Week 3- Camera Moves

WEEK 3 READING (Camera Moves) 

Pan Shot-

The camera will span space horizontally, catching a large unbroken view. Usually mounted on a tripod.

Swish Pan-

A quick pan which causes a motion blur. 

Tilt Shot-

A tilt shot pivots the camera up and down, usually on a tripod. Commonly used to construct establishing shot, this also preserves the continuity of an entire view over time.

Dolly Shot-

The camera is placed on a moving platform and moves smoothly around. Different from a zoom in that a zoom is caused by a change in the actual sense, and a dolly shot is the movement of the camera getting closer or father away.

Dolly Zoom Shot-

Made famous in Alfred Hitchcock’s “Vertigo”, this is achieved by zooming out and dollying forward at the same time, creating an effect in which the frames zooms in on the subject while the background seems to stretch around them.

Tracking Shot-

The camera moves alongside the subject on a smoothly moving platform. This is different from dolly shots in that in a dolly shot the subject can move independently from the camera. In a tracking shot, the camera is locked in motion with the subject.

Steadicam Shot-

A steadicam shot is done using a steadicam rig, a special vest with an articulating hydraulic arm that supports most of the weight of the camera and forced fluid movements from the cameraman. This allows camera dolly shot that go up stairs or move in a 360 pattern around a subject with sooth precision. 

Crane Shot-

The camera is mounted on a support that raises it up and above the usual view angle of a human. This can be an actual crane, jib, cherry picker, long stick, etc. It can move vertically, horizontally, or any direction in between, but the emphasis is usually on the vertical climb of the camera. Also works very well for creating establishing shots, or conveying an idea of distance. 

Sequence Shot-

This is a shot that displays a large amount of action or scene in one long take that would usually be done in several different shots. These are very difficult to pull off and require a certain amount of finesse.