There is
more to shooting then great exposure and
understanding contrast ratio....a
good camera person does things that have
nothing to do with the camera's dials
and settings This newsletter
explores some of these.
Aron Ranen Instructor Dvworkshops.com
Contact us at DVworkshops (415) 810-5934
5 Things
that make Camera People better
Storytellers
1. Understanding DEPTH
All our shooting workshops begin
with a
easy exercise
demonstrating the power of creating
depth
in your images.
The students put their hands in front of
their eyes...then
extend their left hand outward...
noticing the depth created....
they bring hands back to each other and
the difference is dramatic.
The depth is created by the hand closest
to your facecreates
a strong foreground.....You
can use the same
technique when framing your shots.
Put your subjects close to the lens to
create depth...just like this.
Here are some examples of moving the
camera angle to create Depth.
x x
I am
not against Flat backgrounds that are
done with a stylish flair, but I often
try to get deep backgrounds when
possible.
2. Make sure the viewer's eye is
looking at your Subject
When Framing your interview
subject...always leave negative space on
one side of the person....make
sure your subject is not the same
"size" as the negative space...subject
should be larger then the background....to
fix this ...move
subject closer to lens..or you
move closer to your subject.
When
shooting
hand held interviews...I
am usually
very close...1-2 feet away from
my subject (brush your teeth)...I like
keeping the camera "wide" and moving
closer to my subjects versus
using the ZOOM function...since it is
harder to hold a "Zoomed Shot" steady
then a camera set on wide angle (zoomed
back fully).
3.
Shooting as a Storyteller
You are dropped in the middle of a
location video shoot...a
documentary..a marketing video....a
military training scenario...Where
do you start?
You begin by getting General
coverage..which is
NOT RUNNING AROUND WITH THE CAMERA
PANNINGAND SHOOTING
EVERYTHING
LIKE A TOURIST.
IT IS A SERIES OF THOUGHTFUL SHOTS,
TREATED LIKE STILL
PHOTOGRAPHS...THEY EVOKE AND
ILLUSTRATE THE ENVIRONMENT YOU ARE
FILMING IN.
Below is example of this technique..imagine
these
shots edited next to each
other to
create a visual sequence..compared
with a camera walking thru and
panning around..tourist style.
You can add "motion" to some of
these "cutaways"..."Pan
up" from a coffee cup
to person's face...."Track"
along a pastry display..."Pull
Focus" between two
objects..remember to think about
using images to tell a story.
4. Setting up the Story
Where do you start your
storytelling?
ESTABLISHING SHOTS are
the easiest and best way to
begin.
Always get at least two
cutaway shots when you film
establishing shots
(hold each still for 8-25
seconds)
MASTER WIDE SHOT
CLOSE-UP
Below are examples of "two-shot"
exterior establishing shots
This will give you the
opportunity to create a more
dynamic sequence when
introducing that location.
5.
Shooting for the edit
YOU NEED CLOSE-UP SHOTS TO MAKE SCENES
WORK
In Above image, the close-up of the
street sign is needed between the wide
shots..if it was not there...this
would appear as a "Bad" edit.
RULE# 1...You can not edit together two
wide shots filmed from a similar angle
...(unless you are
Jean Luc Goddard)
HOW TO CONNECT THE DOTS OF YOUR
DOCUMENTARY ACTION
To fit the pieces of the documentary
puzzle together....you
always need to be on the look out for
close-up cutaways to tie together action.
Good storytelling uses shots like this
between the main action.. creating story
transitions or to "tighten up" the
scene.
EXAMPLE
You are
filming a First People's Elder...you
are going to a ceremony with her..as
she walks in the snow ...you will need
to film the boots on the snow ..this
will be used as a transition from
the
house
to car.
In
addition to these transitional
elements,
I am
always looking for close
up starting points to begin scenes with.
For Example:
Inside
the ceremony I would be
looking for a close-up that I can
BEGIN
the scene with... a hand on
someone's shoulder..then track back to
reveal a big hug......I
am constantly scanning the environment
for close-up transitional shots, and
story telling start points.
THINK ABOUT THE EDIT AS YOU SHOOT AND IT
WILL SAVE YOU A LOT OF HEARTACHE.
Summary
There is more to shooting then great
exposure
and understanding contrast ratio...today
you must also be a good
storyteller...this newsletter explored
Understanding Depth
Making sure the viewer's eye is
looking at your subject
in your images. 
x
x
he
h
ouse
to car.
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