Producing for TV and New Media: Glossary - H-L

HDTV (High definition television)

Video signals with a high resolution (roughly twice the lines of standard TV) and a sharp visual clarity similar to film

HDTV

High definition television

Hand-held camera

A camera that is held in the shooter’s hand or on the shoulder, rather than on a tripod

Hard light

Lighting that is strong and directed, resulting in sharp-edged, distinct shadows

Headshots

Professional photographs of actors and talent. They are usually close-up vanity shots, with a resume of their experiences on the back

High-key light

Lighting produced by the combination of less key light and more fill light, resulting in almost no shadows

Honey wagon

A vehicle with several portable toilets, sinks, and showers on-location

Hook

An aspect of an idea that is unique enough to grab the reader’s attention

Hyphenate

Double tasking, such as a writer-producer, writer-director, etc.

Independent production company

A small business usually formed by a producer(s) that produces programming for a network, studio, or corporate client, and also handles all the administrative and technical requirements needed to satisfy the client

Indirect costs

The additional money that is factored into a production budget that covers areas such as legal fees, accounting services, insurance, and contingency fees

In point

In the editing process, the starting point of a specific edit

Insert shot

A shot, usually a close-up, that reveals an important detail in a scene

Jib

A crane with a camera at the end that can fly over an audience or into a set or location. It can be either manually controlled or by remote

Jump cut

An obvious edit made by putting two very similar images together that share identical angles and framing

Key

The head, or most important person, of each department

Key light

The most important light source in the three-point lighting system. Its illumination of a subject is bright and hard, and produces deep shadows

Kinescope

A process developed before the invention of videotape in which a 16mm camera filmed television programs that were broadcast live

Lav (lavalier)

An easily concealed small microphone that clips onto clothing; it’s generally omnidirectional and picks up dialogue clearly

Lav

Lavalier

Layback

In postproduction, the process of joining the final completed audio track to the finished picture