Bourne Media Department

Learning Objective: Know the technical terms for Cinematography

Glossary of CINEMATOGRAPHY terms

Shot distances: the apparent distance of the camera from the subject

Wide Shot a shot using a wide-angle lens that distorts what we see so as
to include objects from a wider area of vision than a normal shot.
Extreme Long Shot (ELS) used for landscapes or cityscapes; the human
form is barely significant.
Long Shot (LS) the human form is prominent but the landscape still
dominates. Providing the whole of the human body can be seen in the shot, it
is a long shot.
Medium Long Shot (MLS) the human form can be seen from about the
knees up
Medium Shot (MS) also known as the Mid Shot, where the human form
can be seen from the waist up.
Medium Close-up (MCU) the human form can be seen from the chest up.
Close-up shows a human face or draws attention to a specific object
Extreme Close-up also known as the Big Close-up shows detail or a
specific part of the human face, eg the eyes.

Shots by function or content

Establishing Shot this is a shot of the location where the next unit of
drama takes place. It is often an exterior shot, showing the building in which
the action will take place in the 1950s, the building would typically have a
sign stating what it is eg hospital or Detective Bureau. An establishing shot
can also be an interior eg the balcony shot of the court room in Bleak House
Master Shot this term is specifically for a shot that shows where everyone
is in a location, eg a room. Following a master shot, edits to close-ups and
shot-reverse-shot sequences will not confuse us because the master shot has
shown us where everyone is in relation to each other. A master shot shows
the people, an establishing shot usually shows the place.
Two Shot any shot containing two people.
Point of View Shot (POV) a shot showing what a character is looking at,
often following an eyeline match edit. Sometimes a POV will use a pan or tilt
to show how the character is scanning or searching for something.
Over-the-shoulder Point of View Shot a POV in which we can see part of
the person whose viewpoint we are seeing usually the shoulder and side of
the head, although these features are often blurred.
Aerial Shot also known as the Birds Eye View shot where the camera is
looking directly down from above the subject. A Birds Eye View can be from
just above the subject but an Aerial Shot, or Helicopter Shot is usually from a
great height.
Worms Eye View Shot looking directly UP at the subject; the opposite of a
Birds Eye View Shot.

Camera Angle when the camera is looking at the subject from a standard eye-level

Bourne Media Department

Learning Objective: Know the technical terms for Cinematography

High angle the camera is higher than the subject and is looking down on
him/her. This carries the connotation that the subject is lacking power or
status.
Low angle the camera is placed lower than the subject and we feel as if we
are looking up at him/her. This carries the connotation that the subject is
powerful.
Dutch angle also known as the Dutch tilt or canted angle. The camera is
tilted over, making the diegetic world appear as if it is on a slope; this is used
to make the viewer feel uneasy or disorientated. It can be used as a POV
shot with the connotation that the subject is drunk or intoxicated.

Camera Movement ways in which the camera can be physically moved whilst
filming

Pan the camera is fixed to a tripod but is rotated horizontally. Used as a

POV, it gives the impression that the character is scanning across the
landscape.
Tilt as with the Pan, the camera is fixed to a tripod but is rotated vertically.
Tracking Shot where the whole camera is mounted on a wheeled base so
that it can follow the movement of the subject in a continuous, smooth
movement. Often the camera is mounted on tracks, but could alternatively be
mounted on a pick-up truck, depending on the smoothness required by the
context.
Dolly the wheeled platform on which the tripod is mounted for a tracking
shot
Track tracks or rails on which a dolly is mounted.
Crane also known as a boom. This allows the entire camera (and operator
if the boom is large enough) to move in any direction up, down or sideways.
On a Crane, the camera can also pan or tilt as it moves up, down or
sideways. The largest Crane shots allow a camera to rise from floor level up
over a building.
Stable camera this idea is linked to Invisible Editing as a technique to make
the viewer forget they are watching an artificial world and to believe what they
are seeing is reality. This is particularly so in the drama mise-en-scene of
verisimilitude.
Handheld means simply that a camera is held by the operator. Inevitably,
the camera shakes and pitches with the motion of the operator but this can
give a sense of drama, immediacy and a feeling of involvement in the action.
It can be used to mimic documentary, amateur or news styles of film-making.
It reminds the viewer that we are watching film, whereas the stable camera
disguises the fact we are watching an artificial world.
Steadicam invented in 1976 by Garrett Brown, this is a system of harness
and counterbalance weights that allow a camera to be held by the operator
(giving great freedom of movement) but not shaking like a handheld camera
would do. The weights and balances mean that small vibrations and
movements by the operator are not transferred to the camera itself.
Zoom is not really a camera movement at all, it is a change of the lens that
makes it appear to the viewer that we are moving closer to the subject. In fact
the subject is being steadily magnified. A Reverse Zoom is where the camera
zooms out ie the subject appears gradually smaller.

Bourne Media Department

Learning Objective: Know the technical terms for Cinematography

Crash zoom is a technique of digital editing to speed up a so that it is

extremely fast and we feel like we are whizzing towards the subject. We
usually stop very suddenly when the director feels we are close enough.

Bourne Media Department

Learning Objective: Know the technical terms for Cinematography
Composition how the subject(s) are arranged within the field of vision

Field of vision what we can see within the four walls (top, bottom, left side,
right side) of the camera or film/TV screen.
Framing the placing of everything within the frame and the decision of
exactly what gets cut out by the field of vision.
Rule of Thirds the theory, taken from photography that it is aesthetically
better to place the most important subject of a shot on one of four intersection
points that occur when the screen is divided into a grid of nine squares. Also
the theory that vertical objects should align to one of the verticals of the grid
and horizontals should align to the horizontal thirds of the screen
Depth of Field refers to how far away from the camera objects remain in
focus.
Deep focus is where objects are in focus whether they are near the camera
or far away. In deep focus, the depth of field is large.
Shallow focus only certain objects are in focus. They may be near the
camera, in the middle distance or far away, but not everything the camera
sees is in focus. Shallow focus has a small depth of field and is used to draw
the viewers attention away from the unfocussed subject on to that which is in
clear focus.
Pulling focus is the term used for changing the focus of the camera. In a
focus pull, an object near the camera might be seen to blur whilst something
that was blurred and far away comes into focus. This technique usually has
some dramatic meaning as our attention is drawn to the object that comes
into focus perhaps a predator, or someone who shouldnt be seeing what is
happening in the foreground.