Contextual Studies | Camerawork (13th October 2016)

In our contextual studies lecture today, we focused on the use of camerawork, or cinematography, in television and film.  We began by looking at shots, and different types of shot, and how they can be used to convey different meanings.

Louis described shots as the basic building blocks of visual grammar, the visual equivalent to sentence structure: if shots are words, mis en scène is meaning and editing is the narrative structure.

Different types of shot, and what they are traditionally used for:

• Wide - establishes the setting, and conveys context.
• Medium - characters dominate the frame; emphasises personal relationships.
• Close-up - face or specific object dominates the frame; conveys intimacy and emotion.
• Extreme Close-up - selected part of character or object fills the frame; conveys heightened emotion, dramatic tension, or a reveal.
• High-angle/Overhead/Birds-eye - Diminishes the character or subject in frame, emphasising isolation.
• Low Angle - Emphasises a character or subject's dominance in a frame.
• Dutch Tilt/Angle - Disorienting; creates psychological tension.
• Slow/Fast Motion - Alters audiences perpetual or emotional response to dramatic action

Example of a wide shot from the Channel 4 series, Utopia

Angled shots are a common feature of expressionism, particularly classic German Expressionist films of 1920s/30s.  They present the world from a subjective perspective, distorting it radically for dramatic effect - Expressionist artists sought to express the meaning of emotional experience rather than physical reality.

"The size of the image is important to the emotion, particularly when you're using that image to have the audience identify with it"

- Alfred Hitchcock

Example of the rule of thirds in photoraphy

We also learned of the 'rule of third', which is where the subject of the shot is placed at the point of aesthetic interest.  It is derived from the 'Golden Mean', where Classical concepts of nature's balance and harmony are reflected in art.

"Never, never use a shot without clear dramatic purpose"

- Alfred Hitchcock

We also looked how the camera's movement can affect what is conveyed in a shot.  Why would we want to move the camera?

• To heighten action or emotion.
• To convey objective or subjective viewpoints.
• Refocus the audience's attention.
• Explore or change the setting/environment.

"I believe in using camera movement when it helps tell the story more effectively... I think one of the first essentials of the moving camera is that the eye should not be aware of it"

- Alfred Hitchcock

As we did with shots, we looked at the different forms of camera movements:

• Pan, tilt, and zoom
• Handheld
• Steadicam
• Dolly/Crane

Visual style in moving pictures, according to Bordwell, can be denotative, expressive, decorative and symbolic, depending on the subject of the film and what tone the director is trying to convey through the use of the camera.