Digital Video Tutorial - CREATIVE CAMERA TECHNIQUES

• The amount of stage that is in focus, measured in feet or metres. This is determined by aperture and amount of zoom(or lens angle).
• Maximum depth of field is when aperture is smallest and at widest angle. You need lots of light for this. E.g. Citizen Kane.
• Narrow Depth of Field (large aperture and zoomed right in) is used in soapies to get that soft out of focus background look. E.g. Days of Our Lives.
  

FRAMING

• Basic Shots = Wide Shot(WS) ,Long shot(LS) , Mid Shot(MS) , Medium Close Up (MCU) , Close Up (CU) , Big Close Up (BCU)..
  
• Over The Shoulder(OTS), 2 Shot ( 2 people in shot)
  
• Watch Headroom, nose room ( allow space in front of nose when subject in ¾ profile)
  
• Rule of Thirds - square and balanced in center is boring..
• Subjective Shot - from the Point of View(POV) of one of the actors
• Objective - POV of the camera or unseen observer.
• High angle - from above. - will make the subject seem to be "looked down upon".
• Low Angle - from below - we "look up to" the subject .
• Dolly Shot - camera moves in
• Tracking Shot - camera moves lateral to subject.
• Single Camera Shoot - all action is shot with 1 camera , out of sequence
• Multiple Camera Shoot - Action is shot with 2 or more cameras(at different angles) at same time .
  

THE SHOOT

• MASTER SHOT - A shot that is wide enough to cover all the important action in a scene. The master is usually the first to be shot and serves as a safety to cover any missing shots. Additional closer shots of the action are then recorded usually from new angles.
• COVERAGE - The alternate camera angles and setups, beyond the basic requirements of the shot list give the director maximum flexibility during the editing process. General procedure is to shoot an establishing master shot, group shots, and individual medium and close-ups shots of each actor. So for example if there were 2 actors in a static scene, the first master shot would be a 2 shot LS followed by a 2shot MS, and then CU actor 1, then CU actor 2. Coverage could involve OTS shots of both actors.
• CROSSING THE LINE - selecting a camera view that is on the opposite line of action that has been established(usually at 180 degrees to actors line of sight). Crossing the line would cause the viewer to become confused because spatial relationships have become discontinuous.
  

THE INTERVIEW

1. Intro shot of interviewer = MS( can be single & pan to subject or 2 shot)
2. Shoot subject answering questions = MCU
3. DA writes down questions. MCU interviewer asking questions.
4. Shoot noddies & WS of interviewer & subject, talking alternately
5. Shoot Outro