Planing Cinematography

Why are camera shots important ?

Camera shot is the amount of space seen in a shot or frame. These camera shots and angles are used to demonstrate the characters , settings and themes. These camera angles complement the mies-en-scene , the representation of characters etc. the camera shots create effect and leaves an impact on the Audience. The camera shots allows film makers to shape meaning of the film. Each camera shot has its own meaning.

4 different types of camera shots

Close up : In a close up shot a certain feature takes most of the frame. for example to concentrate on the persons face the entire shot would be just the persons face. Close up allows the filmmaker to  exaggerate a scene and make it seem more dramatic. The camera shot ''close up '' is very conventional as the mid-shot allows the audience to see the characters faces and look at their expressions in detail. This allows the audience to have sympathy for the character and feel personally connected with the character. This creates suspense and makes the audience want to continue watching. Suspense is major convention of a thriller film and it involves the audience in the film. We will be using close up shot to end our thriller film because the end of the opening is when the antagonist pulls a knife out to the young blonde female character's neck. This camera shot will allow the audience to focus on the expressions of the female character and how she feels. The reason we will be using close- up shot to end our thriller opening is because a close-up allows the audience to clearly see what's going on in the scene. This includes the body language , the expressions and what the character is actually doing or what is happening with the main character. The close up shot is also conventional as it will allow the audience to clearly see what is going on in the scene and relate to the characters and feel for the character.

Mid- Shot: A mid shot shows some part of the subject. At the same time showing enough for the audience to concentrate on certain features. It focuses on the upper body rather than the lower body. This is how one would see  the person ''in the flesh ''.  When speaking to someone would focus on the upper body rather than the lower body. This is also conventional to a thriller film because a mid shot allows the audience to see the upper body of the characters. This will allow the audience to focus on the expressions of the character as well as the body language. It is conventional to a thriller as-well because the scene will show the audience the expressions as-well as the body language as this will create suspense and tension. I will be suing mid-shot in the scene of my thriller opening when the female character is running through the forest and the male character catches her from the back. The mid-shot will allow the audience to see the male characters expressions and the rage on his face and the female characters expressions and how hopeless she feels.  

Long-Shot : This is when the image is shown as a life size. This corresponds the real distance between the audience in the cinema. in a long shot the characters are shown from top to bottom and we can see the background but the background is not detailed enough. This shot is conventional to a thriller film as it lets the audience clearly see the body language and the expressions of the characters. It allows the audience understand the personalities of these characters and relate to them. It also allows the audience to see what clearly is going on in the scene as in a mid shot the audience cannot see the details. We will be using long shot when our thriller film opening starts.  The shot will begin in the abandoned room where the female character would be sitting in the middle with a lamp on the side. The audience can see the background as well as the characters.

Deep-focus : This type of shot keeps both distant and close subjects in focus. It involves placing object and characters at different lengths  while keeping them in focus. This draws attention on all of the characters or objects. This type of shot is conventional to a thriller film is because a deep focus allows you to see the entire scene and clearly see what's going on in the scene. It also allows the filmmaker to make the audience focus on different characters or objects. I will be using deep focus is when the female character is sitting in the chair all tied up and the victim enters the scene. This scene will focus on the victim as well as the villain in the scene. This shot will draw attention on both the characters and their body language. The image on the left is an image from citizen Kane a popular film which was the first use this type of camera shot. I would use deep focus when the antagonist enters the scene. The camera shot will be used to make the audience focus on both subjects on the scene. It shows that both characters on the screen are important. In my thriller opening both characters the villain as-well as the victim will be in the scene. These characters are equally.