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Digital Cinematography is the process of capturing motion pictures as

digital images, rather than on film. Digital capture may occur on tape,
hard disks, flash memory, or other media which can record digital data. As
digital technology has improved, this practice has become increasingly
common. Many mainstream Hollywood movies now are shot partly or fully
digitally.
An establishing shot in film and television sets up, or establishes the context for a
scene by showing the relationship between its important figures and objects. It is
generally a long- or extreme-long shot at the beginning of a scene indicating where,
and sometimes when, the remainder of the scene takes place.

his can be taken from as much as a quarter of a mile away, and is generally
used as a scene-setting, establishing shot. It normally shows an EX
ERIOR, e.g.
the outside of a building, or a landscape, and is often used to show scenes of
thrilling action e.g. in a war film or disaster movie.
here will be very little detail
visible in the shot, it's meant to give a general impression rather than specific
information.
In film or video, an over the shoulder shot (also over shoulder, OS, OTS, or third-
person shot) is a shot of someone or something taken over the shoulder of another
person. The back of the shoulder and head of this person is used to frame the image
of whatever (or whomever) the camera is pointing toward. This type of shot is very
common when two characters are having a discussion and will usually follow an
establishing shot which helps the audience place the characters in their setting. It is
an example of a camera angle.

his is the most difficult to categorize
precisely, but is generally one which shows
the image as approximately "life" size i.e.
corresponding to the real distance between
the audience and the screen in a cinema
(the figure of a man would appear as six
feet tall).
his category includes the FULL
SHO
showing the entire human body, with
the head near the top of the frame and the
feet near the bottom. While the focus is on
characters, plenty of background detail still
emerges: we can tell the coffins on the right
are in a Western-style setting, for instance.
Contains a figure from the knees/waist up
and is normally used for dialogue scenes, or
to show some detail of action. Variations on
this include the
WO SHO
(containing two
figures from the waist up) and the
HREE
SHO
(contains 3 figures...). NB. Any more
than three figures and the shot tends to
become a long shot. Background detail is
minimal, probably because location has
been established earlier in the scene - the
audience already know where they are
and now want to focus on dialogue and
character interaction. Another variation in
this category is the OVER-
HE-SHOULDER-
SHO
, which positions the camera behind
one figure, revealing the other figure, and
part of the first figure's back, head and
shoulder.

his shows very little background, and
concentrates on either a face, or a specific
detail of mise en scène. Everything else is
just a blur in the background.
his shot
magnifies the object (think of how big it
looks on a cinema screen) and shows the
importance of things, be it words written on
paper, or the expression on someone's face.

he close-up takes us into the mind of a


character. In reality, we only let people that
we really trust get
HA
close to our face -
mothers, children and lovers, usually - so a
close up of a face is a very intimate shot. A
film-maker may use this to make us feel
extra comfortable or extremely
uncomfortable about a character, and
usually uses a zoom lens in order to get the
required framing.
As its name suggests, an extreme version of
the close up, generally magnifying beyond
what the human eye would experience in
reality. An extreme close-up of a face, for
instance, would show only the mouth or
eyes, with no background detail
whatsoever.
his is a very artificial shot, and
can be used for dramatic effect.
he tight
focus required means that extra care must
be taken when setting up and lighting the
shot - the slightest camera shake or error in
focal length is very noticeable.

he relationship between the camera and the object being
photographed (i.e. the ANGLE) gives emotional information to an
audience, and guides their judgment about the character or object in
shot.
he more extreme the angle (i.e. the further away it is from eye left),
the more symbolic and heavily-loaded the shot.

hese increase height (useful
for short actors like
om Cruise
or James McAvoy) 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.
he
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.
he 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.
rom a bug's- or worm's-eye point of view, everything looks ominous and their
height is prevalent.
utch tilt, utch angle, oblique angle, German angle, canted angle, or Batman
Angle are terms used for a cinematic tactic often used to portray the
psychological uneasiness or tension in the subject being filmed. A utch angle
is achieved by tilting the camera off to the side so that the shot is composed
with the horizon at an angle to the bottom of the frame. Many utch angles are
static shots at an obscure angle, but in a moving utch angle shot the camera
can pivot, pan or track along the director/cinematographer's established
diagonal axis for the shot.
The Pull ocus is a creative camera technique in which we can change focus
during a shot. Usually this means adjusting the focus from one subject to
another.
Angle-plus-angle shots are not usually
talked about, but probably
are a type of shot that logo animators or
architectural animators will use at some
point. An angle-plus angle shot
combines an upward (or downward)
angle with subject angle.
The result is significant depth and an
enhanced 3 experience.
Silhouette Image shot can be used during beginning or end of the Some types
of products might need to be clearly seen so the viewer knows what the client is
selling.
þith a different subject angle, the shot gets its depth.
To focus a zoom lens in order to obtain a larger image, or a closer view.
To focus a zoom lens in order to obtain a smaller image, or a more distant view.
photo having strong converging lines

Strong converging lines in a frame bring depth and interest to a shot.


A director may choose to move action along by telling the story as a series
of cuts, going from one shot to another, or they may decide to move the
camera with the action. Moving the camera often takes a great deal of
time, and makes the action seem slower, as it takes several second for a
moving camera shot to be effective, when the same information may be
placed on screen in a series of fast cuts. Not only must the style of
movement be chosen, but the method of actually moving the camera
must be selected too.
A movement which scans a scene horizontally.
he camera is placed on a
tripod, which operates as a stationary axis point as the camera is turned,
often to follow a moving object which is kept in the middle of the frame.
A movement which scans a
scene vertically, otherwise
similar to a pan.
Sometimes called
RUCKING or
RACKING shots.
he camera is placed on a
moving vehicle and moves alongside the action, generally following a
moving figure or object. Complicated dolly shots will involve a track being
laid on set for the camera to follow, hence the name.
he camera might be
mounted on a car, a plane, or even a shopping trolley (good method for
independent film-makers looking to save a few dollars). A dolly shot may be
a good way of portraying movement, the journey of a character for
instance, or for moving from a long shot to a close-up, gradually focusing the
audience on a particular object or character.
Õ  

irectors often use a character dolly to focus on one or more characters in a


scene. This shot is also commonly known as a push-in. The camera starts
out with a full or even medium shot, and is pushed in forward. You can push
the camera all the way up to an extreme close-up if needed. Push-ins adds
tension to a scene and magnifies a character's emotion. aster motions can
be used for a more comic approach.
   

The pull-back reveal is used to reveal the full extent of a scene. or example,
the camera is focused up close on a lost little boy looking for his mother. As
he becomes scared and increasingly worried, the shot pulls back to reveal
the boy standing alone in the middle of a large crowd. The viewers gain a
sense of the enormity of the boy's situation.
  h

A depth dolly can be used when characters move toward and away from the
camera. The camera moves past characters or objects that temporarily block
the field of view, helping to emphasize the depth of a scene.
O    

In an expand dolly shot, the camera follows a character who is moving away.
As the camera moves forward, the actor walks away faster than the camera.
The viewer feels distanced from the character with a shot like this. You might
use an expand dolly to end a scene. Additionally, you can reverse this type of
shot to introduce a character to a scene.
Õ 

A contract dolly moves the camera forward as a character walks or moves


toward the camera at the same time. This type of shot makes a simple action
more dramatic by combining two opposite actions. A variation of this could
have the character move toward the camera while the camera pans up,
revealing the subject.
Basically, dolly-shots-in-the-air. A crane
(or jib), 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.
he
camera operator and camera are
counter-balanced by a heavy weight,
and trust their safety to a skilled
crane/jib operator.

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