Cinematography Lecture 2

The Photographic Image

• Essential for storytelling in filmmaking, capturing emotions and narrative.
• Composition impacts audience connection and interpretation.

The Range of Tonalities

• Varied tonalities enhance visual storytelling.
• Different textures and lighting create mood and atmosphere in scenes.

Speed of Motion

• Affects perception; fast-paced motion can evoke excitement, while slow motion can heighten tension or drama.
• Used creatively to manipulate time and storytelling rhythms.

Perspective

• Influences how viewers perceive characters and events.
• Different angles and distances provide context, intimacy, or isolation.

The Lens: Focal Length

• Short focal lengths create wide angles, emphasizing foreground and depth.
• Long focal lengths compress space and offer a more intimate view of subjects.

The Lens: Zoom

• Zoom functionality allows for flexible framing and composition without moving the camera.
• Can create dramatic effect or focus on details in storytelling.

The Lens: Depth of Field and Focus

• Depth of field determines the amount of image in focus; shallow depth isolates subjects.
• Techniques like rack focus shift attention between subjects in a scene.

Foreground in Focus

• When the foreground is highlighted, it directs viewer attention to significant details.
• Establishes context for the main action or subject.

Background in Focus

• Keeps background elements clear, providing contextual information and enriching the scene.

Deep Focus

• All planes (foreground, mid-ground, background) are in focus, encouraging engagement with the entire frame.
• Frequently used in complex scenes to maintain detail across layers.

Racking Focus

• Technique that shifts focus from one subject to another within the same shot.
• Utilized to guide viewer attention dynamically.

Framing

• Critical for visual storytelling; shapes how the narrative is presented to the audience.
• Includes decisions about distance, angle, level, and height of the shot.

The Arrival of a Train at La Ciotat

• Landmark film by the Lumière brothers (1897); known for its innovative use of framing and perspective.

Framing and Oblique Angles

• Use of angles can evoke feelings of disorientation or tension.
• Contributes to the narrative by visually representing a character's emotional state or situation.

Symmetrical Scene Composition

• Provides balance and harmony, suggesting stability or order in the narrative.

Asymmetrical Scene Composition

• Often used to create dynamism and visual interest.
• Imbalance may reflect conflict or tension within the story.

Onscreen and Offscreen Space

• Understanding onscreen space is crucial for audience engagement.
• Offscreen space can suggest hidden actions and deepen narrative intrigue.

Framing and Vantage Points

• Impacts audience perception; decisions on distance and angle shape understanding and emotional response.
• Height and level can affect power dynamics between characters within a shot.

Dive into the essentials of cinematography with this insightful quiz based on Lecture 2. Explore key concepts like photographic images and tonalities that shape visual storytelling. Perfect for film students wanting to deepen their understanding of cinema techniques.