Camera Shots/Angles

Cards (9)

  • What is the Establishing Shot?
    • Often opens a scene or an entire film.
    • Wide enough to establish the geography, time of day, shows scale of subjects in relation to their environment.
    • Used to transition to a new location.
  • What is the Master Shot (or The Master) ?
    -Confirms the location and geography of a scene.
    -Clarifies which characters are in the scene & where they are in relation to each other.
    -Captures the scene playing out in its entirety.
  • What is the Wide Shot (WS) ?
    -Position subjects far from the camera to represent their relationship to their environment.
    -Principally concerned with the scale of the subject.
    -Can be use when you want to make your character feel alone, lost, or overwhelmed, or comment on a subject's relationship to their environment.
    -Use when you need to show the spatial relationships of the subjects (using distance, depth, or size).
  • What is a Full Shot (FS) ?
    -When a subject's entire body (from head to toe) goes from the top to the bottom of the frame.
    -Not necessary to have the subject in the centre of the frame, but is often the case.
    -Use them to make statements about a subject's physicality, and present a character.
  • What is a Medium Full Shot/ Cowboy?
    -Top of the subject's head to just below their waist.
    -Use when you need to present a subject as confident, dangerous, or confrontational.
  • What is a Medium Shot (MS) ?
    -Neutral shot.
    -Captures the subject in a size very similar to how we interact with people all the time.
    -Typical composition: starts above the waist but below the chest, and ends just above the head. Same rules for animated films.
    -Use when you need to dig into a subject size without losing their physicality or environment.
  • What is a Medium Close Up Shot (MCU) ?
    -Framed from subject's mid-chest to just above the head.
    -Reducing distractions and prioritizing story and character details.
    -Use it when you need to get intimate with a character without losing their physicality.
  • What is the Close Up Shot (CU) ?
    -Powerful in highlighting a change in emotion.
    -Arranged at eye-level.
    -A 'front row seat' to the character's thoughts and feelings.
    -About empathy and shows how effective it can be in a time of decision or anxiety.
  • What is an Extreme Close Up shot (ECU)/ Insert Shot ?
    -ECU frames a subject to isolate a specific area (lips, ears, or nose, most commonly the eyes).
    -Insert Shots are relied on when the function of a specific prop or intimate detail is necessary.
    -Insert Shots most commonly used to highlight and isolate something crucial to the narrative.