Video Camera Operations 4 Video Camera Operations

Objectives Understand how white balancing a camera affects the picture. Summarize how depth of field contributes to composing a good picture. Identify the composition of each type of camera shot. Illustrate a variety of camera movements. Explain how a videographer can psychologically and physically affect the audience.

Important Rule If audience cannot see it on screen, it does not exist–unless you give clues that allow audience to assume that what they do not see does indeed exist. Example: talent playing a guitar. Audience does not need to see entire neck of guitar–they will assume it is there.

White Balance Camera needs to be “told” what white is, called white balancing When balanced, camera sees all other colors correctly Zoom in on white object on set Activate white balance circuit on camera Zoom back out and shoot normally

Pre-focus Zoom Lens Zoom in on farthest important object Focus Zoom out After pre-focus, everything from 6’ in front of camera to object in step 2 will be in focus

Zoom/Macro Zoomed-in image is similar to telescope image Macro image is similar to microscope image

Minimum Object Distance (MOD) When camera moves toward object–the point where lens can no longer focus

Depth of Field (DOF) Understanding DOF will give camera operator tremendous control on what audience looks at in total picture

Great Depth of Field Great DOF is found in nearly all television and film shots because it keeps nearly everything in the shot in focus No one thing in picture stands out

Shallow Depth of Field Lens is manipulated so that DOF is very narrow and only single object in entire image is in focus, leaving rest of picture out of focus Shallow DOF causes one object in picture to stand out dramatically

Shallow Depth of Field (Cont.) Selective depth of field is choice made by director/camera operator In shallow DOF, camera operator often rotates lens to shift from one item being in focus to another item being in focus Focusing while camera is hot is rack focus, or pull focus

Shallow Depth of Field (Cont.)

Factors Affecting DOF Aperture Subject to camera distance Focal length Changing any or all of 1-3 changes size of DOF Set lighting does not affect depth of field

Discussion Why are there so many lights in ceiling of television studio?

Rule of Thirds Tic-tac-toe grid imagined on TV screen Important items in shot placed at intersections of grid lines Do not center important items on screen

Head Room Use rule of thirds when framing head room

Nose Room Use rule of thirds when framing nose room

Shot Sheets Shot = picture Before shot sheets can be created, every shot in scene must be assigned a consecutive number Only camera 1’s shots are on camera 1’s shot sheet Shot sheets make complex shooting much simpler

Wide Shots Extreme long shot (ELS/XLS), also called wide angle shot (WA) Establishing shot–wide angle shot of gigantic spaceships in battle in asteroid belt space indicates program is science fiction Long shot (LS)

Extreme Long Shot

Long Shot

Individual Subject Shots Medium long shot (MLS), also called knee shot Medium shot (MS), also called mid shot Medium close-up (MCU), also called bust shot Close-up (CU), also called narrow angle shot Extreme close-up (ECU/XCU)

Medium Long Shot

Medium Shot

Medium Close-up

Close-up

Extreme Close-up

Multiple Subject Shots Two shot Three shot Four shot Group shot

Specific View Shots Reaction shot–shot of woman’s face as man off camera asks her to marry him Profile shot Over-the-shoulder shot (OSS)

Profile Shot

OSS

Dolly dolly in (DI) dolly out (DO)

Pan Pan right (PR) Pan left (PL)

Truck Truck right (TR) Truck left (TL)

Tilt Tilt up (TU) Tilt down (TD)

Pedestal Pedestal up (PedU) Pedestal down (PedD)

Arc Arc right (AR) Arc left (AL)

Psychology of Presentation Low angle shot makes subject powerful, respected, and feared by audience High angle shot makes audience feel that subject is weak and insignificant Consistent slight low/high angle will manipulate audience’s opinion of subject Extreme low/high angle is comedic

Career Page Interesting information about job descriptions, duties, and outlooks for television camera operators http://online.onetcenter.org

Discussion In broadcast journalism newscasts, what are ethical considerations of use of low and high angle shots? News should be unbiased and not manipulative. That said, is it? What are examples of when and how this manipulation of public might occur?

Review Question What three steps are necessary to pre-focus zoom lens? What is the purpose of an establishing shot? Imagine vase sitting on a table in a room. How many of the various camera angles can be used to shoot it? What is the value of selective depth of field? What three factors affect depth of field? Identify several camera movements and their abbreviations.

Glossary arc: Moving the camera in a curved truck around the main subject in the shot—the main subject never leaves the frame of the picture. arc left (AL): Rolling the camera, tripod, and dolly in a circle to the camera operator’s left (clockwise) around the subject of a shot.

Glossary arc right (AR): Rolling the camera, tripod, and dolly in a circle to the camera operator’s right (counterclockwise) around the subject of a shot. close-up (CU): A shot that captures a subject from the top of the head to just below the shoulders. Also called a narrow angle shot.

Glossary depth of field (DOF): The distance between the closest point to the camera that is in focus and the furthest point from the camera that is also in focus. dolly: Physically moving the camera, its tripod, and dolly perpendicularly toward or away from the set. dolly in (DI): Smoothly pushing the camera directly forward toward the set.

Glossary dolly out (DO): Pulling the camera backward while facing the set. establishing shot: A specific type of extreme long shot used to tell the audience where and when the program takes place. extreme close-up (ECU/XCU): A shot of an object that is so magnified that only a specific part of the object fills the screen.

Glossary extreme long shot (ELS/XLS): The biggest shot a camera can capture of the subject matter. Also called a wide angle (WA) shot. four shot: A shot that captures four items. great depth of field: When a camera’s depth of field is as large as possible. group shot: A shot that incorporates any number of items above four.

Glossary head room: The space from the top of a person’s head to the top of the television screen arc. high angle shot: Shooting talent with the camera positioned higher in the air and pointing down at an angle.

Glossary long shot (LS): A shot that captures a subject from the top of the head to the bottom of the feet and does not include many of the surrounding details. low angle shot: A shot created by placing the camera anywhere from slightly to greatly below the eye level of the talent and pointing it up toward the talent.

Glossary macro: A lens setting that allows the operator to focus on an object that is very close to the camera, almost touching the lens. medium close-up (MCU): A shot that frames a subject from the top of the head to a line just below the chest. Also called a bust shot.

Glossary medium long shot (MLS): A shot that includes the top of a subject’s head to a line just above or just below the knee. Also called a knee shot. medium shot (MS): A shot that captures a subject from the top of the head to a line just above or below the belt or waistline. Also called a mid shot.

Glossary minimum object distance (MOD): The closest an object can be to the camera and still be in focus. nose room: The space from the tip of a person’s nose to the side edge of the frame. Also called a lead room.

Glossary over-the-shoulder shot (OSS): A shot in which the back of one person’s head and shoulder are in the foreground of the shot, while a face shot of the other person in the conversation is in the background. pan: Moving only the camera to scan the set horizontally, while the dolly and tripod remain stationary.

Glossary pan left (PL): Moving the camera to the camera operator’s left to scan the set, while the dolly and tripod remain stationary. pan right (PR): Moving the camera to the camera operator’s right to scan the set, while the dolly and tripod remain stationary.

Glossary pedestal: Raising or lowering the camera on the pedestal of a tripod, while facing the set. The tripod and dolly remain stationary. pedestal down (PedD): Lowering the camera on the pedestal of a tripod, while facing the set. The tripod and dolly remain stationary.

Glossary pedestal up (PedU): Raising the camera on the pedestal of a tripod, while facing the set. The tripod and dolly remain stationary. pre-focus: A three-step process to focus a zoom lens. 1) Zoom in on the furthest object on the set that must be in focus in the shot. 2) Focus the camera on that object. 3) Zoom the lens back out.

Glossary profile shot: A shot in which the talent’s face is displayed in profile. rack focus: The process of changing focus on a camera while that camera is hot. Also called pull focus. reaction shot: A shot that captures one person’s face reacting to what another person is saying or doing.

Glossary rule of thirds: A composition rule that divides the screen into thirds horizontally and vertically, like a tic-tac-toe grid placed over the picture on a television set. Almost all of the important information included in every shot is located at one of the four intersections of the horizontal and vertical lines.

Glossary selective depth of field: A technique of choosing to have a shallow depth of field in a shot or scene. shallow depth of field: A depth of field technique that moves the audience’s attention to the one portion of the picture that is in focus.

Glossary shot: An individual picture taken by a camera during the process of shooting program footage. shot sheet: A numerical listing of each shot to be captured by each camera in a multi-camera shoot. Shot sheets are developed specifically for each camera. three shot: A shot that frames three items.

Glossary tilt: Pointing only the front of the camera (lens) vertically up or down while the dolly and tripod remain stationary. tilt down (TD): Pointing the camera lens down toward the ground, while the dolly and tripod remain stationary. tilt up (TU): Pointing the camera lens up toward the ceiling, while the dolly and tripod remain stationary.

Glossary truck: Moving the camera, its tripod, and dolly to the left or right in a motion that is parallel to the set. truck left (TL): To move the camera, its tripod, and dolly sideways and to the camera operator’s left while facing the set.

Glossary truck right (TR): To move the camera, its tripod, and dolly sideways and to the camera operator’s right while facing the set. two shot: A shot that includes two items of primary importance. white balance: A function on cameras that forces the camera to see an object as white, without regard to the type of light hitting it or the actual color of the object.