Camera Position and angle are crucial in creating meaning.
The Bird’s Eye View – The angle shows a shot from directly from above. It is a very unnatural angle and it pro
motes an uneasy sense in the audience. But the shot does give the audience status, because it makes the characters on screen seem insignificant.
High Angle – Not as extreme as a Bird’s Eye View.
The camera is elevated above the on-screen action to give the audience a general overview, the angle still gives status as on-screen characters are made to look insignificant. The object of the shot is often swallowed by its surroundings, often used to suggest a wider object.
Eye Level – The camera is positioned as if the audience is viewing the scene first hand. So the actors will
be at eye-level with the audience, this brings them the actors do
wn to earth,
Low Angle – These increase height to smaller subjects, and they also give a sense of speeded motion. Low angles help convey a sense of powerlessness within a scene. The background to a low angle shot will tend to be sky or scenery, which contributes to the disorientation of the viewer.
Slanted Angle – Sometimes the camera is slanted to portray imbalance and instability, this technique is used a lot in point of view shots, and they are often shot with handheld cameras.
Camera Movements
This is especially important in pop videos, especially tracking and crane shots.
Pan – A movement that scans a scene horizontally.
The camera is placed on a tripod, which operates as a stationary axis point as the camera is turn
ed, often to follow a moving object that is kept in the middle of the frame
Track – The 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. The 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.
Tilt – A movement which scans a scene vertically, otherwise similar to a pan.
Handheld – This aesthetic took a while to catch on with mainstream Hollywood, as it gives a jerky, ragged effect, totally at odds with the organized smoothness of a dolly shot. The camera is stabilized so it moves independently) was debuted in Marathon Man (1976
), bringing a new smoothness to hand held camera movement and has been used to great effect in movies and TV shows ever since. No "walk and talk" sequence would be complete without one. Hand held cameras denote a certain kind of gritty realism, and they can make the audience feel as though they are part of a scene, rath
er than viewing it from a detached, frozen position.
Crane – Basically, dolly-shots-in-the-air. A crane, 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. The camera operator and camera are counter-balanced by a heavy weight, and trust their safety to a skilled crane/jib operator.
Zoom – A zoom lens contains a mechanism that changes the magnification of an image. On a still camera, this means that the photographer can get a 'close up' shot while still being some distance from the subject. A video zoom lens can change the position of the audience, either very quickly (a smash zoom) or slowly, without moving the camera an inch, thus saving a lot of time and trouble. The drawbacks to zoom use include the fact that while a dolly shot involves a steady movement similar to the focusing change in the human eye, the zoom lens tends to be jerky (unless used very slowly) and to distort an image, making objects appear closer tog
ether than they really are. Zoom lenses are also drastically over-used by many directors who try to
give the impression of movement and excitement in a scene where it does not exist. Use with caution - and a tripod!
Aerial – An exciting variation of a crane shot, usually taken from a helicopter. This is often used at the beginning of a film, in order to establish setting and movement. A helicopter is like a particularly flexible sort of crane - it can go anywhere, keep up with anything, move in and out of a scene, and convey real drama and exhilaration — so long as you don't need to get too close to your actors or use location sound with the shots.
Lighting
This is also clearly vital.
Redhead – A small light, usually between 100 and 200 watt studio lamp used to light from all angles, the beam can be focused and the fixture facilitates a set of barn doors for illuminating certain areas and narrowing down the beam. Gels can be applied to the lamp to change the color of the lighting.
Blonde – A blonde is more or less the same as a Redhead, except it is usually larger and can go up to around 500 watts. Gels can be applied to the lamp to change the color of the lighting, much like a Redhead.
Spot – A spot is focused beam of light on a specific area, it is used to
emphasize this area and the reader is meant to draw closer and feel more emotionally attached to the subject.
Background – Background lighting is just what it says it is. It is a way of illuminating a subject without drawing too much attention to the subjects flaws and trying to stay emotionally distant, it is used frequently in interviews.
