Cinematography

Cinematography

• The art or technique of film photography, including both the shooting and development of the film.

• Cinematographer

• Director Of Photography (DP)

• Cameraman/Camerawoman

Tools of the DP

• Camera

• Dolly

• Crane

• Lights

Light meter Lenses Film stock Processing and post

Cinematography has an emotional component

• The DP must capture the visuals required to tell the story the director wants to tell.

A cinematographer must• break down every scene of a movie

• understand what is being said (both in dialogue and unspoken themes of the film)

• capture images that create the proper mood, character portrayal and emotional current of each scene.

PROCESS

• Read script

• Meet with director

• Scout locations

• Shot list

• Storyboards

• Tech Scout

• Order equipment

Common Phrases To Know

• SHOT – one uninterrupted run of the camera

• TAKE – indicates the number of times a particular shot is taken

• SET-UP– one camera position and everything photographed from there

• SCENE – a series of shots edited together that cover a unified portion of the script

Glossary of Shots

LONG SHOT (LS)

• Typically shows the full human body filling the frame and some of the surroundings.

MEDIUM SHOT (MS)

• Shows the human body from the waist up, either standing or sitting.

• Proximity without intimacy

• Provides more detail than a Long Shot

CLOSE-UP (CU)

• Fills the frame.

• Focuses attention on a detail - laughter, tears, beauty, horror.

• Shows subtle emotion on an actors face.

• Actor can just raise an eyebrow to convey a thought without saying words.

EXTREME CLOSE-UP (ECU)

• Tighter version of the CU focused on one small but important detail

• In this example, the eyes on a face, hands running across a letter a tongue licking an envelope.

MEDIUM LONG SHOT (MLS)

• Looser Medium shot, framing from the mid-leg to above the head.

MEDIUM CLOSE-UP (MCU)

• A cross between the medium and close-up shots.

• More intimate than a medium shot.

Glossary of Angles

EYE LEVEL

• the camera is positioned so that the eyes of the character are just above the mid-point of the frame, similar to how another person might see them in real life. This is the most neutral of all camera positions.

HIGH ANGLE

• the camera is positioned above the subject and looks down on it, conveying a feeling of helplessness or insignificance.

LOW ANGLE

• positioned below the subject looking upward, making the subject seem powerful and impressive

DUTCH ANGLE

• the camera is tilted so that horizontal plane crosses the frame on a diagonal.

POINT OF VIEW (POV)

• From the point of view of one of the characters - we are seeing what they see

OVER THE SHOULDER (OTS)

• This shot captures the spatial relationship of the characters and allows both to be in the frame while facing each other

ESTABLISHING SHOT

• shows an entire location.

• Often used as an establishing or scene ending shot.

DEPTH OF FIELD3 Planes

• the foreground (nearest to the camera)

• middle ground

• background (furthest from the camera)

CAMERA MOVES

Lighting

• Source

• Quality

• Direction

• Color

SOURCE

• Natural - daylight, sunshine

• Artificial- created

QUALITY • Soft, hard, diffuse, focused

DIRECTION• Sets the tone, picks a point of emphasis

COLOR

• Sets mood, time and place, emotional tone

3 Point Lighting

The standard film lighting setup consists of three elements:

• Key light- Main lighting source

• Fill light- Handles shadows

• Backlight- Separates subject from the background

Key LightThe key light is the main light and first light you

set. It is the strongest light and usually comes from a high angle and from the side.

• Fill Light

• The fill light is either a weaker light or a reflector. It fills in the shadow for the key light.

• Backlight

• The backlight serves to create an edge light that separates your subject from the background.

“Hollywood” 3 point

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FINIS