Film Making 101: Shot Types, Framing, and Angles

Shot Types:

A shot type is defined by how close the camera is to the subject that's being filmed.

In this session with Kane, we learnt about different shot types. We did this so we could understand why each shot is used and how it changes a film or TV show for the audience.

The reason why we use different shot types in film and TV is to emphasise certain actions and emotions shown by subjects or objects in different scenes. 

Establishing Shot:

- Sets up the context for the scene ahead, it informs the audience where the action will be taking place. It can help the audience process a shift to a new location.

Close Up Shot (CU): 

- A shot taken of a subject or object at close range intended to show more detail to the audience. It can show emotional moments that draws in the audience and shows a subjects innermost feelings.

Extreme Close Up Shot (ECU):

- A shot taken of a subject or object extremely close range, so much so that parts of the subject may be cut off the frame. It allows the audience to enter the subjects personal space, revealing traits and emotions that might otherwise go unnoticed.

Master Shot:

- Shows all the subjects, important information in the frame and covers the whole scene without moving. It shows the audience the subjects facial expressions to give clues about their feelings and emotions.

Full Shot (FS):

- Also know as a wide shot that shows the subject within their surrounding environment. A full shot tells the audience who is in the scene, where the scene is set, and when the scene takes place. This shot allows the audience to see the emotions on a subjects face while simultaneously seeing their physicality, body language, and actions in a scene.

Medium Full Shot:

- shows the subject from the waist up, it emphasises both the actor and their surroundings by giving them an equal presence on screen. (also know as the waist shot) This will show the subjects body language giving the audience more information on how the subject is feeling in the shot.

Medium Shot:

- showing the subject from the waist up while revealing some of the surrounding environment. It clearly shoes the actor's face and emotions while still telling the audience of what's going on in the world around them.

Medium Close Up Shot (MCU):

- shows a subject from the shoulders/chest area up to the top of the head; this shot is tighter than a medium shot, but slightly wider than a close up. This shows the face of a subject, letting the audience see small nuances of emotion.

You can watch it here:

Shot Framing:

composing the visual content of a series of frames as seen from a single point of view

In this session with Kane, we learnt about different ways to frame a shot. We did this so we could understand why there are a certain number of subjects in a shot and why a shot is positioned in a certain way.

We use different framing techniques to increase audience connections between the story line of a film.

Two Shot:

- A two shot is a shot that views two subjects. They do not need to be next to one another, which means that one subject could be in the foreground and the other in the background. It is used to show the emotional reactions between subjects.

Three, Four, and Five Shot:

- These shots work exactly the same as a two shot, the only difference is that the number of subjects in frame increase by one. Any more than five subjects and it would be classed as a crowd shot.

One Shot:

- A one shot is used when only one subject is in the frame. This shot can also become dirty if another subject is in the frame but is not featured fully.

Crowd Shot:

- A crowd shot is used when there is a large number of subjects in the frame - more than five.

Shot Angles:

used to specify the location where the camera is placed to take a shot

In this session with Kane, we learnt about different shot angles. We did this so we could understand why each angle is used and how it effects the type of characters on screen.

The reason why we use different shot angles in film and TV is to emphasise power of characters and emotions shown by subjects or objects in different scenes. 

High Angle:

- The camera looks down on the character or subject from an elevated perspective. This can rage from a shallow angle just above eye level all the way to above a subject.

Eye Level Angle:

- The camera looks directly in line of the character or subjects eyes. Eye level shots simulate standard human vision and presents visual information through a familiar viewpoint.

Over-Head Angle:

- The camera looks directly over the head of a character or subject. It's somewhere around a 90-degree angle above the scene taking place. Overhead shots are also called a bird view, bird's eye view, or elevated shot.