Transcripts
1. Class Introduction: Hello everyone. My name
is Scott Baker and I began working in the
film industry in 2009. I worked on major films and TV shows while also directing
my own short films, documentaries and music videos. If you've taken any of my other classes,
then welcome back. If this is your first time, then it's great to have you. If you have some experience
in photography or videography and want to
build on those skills, then you're in the right place. Because in this class, we're going to dive right in, starting with a more
in-depth look at some of the more advanced settings and tools that our
cameras can offer. Because if we want to get
the most out of our camera, we need to fully understand how it works
and what it can do. After that, we'll build
on our knowledge of a shot composition by learning about things such as
camera movements, how to place and balance
objects within the frame, how to work with reflections, and much, much more. The knowledge and
material that I'm sharing comes from my
hands-on experience in the industry and it is designed with easy to follow
diagrams and graphics, tutorial videos that explain
not just how to do things, but also why we do them, and real-life examples
where we go behind the scenes to see exactly how
these films were created. By the end of this class, you'll have the knowledge
and skills to create far more interesting and
compelling shots to help tell your stories and take
your films to the next level. Without any further
talking, let's get started.
2. Marker Settings Help Frame the Shot: [NOISE] Marker settings is a very helpful tool you can use for a few different reasons. What it does is overlay guides
on our camera screen or viewing monitor in order to help us properly frame our shots. Let's learn more
about these markers, beginning with the
center option. This option simply adds a
crosshair to the center of the frame as a
point of reference when we're trying to
center objects or people. The second option is
the aspect ratio, but this requires a much
longer explanation. I'll leave this one until last. Moving on to the safety zone, which has two options, 80 percent and 90 percent. If we select this, we see that our frame
has a white box. Without getting into
the technology and science of how things
are broadcast, the important thing
we must remember is that anything inside the box will be received and shown on a standard
household TV. If it's outside of the box, there's a chance depending on the TV that it could be cut off. It's best not to have any important details too close
to the edge of the frame. However, it's such a small space that it's highly
unlikely that you would. If you want to be
extra cautious, you can always choose the
80 percent safety zone. Next, we have guide frame. If we turn this on, you'll recognize the
rule of thirds grid. Now let's skip back to
the aspect markers. You're probably
already familiar with aspect ratios such as 3 by 2, 4 by 3 or 16 by 9, or other terms such as
widescreen and anamorphic. By choosing one of
these aspect ratios, we can see that white
lines have been added to the top and bottom
or to the sides. But why would we
want to use this? If we go to our aspect
ratio settings, we see that our camera does not offer all the different ratios. In the case of this camera, there's only 3 by 2 and 16 by 9. But what if I want my
film to be broadcasting anamorphic or an
older looking 4 by 3? Unless you're using a
very high-end camera, it's unlikely you'll
have the option to film in all of these
different aspect ratios. But there is a way that we
can cheat this in editing. In our editing software, what we can do is go to our sequence settings and
change the frame size. But as we can see,
when we do this, our footage doesn't fit
and we're left with two black bars on either side
or on the top and bottom. To fix this, one
option is to stretch it which will show
our entire frame, but it distorts
the image quality. If stretched too far,
it looks unnatural. This is why I don't
recommend doing it this way. The second option is to enlarge the footage
and re-frame it. Doing it this way, we'll
crop out part of the image, but it will not
distort the image. Unless you filmed in
4K and export to 1080, you may lose a bit
of image quality. The third option is where
the markers come into play. This is the best option
because it's done in camera. One thing I always
standby is whenever we can do something on camera
whether it's special effects, a stunt, or in this case, framing our shots properly, it's always better than
doing it in editing. Instead of trying to
manipulate the footage and post-production using
the two methods that we just discussed, if we use the aspect markers, we can properly frame our
shots from the very beginning. Knowing that anything outside the white lines will be lost, we can make sure that
everything we want to see is framed
inside the markers. This way, when we get
to the editing stage, we're not worried about the parts of the frame
that are being cut off. We don't have to
manipulate the footage by enlarging it or stretching it which means keeping its
quality at the highest level.
3. Focus Assist - To Ensure the Shot is Never Soft: [NOISE] Focus Assist, also known as focus peaking, it's a setting in the
camera that helps photographers and
videographers easily find and maintain focus by outlining the edges in an
image in a bright color. This is a setting that's only needed when using manual focus. The camera looks for
sharp edges within the image by analyzing
the contrast. If there's a hard edge, which only happens when
something is in focus, there will be a higher contrast. When the camera sees
enough contrast, it will outline the
edges in a chosen color. Usually you can choose red, green, blue, and yellow. Let's look at this example. This stack of books is
obviously out-of-focus, causing the edges to be blurry and fade into
the background. Because there's no hard edge, there's not enough contrast
to achieve the Focus Assist. But as we adjust the focus, and the edges of the books
become more defined, so too does the contrast between the books
and the background. Until eventually, there's
enough contrast that the focus peaking appears
and outlines the books. The stronger the contrast, the more bold the lines will be. Meaning, the more in
focus the object is. Right here, the
outlines are thinner. Meaning, the image is
slightly in focus. Whereas, now the
lines are thicker. Meaning, it's in sharper focus. Depending on what's
in the image, you'll notice more objects
may become outlined, the more in focus the image is. This may vary a bit
from camera to camera. For this part, we'll
discuss some of the different settings within
the Focus Assist tool. First, colors. It may not seem that important, but there are different colors to choose from for a reason. Even though the Focus
Assist is working, yellow outlines may be hard
for us to see on our screen or monitor when filming
in sunny locations. Blue is more difficult
to see in dark scenes, and green will be difficult
to see in a forest. As a default, I always
have mine set to red, but on occasion, that won't work
if there are lots of red tones within the scene, making it harder to tell the outlines and
the objects apart. In which case, one of the
other colors will work better. Next is the
sensitivity or level. This determines how
much is highlighted. Most cameras have two
levels: high and low, and some cameras like mine have a mid sensitivity as well. Low level will highlight only the sharpest areas
and with thinner lines. In turn, obscuring
less of the image. A high level will
highlight more of what's in focus and
will use thicker lines. In turn, covering
more of the image. Lastly, and although
this is not a setting, it's something that just makes
life a little bit easier. You may want to be able to turn Focus Assist on
and off regularly. On, for finding focus, and off, when filming, since it
can be a bit distracting. It's helpful to
program this tool as a quick menu option or
as a custom button. This way, you don't need to
waste time scrolling back and forth between different menus every time you want
to find your focus.
4. Depth of Field: To begin, let's first define
what depth of field is. It is the range or area in front of the camera
that is in-focus. You can have a large depth of field or a small depth of field, also known as wide and
narrow or deep and shallow. Next there are three
factors that affect whether our depth of field is small or large or somewhere
in the middle. Those factors are aperture, focal length, and the distance between the camera
and the subject. Aperture. A low f-stop, meaning a larger opening
gives us more light, which results in a
smaller depth of field. A high f-stop means a
smaller opening which lets in less light and gives
us a larger depth of field. Focal length. For focal length, it's the opposite of aperture. A low number, which gives us a wider shot also gives us
a larger depth of field. Whereas a high focal
length creates a tighter shot and gives
us less depth of field. The smaller the
distances between the subject and the camera
results in less depth of field and a bigger distance
provides more depth of field. As we can see in this example, when we focus on the truck which is further away the trees in the mid-ground and
the deep background also come into focus. Whereas when we focus on these twigs which are
closer to the camera, everything else beyond
that loses focus. When the subject is
close to the camera, as we adjust the focus ring
to focus on the subject, we see that less is in focus. If we adjust the focus on a subject further
from the camera, we see that the
depth of field gets bigger and more of the
frame comes into focus. Using distance to affect
depth of field can also be applied between the
subject and the background. A perfect example of this
is head-shots for actors. When the actor is close
up against the wall, the wall is relatively in focus. But if the actor
takes a few steps away from the wall and
we adjust the focus, the background becomes blurry. The added bonus of this is
that it makes the actor stand out and directs the
audience's focus to them. So when composing a shot in deciding what should be in
focus and what shouldn't, it is the combination of these three factors that will
decide where the depth of field lands and whether it's small or large or
somewhere in-between. Something else to be aware of is the size of the
camera sensor. A larger sensor will have a shallower depth of
field overall and a smaller or a cropped sensor will have a larger
depth of field. For more depth of field we
choose a higher aperture, a lower focal length, or we increase the distance between the camera
and the subject. For less depth of field, it's the exact opposite. We can choose a lower aperture, a higher focal length, or we can decrease the distance between the
camera and the subject.
5. Manual or Auto? That is the Question: One question I've
been asked a lot is when to use autofocus and
when to use manual focus. To be honest,
there's no right or wrong or definitive
answer to this question. Personally, I prefer
to use manual as often as possible because
it gives me full control. However, there are times in certain scenarios
where autofocus has proven to be
the better option. Let's take a look at
some of these examples. When doing close-ups,
I never use autofocus. Because as this example shows, the autofocus acts as
though it's confused. That's because when
filming close-ups, our depth of field
is smaller and the slightest change in distance between the
camera and the subject, or between two different
subjects makes a big difference. Our camera can't decide what should be in focus and
what should not be. But if we switch
to manual focus, our camera no longer has to guess what should be in focus, and instead, we'll focus on whatever we decide
should be in focus. In this example, we can maintain focus on just the neck
of the guitar and not worry about the
focus changing to the hand as the hand moves
up and down the guitar. As we pan left, we do lose
focus for a split second. But because we
have full control, it's easy enough to adjust and we're able to do so
in a very smooth way, maintaining a nice
clean close-up. When I'm following a subject, also known as a tracking shot, I usually have the cameras
setup to autofocus, and that's because the distance
between the subject and the camera is going to
be constantly shifting. If I were to choose
manual focus, then I would have to split
my attention between focus, framing, and where I'm walking, which can be a lot
to coordinate, especially when there's little
or no time to rehearse. For example, weddings
and concerts. If we keep a consistent distance between the camera
and the subject, the camera's autofocus
is great at making the small adjustments that
are needed to maintain focus. If we're filming
with a wider lens, then it's even easier for
the autofocus because a wider lens gives us a
larger depth of field. In this shot, it's easy to see how the focus
constantly shifts between the foreground and the background as the wrestlers move in and out of the frame. In this particular situation, I don't mind the focus shifting, because the shifts are smooth and focusing on
different subjects. However, if we want the focus to remain on one
pair of wrestlers, maybe because they're
the main characters, then we need to switch
to manual focus. In this shot, we've
set our focus to the wrestlers
in the background, so even when other wrestlers
cross the foreground, they remain autofocus, which also has a
very pleasing look. A shot like this can work in both autofocus and manual focus. It just depends on
the look that we want and the story
elements involved. I hope those examples provide clarity to some advantages and disadvantages to both manual and autofocus and what works
and what doesn't work.
6. How to Manual Focus: When pulling focus,
the first thing to remember is to adjust
slowly and smoothly. It may seem obvious, but when we're in the middle of the action and the subject
is moving quickly, especially coming
toward the camera. The instinct is to try and regain focus as
quick as possible. But if you don't adjust
the focus steadily, there's two problems
that we will encounter. We could miss the mark
and have to readjust, causing the subject to
go in and out of focus, which is extremely distracting and can easily ruin the shot. The second problem
if we're filming hand-held is there's likely
to be some camera shake. If it's very subtle, the shape can sometimes
be fixed in editing. But to save time and to get
the best shot possible. It's best to avoid camera
shake while filming, unless it's a stylistic choice that you are
intentionally making. Perhaps for an action scene to help really make
your focus pull smooth, I highly recommend
getting a Follow Focus. It will act as a side handle, which also helps to
stabilize the shot. And it provides a more
comfortable and natural movement, making it easier to pull focus. Another option if using a gimbal is to have a
remote follow focus. This way the point of
contact of our hands is on the camera rig and
not the camera itself. Of course, this depends
on what we're filming. But when it's possible, a little bit of rehearsing
can save lots of time onset, and especially in
the editing room. A quick rehearsal allows us
to find our focus marks. And if there's movement in the shot of rehearsal
also allows us to make sure this subject stays within the range of focus. If they don't, it's a chance to practice the focus pool and get the right timing by
creating markers for ourselves and
for the subject. Essentially, running a quick
rehearsal saves time while filming and stops us from
filming multiple bad takes, meaning less footage to go
through in the editing room, again, saving us time. So what if we're filming a live event and rehearsing
isn't an option. What do we do then? In these circumstances,
we want to find reference
points that are the same or close to the same distance from the camera that our
subject will be. In this short here, I use the two light posts
as reference points. So instead of trying to pull focus on the wrestlers
while they're moving, I knew that by simply focusing back on those
two light posts. I would also have them in focus. First, if we're
using a zoom lens, we can zoom in and
making it easier to set our focus and
then zoom back out. Some cameras and lenses
have this feature built-in and will
digitally zoom in for us. Second, get a monitor. It doesn't have to be a big one. Something like this works perfect and command
straight to your rig. The screen on our cameras
can be deceiving. On such a small screen, the shop may look in focus. But when viewed on your
computer or larger screens, if it's out-of-focus,
even just a little bit, it will be very noticeable. I made this mistake a lot early
in my career because one, I was too cheap to
get the monitor. And two, I thought my
vision was perfect, only to find out after
that some of my shots were still a little bit
soft. So don't do it. I did get yourself a monitor. Third and last, like all other camera movements and so many other things
we learn about. You need to get out there and practice using manual focus. It is a skill you need
to learn and develop. And it takes time
to do this because autofocus cannot do
everything for you.
7. Camera Movements: [NOISE] In addition to
the different shot types, which include extreme close-up, close-up, medium close-up,
medium, medium wide, wide and extreme wide, we can also create
interesting compositions by how we angle and how
we move the camera. Let's begin with the
different angles. First, there's the high angle, aka bird's eye view, which is accomplished
by pointing the camera down on a subject. This makes the subject
appear smaller and inferior. A low angle, aka a
worm's eye view. This does the opposite. By pointing the camera
up at a subject, it makes them appear
larger and superior, and a Dutch angle is when
the camera is tilted slightly sideways to make the
shot appear on a diagonal. This is used to create an unbalanced and a
feeling of discomfort. Now, let's move on to
some camera movements and we'll start with a quick
review of the basic ones. Pan. When the camera remains
in one place like it would on a tripod and it rotates left to right or right to left. This is called pan
right and pan left. Some people may also say
pan up and pan down. However, this movement is
actually called a tilt. If we turn the camera sideways, that is considered rolling the camera and
called a roll shot. When the camera moves up
and down along the y-axis, this is called a crane
shot or a pedestal shot. Tracking shot. This type of shot moves sideways
along the x-axis. Then there's the dolly shot, which moves toward or away from the subject along the z-axis. This can also be referred to as pushing in and pulling out. It should not be confused with zooming in and zooming out. A zoom shot is when the
camera stays static in one spot and we zoom in and out by adjusting the focal
length of a zoom lens. This cannot be done
with a prime lens. If we're using prime lenses and changing the focal lengths, this is called punching
in and punching out. It can also be done by keeping
the same focal length, but moving the camera
closer or further from the subject as long as the
camera angle remains the same. Lastly, there is the
arc shot which is a version of the tracking shot but as you may have guessed, the camera moves along a circular path
around the subject. If the camera doesn't
move at all in any way, this is called a static shot, which is exactly what I'm
using to film these lessons. Lastly, there is a POV, which stands for point of view, meaning the camera takes
the place of an object, and it can be any object like a security camera or a vehicle. The camera can also become
the character's eyes, which makes the audience
feel like they're in the character's head and seeing the world the same way
the character sees it. [MUSIC] This type of shot can be
any of the movements we just discussed or
combinations of them. The shots can also be perfectly still or very shaky because the world is being
viewed however the character or the
object would see things. The best part about this shot is there are no rules,
and when editing, the smoothest way to include
these shots is to show the object right before
or after the POV shot. For character POV, normally, the character will
first be shown looking at something
which is called the setup shot and then we cut to their POV of what it
is that they're looking at, whether it's an object
or another person. One piece of advice, it's best not to make these
shots too shaky or last too long as it can cause headaches and motion sickness for
some audience members. The Blair Witch Project
is a popular example that causes some people to
suffer motion sickness, whereas the film Being John
Malkovich, in my opinion, is a great example that
uses POVs as well, but doesn't overdo it.
8. Camera Movement Speed: [NOISE] One thing I've noticed that it's almost always overlooked when talking
about camera movement, is the speed of the movement, which is odd because
this is just as important as the
movement itself. The faster the movement, the more energy, chaos, or excitement that it can add, whereas slower movements
can intensify emotion, increase suspense, or signal the beginning
or end to something. Moving slow is easy enough, but it won't always
be possible for the camera or the
subject to move faster. What do we do then? Here's some very simple ways to speed up movement within a shot. When the camera is moving, whether it's a tracking
shot or a dolly shot, having a foreground
or objects pass by in the foreground can create the illusion of faster movement. That's because the closer
something is to the camera, the faster it moves
across the frame. In this low angle example, the ground is closer
to the camera, which makes it appear
to move faster. Whereas if we raise the camera and change it to a straight
on shot with no foreground, it's only the background
that appears to be moving, in turn slowing the shot down. Same with this example. If we film close to the fence, it feels like it's
whipping by really fast. But if we take a few steps back, the fence isn't in the
immediate foreground anymore and doesn't cross
the frame as quickly. Now, the movement feels slower even though I'm still
walking at the same pace. Another trick is to move in the opposite direction
the subject is moving. Without the object or the
camera moving any faster, the shot instantly feels faster. If we want to slowly shot down, we can keep the camera static or to slow it down
even more we move the camera in the same direction that the subject is moving. Third technique is how
tight or wide our shot is. Without changing the
speed of the action, by having a tighter shot, the shot feels faster because it brings us
closer to the action. With more of the
frame being filled by the action, everything
feels faster. Now, if we watch the same
action on a wide shot, more of the surroundings
and background can be seen and it takes longer for
things to cross the frame, which makes the action
and the shot feel slower.
9. How to Keep the Shot Steady: [NOISE] In the previous lesson, we learned about different
camera movements. Now, that we know what they are, we need to know how
to do them smoothly to reduce any distracting
camera shake. For these movements, the
camera only rotates. The easiest way for these
is to use a tripod. However, these moves are also very easy to
accomplish handheld. Personally, I think they have a more natural look when done handheld because the
shot won't be too shaky and it also won't
be perfectly smooth, which gives the footage a more
natural and organic fill. To do this, the key is to
keep the camera close to your body so that it moves as
if it is part of your body. Keep both hands on the camera, keep your feet firmly planted, and do most of the
movement from your torso, keeping your shoulders, elbows, and wrists as still as possible. If that doesn't
provide enough range, for example, when
doing a tilt shot, then it's best to move
from the shoulders while still keeping your
elbows and wrists frozen. The goal is to
keep your body and camera as still as possible while moving the least amount of your body as needed in
order to get the shot. Now, if we're going handheld for shots where the
camera is moving, the first thing to
know is that there will always be a bit
of camera shake, but there are ways to reduce it. One of the best tools
is a top handle, or even better, a camera
cage with a top handle. This allows us to cradle camera, which helps keep it level and smooths out any small movements. Next, we want to apply
similar techniques we used for the pan and the tilt
shot with one difference. Now we want to hold the camera away from our body slightly so our arms can adjust and absorb any shocks that will
happen from walking. When you're walking, it's
best to slightly crouch, turning your legs into another
kind of shock absorber. This also readies you for any sudden movements
that may be necessary. You'll probably
notice that you take this position naturally without
even thinking about it. Most important, you want to walk lightly as though
you're sneaking around. Additionally, try to keep a steady pace as this will also make your footage
look smoother. When filming hand-held, it is impossible to have
perfectly smooth footage, but the goal is to have
a footage look fluid, and natural instead of
jittery and distracting. Now, that we know how to move, what can our equipment
do to help us? We already discussed
the top handle, but what about lenses? The easiest and one of the best ways to make
camera shake less noticeable is by using low focal lengths because
the higher the focal length, the more zoomed in we are. And even the smallest
camera shakes become very noticeable, whereas the wider the shot
because there's more to see in the frame and because
objects are smaller, any camera shake becomes
less noticeable. If you do want to use
a higher focal length, then you'll need a gimbal. I also recommend a gimbal if you're doing
tracking or dolly shots at a fast pace because
the faster you move, the harder it becomes to
steady the camera naturally. It can be a bit expensive, but they are worth every dollar, pound, peso, baht krone, ruble, rupee, real, euro, yen, whatever currency you use. They are worth it and they do a fantastic job of stabilizing our shots by adjusting for even the smallest
bit of camera shake, but don't think because
you're using one, that every shot will be perfect. Once again, how we
move our body has a big effect because
whichever way our body moves, the camera will follow. Just because the gimbal is
doing most of the work, shouldn't mean that we get lazy. Putting in that little
bit of extra effort will only make our
footage that much better. Some other creative ways to get smooth dolly and tracking shots, quite simply, get on wheels. We can film from a vehicle, have the camera operator, wear rollerblades, or
sit in a wheelchair. For close-up product shots, just sliding the
camera on a hand towel along a flat surface
can create great shots. Lastly, we can also
set our camera to 60 or 120 frames per second, because in slow motion, everything is smoothed out, but I suggest only using this as a last resort or when the shot makes sense
to be in slow motion. Otherwise, this leads to
lazy film making and you'll end up with boring videos if everything is in slow motion.
10. Reflections, Use Them to Your Advantage: [NOISE] In this lesson, we're going to look at how
to deal with reflections. Whether they come from
mirrors, windows, water, appliances, essentially,
any reflective surface. When filming, they can either be an obstacle that creates
headaches and challenges, or they can be turned
into a brilliant tool. To do this, we must first
be able to recognize them. Let's start by checking
out some examples. [BACKGROUND] As you may have noticed
the biggest problem with reflections is seeing things
that shouldn't be seen, such as crew, equipment or glaring
bright spots from lights. To fix these issues, it isn't all that difficult. It just requires we pay close attention before
rolling the camera. Here's what we can do. If someone can be seen, have them move somewhere else. The same goes for any equipment
that shouldn't be there. If something can't be moved, try masking it with something
that's okay to be seen. Like a prop or a piece
of set dressing. If it's a window,
consider adjusting the curtains, blinds, or sheers. Sometimes even an actor
or background actor can be placed strategically to block unwanted reflections. If it's a small object, changing its angle might
also do the trick. If none of that works, then see if a slight change to the camera angle can
fix the problem. If it's glare that is
causing the problem, it's a bit different. But here's what we can do. Adjust the light or your shot. If that doesn't work,
we can also use a dulling spray or hairspray
can also do the trick. You can also dirty the reflective surface if it
makes sense for the shot. An example of this would
be a reflective surface or shiny tools but in
a dirty mechanic shop. Eliminate the light or use
a diffuser to soften it. Attaching a lens hood to the lens can block
out lens flares, so does adding a polarizer
filter to your lens and it can also reduce and sometimes even eliminate reflections
from water. Finally, if none of
these work, once again, adjusting the camera
shot to find an angle that doesn't catch the
light is always an option. Now that we know how to
eliminate reflections, let's get into the fun stuff and learn how we can use
them to our advantage. To do this, there are two
main things we need to know, how the angles work and how
the depth of field works. Knowing how the
angles work is one of the ways we can hide our
camera from the reflections. First thing we must
always remember when filming reflections is that whatever the angle of the camera is to the
reflective surface, that is the same angle the
subject or object that we want to capture must also be
to that reflective surface. Meaning if the actor is at a 45-degree angle to the mirror, then the camera must also be at a 45-degree angle to the mirror, or at least close
to the same range. But what if that angle shows the camera
in the reflection? Well, by slightly
moving the camera, we can make it disappear
from the shot. But this also means
we may have to adjust the position of the subject
to get the frame we want. Meaning, we may have
to experiment and make tiny adjustments until
finding just the right setup. Using tighter shots also makes it easier to hide reflections. When it comes to pulling focus and setting our depth of field, it's critical to
remember that it's not just the distance
from the camera to the mirror that
we must measure, we must also add the distance from the
mirror to the subject. That's because our
cameras don't recognize the mirror or the reflective
surface as a solid surface. Instead, it recognizes it as an extension of the space
that we're filming in. If you've ever looked at a
wall of mirrors in a gym or a dance studio and thought the room
looked twice as big, well, to our cameras, the room is twice as big. Meaning that to our camera, whatever is in the
reflection is actually further away than the
reflective surfaces. Which means we have to
adjust our depth of field accordingly to make sure that
our subject is in focus. Depending on our depth of field and where
we set our focus, we can even hide our
camera in plain sight. By keeping our camera
outside the range of focus, it's possible to blur it enough that the viewer can't
even tell it's a camera. If you do this, just be sure the camera operator doesn't make any large or
sudden movements. Knowing these two factors
when dealing with mirrors and other reflective surfaces
can be an amazing tool, especially when shooting
in small spaces.
11. Framing Techniques to Draw the Eye: [MUSIC] Now we're going to
expand on those concepts, and learn some more
composition techniques to make our footage look even more interesting and
appealing to the eye. The first technique
we'll start with is called leading lines. The same way that focusing on a single object directs
the viewer's eye to it, so too does the leading
lines technique. See how these objects lead our eyes toward this
area of the image, almost as if the objects
are pointing to it. Knowing this and placing your subject here where
the lines seem to point is a great way to give more importance
to the subject. As filmmakers, it
helps us make sure the audience is paying attention
to what we want them to. Leading lines are
also very often found in the next
technique, symmetry. Symmetry essentially
goes completely against the rule of thirds, because it usually
involves placing the subject in the
center of the frame. But if the subject
is framed with leading lines or
matching surroundings, we find it very
pleasing to the eye. Naturally, we as humans like symmetry because it gives a
sense of balance and order. If you're choosing to break
the rule of thirds concept, using symmetry to do so can be a great way to keep your
shots looking interesting. Our next technique is size. When composing shots, the size
of an object does matter. This doesn't necessarily mean the object has to be
big in real life, it just has to be
bigger on screen, meaning it's taking
up more of the frame. Take this shot, for example. The bigger the
object is on screen, the more important the
audience assumes it is. The smaller the object, the less the
audience notices it, deeming it less important. When it comes to
composing our shots, size within the
frame does matter. As filmmakers, these are
all ways that we can direct the viewers attention to what we want them
to pay attention to. They may seem like
simple techniques, but they do take practice.
12. Slow Motion: [NOISE] When choosing
to film in slow motion, unfortunately, it's not as easy as simply switching
the setting on the camera. There's a number of things
that we must keep in mind. First, it's going to take up more space on
the memory cards. Be sure you have enough
space or multiple cards. You must also make sure the cards are capable
of handling it. Meaning they have read and write speeds that are fast enough. Second, more light
will be needed. Remember, the 180 degrees
shutter rule states that shutter speed must be at least double the frame
rate to get proper exposure. Increasing the shutter
speed means light has a less time to hit
the camera sensor. To compensate for this, we need to have more light. If shooting outside
during the day, this won't be a problem. But if filming
inside or at night, we'll need to add more light. Shoot with a larger aperture, increase the ISO or a
combination of these. Lastly, use slow motion sparingly and for
the right reasons. Whether it's to emphasize a
specific moment or emotion, or to direct the viewers attention to a specific
story element. [BACKGROUND] Using it when it's not needed will cause the viewer to become
bored of the effect and not pay close attention when it is being used to highlight
something important. Using it too much, we'll quickly lessen its impact compared to using
it selectively. It can even become annoying
for the viewer if it's overused because then the pace of the film also becomes slower. When filming in slow motion, there's certain things that can help accentuate the effect. Things such as moving water, things that can float or
flutter when following, powder and dust that
catches the light, fabrics such as
flags or clothing, steam or smoke, fast-moving actions
such as sports, fights, or explosions.
13. Conclusion: Well, we've reached the end of this class and I hope
you've enjoyed it. And we'll take what
you've learned here about camera movements
and composition and the related camera
settings to evolve as a filmmaker and continue to practice and hone those skills. And be sure to share your photos or video compilations
here on Skillshare, as well as leave a review. Good or bad, doesn't matter. It helps me improve my classes as well as create better
classes in the future. So thank you very
much for joining me and I wish you all the
best with your filmmaking.
Scott Baker, Filmmaker
