ENGLISH film techniques

establishing shot

first shot of any film

extreme close up

ECU shows extreme detail of the subject in full then abbreviate

close up

detail of subject, facial expressions and emotions can be seen clearly

mid shot

Shot which shows a person from the waist up. Used in conversation and to show body language.

long shot

a framing technique used capture the environment and full body of subject

wide shot

Shows subject and location/environment in its entirety

over-the-shoulders

shows a conversation between 2 people, shows reactions

low angle

The camera films the subject from below. Making the subject look larger than normal, strong, powerful, and threatening.

High angle

Looks down at the subject to seem inferior, weak, and vulnerable

bird's eye view

A shot in which the camera photographs a scene from directly overhead. Shows positioning of subjects

Worms eye view

Looking directly up at the subject from underneath it makes audience fell smaller and weak

shallow focus

a shot in which only objects and persons in the foreground or background of the image can be seen clearly. often in dramatic movies

deep focus

when the foreground and background are equally in focus. usually in posters

depth of feild

the distance between the nearest and farthest objects in a scene that appear acceptably sharp in an image

mise en scence

A french term of what is put into a scene or frames, visual information, communicates essential information.

costume hair and makeup

Indicator of personality, status, job. asking what does the costume symbolize or signify

facial expressions and body language

to reflect a characters emotion, personality or inner state of mind.

To show a character feels towards another character or reflect the state of their relationship.

Positioning of Characters & Objects within a frame

Positioning within a frame can draw our attention to an important character/object

A film-maker can use positioning to indicate relationships between people

colour

carries certain connotations which may add meaning eg: red-danger

gives a scene a particular look, feel or mood

can cause dramatic effect

lighting and colour

highlights important characters or objects within the frame, can make characters look mysterious through shading

reflects mental state or hidden emotion eg: bright=happy dark=disturbed

diegetic sound

Sound that originates from a source within a film's world.

non-diegetic sound

sound that can be heard by the audience only, not the characters.

dutch angle

shot that is tilted sideways on the horizontal line. creates a sense of unease

eye-level shot

A shot taken at the height of normal vision.

shoulder level shot

used during conversations, emphasizes a height difference and power difference

hip level shot

When your camera is roughly waist-high.

knee level shot

This is when your camera height is about as low as your subject's knees. tracks throigh environment following a character

Ground Level Shot

stylish way to track a characters movement through a scene

static shot

tripod is in a fixed position, good for dialouge

the pan shot

Rotates camera horizontally, following characters actions

slow pan

builds anticipation

rapid pan

heightens the energy of a shot

The tilt

A stationary camera moves up or down along a vertical axis. gives character dominance or vulnerability.

push in

Moves the camera towards the subject

push out

Pulling the camera away de-emphasizes the subject. isolation

The zoom

changes focal length of camera to zoom in or out. draws attention

crash zoom

- a fast zoom

- dramatic or comedic effect

dolly zoom

A technique in which the camera moves closer or further from the subject while simultaneously adjusting the zoom angle to keep the subject the same size in the frame.

camera roll

where the camera rotates about its own axis making the ground appear sloppy

tracking shot

following subject through scene. builds tension

Arc Shot

creates energy while characters are still. orbits around a subject

Boom shot

Moves the camera up or down revealing infromation

random movement

incidental zooms or any movement

Master shot

confirms location and geography of scene characters in scene and relationship

full shot

a view of a figure's entire body in order to show action and/or a constellation group of characters

cowboy shot

A shot framed from the mid-thigh up. dangerous and confrontational

medium shot

waist up. neutral w/o losing environment

medium close up

frames the body from the chest up. prioritises story and character details

insert shot

highlight and isolate an object crucial to narative