bruce block's visual components for filmmakers
DESCRIPTION
An overview of Bruce Block's concepts for filmmakers.TRANSCRIPT
Block's Visual Components
Space, Line, Shape, Tone, Color, Movement, and Rhythm
Each of these Components can have Contrast (Difference) or Affinity (Similarity).
Contrast = Greater Visual Intensity Affinity = Lesser Visual Intensity
Space
● Four types of Space● Deep● Flat● Limited● Ambiguous
Deep Space has more Contrast
● Depth Cues include● Size difference● Perspective lines● Diffusion● Diagonal Movement● Shape change● Tonal Separation● Overlap
Deep Space
What depth cues are evident here?
Deep Space
What depth cues are evident here?
Flat Space has more Affinity
● Flatness Cues● Size constancy● Horizontal & Vertical Lines, lack of convergence● Consistent Texture● Tonal Affinity● Horizontal and vertical Movement
Flat SpaceWhat flatness cues are evident here?
Flat Space
Limited and Ambiguous Space
● Limited Space is a blend of Deep and Flat Cues: Multiple Planes of Flat Space.
● Ambiguous Space is either an mix of cues or a lack of cues. Darkness, reflections, and disorienting camera angles often create ambiguous space.
Line
● Line has the following elements:● Quality (Straight or Curved)● Direction of Movement (Horizontal/Vertical or
Diagonal)● Orientation
Contrast of Line
Affinity of Line
What kinds of line properties are on display?
How about here?
Shape
● The basic shapes are circle, square, and triangle.
Contrast of Shape
● For Block, maximum contrast is between circle and triangle.
Affinity of Shape
What shapes are at play in this image?
How about this image?
Tone
● Tone is a range of brightness, from light to dark.
Tone can be controlled by art design, lighting, or exposure. It can be used to reveal, or to conceal.
Contrast of Tone
● Silhouettes have very high tonal contrast.
Affinity of Tone
Tonal Contrast
Tonal Affinity
Color
● Color can be broken down into three components● Hue/Chroma: Quality of the color. The color of the
color!● Saturation: Purity of the color. ● Brightness/Luminance/Value: Addition of Black or
White to the Hue.
● Contrast and affinity of color can be based on either Hue, Saturation, or Brightness
Color Systems
● A color system is just a way of arranging colors. The RGB system or Additive System, for example, applies to light-based media, including photography and screens, and is typically
arranged by wavelength of light.
You might also hear about the CMYK or Subtractive system. CMYK applies to pigment-based media, such as paint or print. The old Red-Yellow-Blue system from your Kindergarten days is a version of CMYK.
An RGB Color Wheel
Contrast and Affinity of Hue
Cool Colors
Warm Colors
Affinity of Hue can refer to all colors being the same, or colors being next to one another on the color wheel. An image of all cool colors has a lot of affinity of hue, as does an image of all warm colors.
Contrast of Hue refers to colors being different. Specifically, maximum contrast occurs between colors that are opposite on the color wheel, such as Red and Green or Blue and Orange.
Contrast and Affinity of Saturation
Affinity of Saturation can occur when either the image is made of many full, pure colors or when the image is made of many gray, subdued colors.
Contrast of Saturation occurs highly saturated elements share the frame with desaturated elements
Affinity of Saturation Contrast of Saturation. Notice how the contrast draws out the diamond.
Contrast and Affinity of Brightness
● This is basically the same as tone, only applied to color
Affinity of Tone Contrast of Tone
What elements of color are at play?
How about this image?
And this image?
More Color Resources
● Worqk.com is a terrific resource for information about color, color theory, and color combinations.
In Summary
Contrast = Greater Visual Intensity
Affinity = Lesser Visual Intensity
● It's easy to get caught up in the abstract details of Visual Components and Contrast and Affinity. The idea is to control these elements in order for your images, and ultimately your stories, to have greater impact.