to show the subject is superior.

High angle shot

Low angle shot

Deep Focus◦ In this shot, the camera focuses on

the near and far objects (the whole frame) at the same time.

◦Deep Focus

Pans

◦ Pans are a movement which scans a scene horizontally and pans left and right and can be done by hand or camera.

When used on a tripod,the camera is put onto a tripod which is used as a stationary axis point that the camera can turn on. This shot is most commonly used to keep a steady shot of a moving object

This is called a panhead and is used to move the camera on the release plate

◦ Pans

Tilts◦ This movement is similar to a pan

movement but instead of moving left and right horizontally, it scans the scene vertically and the camera tilts up and down.

◦ It also stands on the tripod or can be done handheld.

◦ Tilt movement

Hand-held shots◦ A hand held shot is when the camera

is connected to a harness and is used in a scene create a sense of realism.

◦Hand Held shot

Tracking Shots◦ A tracking shot, also known as Trucking or

Dolly shot is when a camera is placed on a moving vehicle/dolly moves alongside the action and usually follows a moving object. This shot is good for gradual moving forwards or backwards in a scene.

◦Complicated tracking shots are the same except the camera dolly is put on a track that is on the floor.

◦ Tracking shot

◦ Complicated tracking shot

Crane Shots◦ A crane shot is pretty much the same

as a tracking shot but in the air. This shot is useful because it can be used in the air and goes up, down, left, right and can swoop in or out on action or move diagonally.

◦ Crane shot

Aerial Shot◦ An aerial shot is like a crane shot but

taken from a much higher scale, generally filmed from a helicopter (like a flexible crane.) This shot is most commonly used at the beginning to establish movement and setting.

◦ Aerial shot

Wide shotWide shots can emphasize the isolation of a figure and can be used to show a crowd or to establish a set or location

◦Wide shot

Zoom/Reverse Zoom◦ The Zoom/ reverse zoom is the

adjustment of the camera lens where the operator of the camera can move in or pull away from the subject

◦ Example

Rule of thirds◦ Instead of placing a person object in

the middle of the screen, they are placed on a side (left or right) where lines cross on the imaginary grid

◦ Rule of thirds example

Shallow focus◦ Shallow focus is when the objects

closer to the screen are sharp and visible but everything in the background is out of focus. This is used to emphasize the importance of the object closer to the screen.

◦ Shallow focus