Cinematography Terms and Techniques

Suman Uttamchandani

Camera Shots

To make the video as effective as it can; I think I would use a variety of different camera shots. These shots will be either closer to the object or further away from it. The shots closer to the object/person will engage the audience further as it makes the focus on the person and specific aspects about the person such as their expression. However, far shots can also be useful as it allows viewers to see the background/setting.

Above is a table which tells you some types of shots, the visual composition and when it shall be used. However, in the next few slides there will be more types of shots and examples of them. I think that since the video is interviewing teachers in general; I will mostly use the close-up shot since it is a teacher at a time therefore this type of shot makes it easier to identify the facial expression of the teacher.

HIGH ANGLE SHOT

I do not think that I would use this type of shot in this video because it would not be appropriate for the intention of the video. My video is to persuade and I however do not think that filming a teacher from a high angle shot has the ability to engage students to the cause.

EXTREME CLOSE UP

I am considering to film teachers using an extreme close up because I think it is effective and engaging partly because there are no other distractions to distract students. Although, the fact that an extreme close up is extremely close and magnifies a particular feature of the person, I don’t think that it would be appropriate and the most effective shot.

CLOSE UP

I am definitely going to use this shot while filming. I think it by far is the most effective shot as the whole face can be seen which means there is both eye contact from the teacher being interviewed and also her expression would be visible to the audience, which would be very persuasive to the viewers.

MID SHOT

I think that I would use this shot while filming as it also is effective, it is engaging. I think that the combination of a close up shot and a mid shot would be interesting. Also, changing the shot would not lose viewers while they are half way through the video.

POINT OF VIEW SHOT

I do not think that I would use this shot at all. I think this because it is not relevant; the video is about filming teachers, so it doesn’t make sense to have a point of view shot of the teachers will they are speaking.

OVER THE SHOULDER SHOT

I do not think I will use the over the shoulder shot because teachers are going to be interviewed one by one, so a mid shot (which normally needs 2 people) will not be effective.

DUTCH SHOT

I do not think that I will use this shot because it is not relevant to the task- why make the faces of the teachers seem slanted? It is not effective and is distracting for viewers. It will not give a serious feel to viewers when the video should.

LOW ANGLE SHOT

I do not think I will use this shot at all as I do not think the main message of the video will be sent as effectively as it could. This shot would emphasize the hands and stomach of the teacher, not their face (the part of the body which would effectively send the message to viewers).

LONG SHOT

I do not think that I would use this shot because I am interviewing teachers; and a long shot will not be so persuasive and engaging as a closer shot.

PANORAMA

I will definitely not use this shot as it is not needed in an interview and will not be effective in terms of the message being delivered as well as it could. Plus, I will be interviewing a teacher in a room, which will not have any scenery to show.

ESTABLISHING SHOT

There is a possibility of me using this shot. I would record Island School as the filming is taking place there as well as I interviewed students and the majority of them will be going to island school after year six. I think that it would very effective, as they get a feel and idea how life at island school is also like which would generate interest in the video.

PARALLEL MONTAGE

I do not think I will use this type of shot because it is rather comical which means it is irrelevant to the video as the video is meant to be serious.

BACKGROUND

I think I will use a background (if not for the full video, but for part of it) but since I will be interviewing the teacher in a room I would use green screen (which will be explained later). I think this is a way to increase the level of technical skills as well as making it more interesting to students, therefore they will pay attention to the video and the message will be delivered to students.

FOREGROUND

The teacher being interviewed will be the foreground and the background will be from the green screen. So I will use this type of shot as I find it is engaging and just looks more appealing as evidenced in the example above.

Mise en Scene, Technical Equipment and Sound

To effectively film the video, there needs to be props, good lighting, audible sound, music and other components to take in. If the combination of the mise en scene, technical equipment and sounds is poor then the video will be poor therefore the main message of the video will not be delivered. The latter means the project will not have any fitness for purpose.

GOOD LIGHTING

Good lighting helps to produce dramatic effects. Different lighting approaches help achieve different goals.

Lighting affects perception as it is able to create a certain mood as lights can be dim which could either imply sadness, anger and generally negativity while brighter lights generally create a positive mood.

Good lighting also helps to make the movie watchable and if not present, the video will not be so easy to watch and the main message of the video will not be delivered. Lighting is used to emphasize camera shots , certain angles, visual features, costumes and body language.

I think that I would use bright lighting. I still am unsure on if the lights will be colourful or not; I will test to see if colourful lights go better with the background the green screen generates or if colourless lights go better with it.

The lower drama studio has a variety of different types of professional lighting so it is available for me to

DOLLY

I do not think that I will use a dolly as I do not need to create a sense of movement while interviewing the teachers and practically I would not have apparatus to use one.

PROPS

I do not think I need a lot of props however I do require a chair for the teachers to sit while they are being interviewed. The chair would be affective as it would enable close up shots which I find effective.

SOUND

I will definitely use sound in the video as the teachers are talking. I do not think I will use sound effects as it is not relevant and is disruptive. I may use a voice over, maybe towards the beginning of the video during the establishing shot of Island School as I feel it is effective as there is a narrator. I think I will also put music as it brightens the video ( a 3 video is boring when there is only talking) and it also sets a tone for the video.

FILMING APPARATUS

It is important to have filming apparatus which will help to make the video have the clearest and best quality it can. Some equipment are essential and some are not.

TRIPODTripods are very beneficial when it comes to

filming. Tripods can help compose the shot perfectly, this is because the cinematographer sets in advance where he wants the camera to be. Using a tripod helps reduce motion blur therefore increasing the sharpness. Generally, when one holds a video camera they tend to shake which is not very clear to watch, so a tripod will keep the camera in place.

VIDEO CAMERA

To make a video, a video camera is needed! I am not going to use my laptop to record the video as it wont enable me to use different angle shots and it wont be as clear as a video camera. A video camera definitely produces the best quality for a video.

EXTERNAL MICROPHONES

Even if you record yourself through a video camera, your voice will appear to be faint. So, using external microphones mean a clear and loud voice (audible) which enables the message of the video to be delivered to all the audiences.

GREEN SCREEN

Since image sensors in digital cameras are sensitive to the colour green, this is why the colour of the screen is used more often in the background if compared with any other colour. It is when the green colour from one image is removed and made transparent, which reveals another image behind it (which can be computer generated). It is commonly used for weather forecasts, (where the presenter appears to be standing in front of a large weather map, but in the studio it is actually a large green background). This technique is alsoused in Hollywood movies as special effects.

Green Screen

Apples Mac has a similar effect to green screen.

You can see that the quality of the ‘green screen’ effect is not very clear on the Mac, therefore I will use the green screen the school has as it is a proper green screen therefore would give a better outcome.

This is a professional green screen outcome, you can see the image is clearer than the Mac one. The green screen at Island School is of a similar quality therefore hopefully in the video the outcome should be similar to this.