Evening star., 1951-09-09
Camera Angles
Applying Basic Rules to Movie Comeros
By Alexander J. Wedderburn
Curator Of Photography
The SmithsoTiun institution


way you go about taking them.
Yours can be as good as any
If YOU will learn and follow the
few basic rules that govern
cinematography.
About the only difference be-
tween an amateur movie film
and a set of still shots is that
the former picture series is auto
matically tied together-and they
move when projected on screen.
Actually you are making long
series Of still pictures when you
press the release button of your
movie camera, for each frame is
just one of a series Of still shots
on a continuous strip Of f1lm.
They remain that way until you
run them through motion pic
ture protector to bring them to
life.
Not So Difficult.
If you know how to make good
still shots there is no reason why
you can't do just as well with
the movie camera. Problems of
exposure, lighting and compost
ton are about the same in either
case, so it's not as though you
were entering new field. You will
have to learn how to load andl
operate the movie camera but if
you are well-grounded in still
photography you will have little
difficulty in making the switch tc
J movies. Better still, you can use
both cameras as companion pieces,
using either as the occasion de-
mandS.
In still photography We have
learned the Importance OF having
a single center of interest for each
picture. This rule is equally i'm
portant to the cinematographer.
But in a motion picture you sim
ply. haven't the time to watch two
or more unrelated bits of action,
It would be like trying to watch
all the acts of a three-ring circus
at the same time. It can't be done
without missing a great deal of
each act.
Related Subjects Essential.
For example, if you are shoot
ing a scene of your children play
ing together in the yard. be sure
that other people or cat or dog
are not wandering about in the
background. If this happens the
attention of the audience will be
drawn back and forth between the
two separate actions. This is very
distracting as well as deStructiveI'
to the purpose of your movie. This
does not restrict the number of
persons or things in a scene but
simply means that all that appears
in a scene should be related and
purposeful to that particular scene.
The center of interest, usually
a moving person, animal or object, Il
should not be relegated to either
side. top or bottom of the frame.
Instead the center of interest
should occupy a prominent posi-
tion near the center of the scene
not necessarily in the exact CEN
ter, but near enough to place the
full emphasis at that point. If
the person whose action you are
following with the camera is way
of in a corner, you are just vast
ing the space available for the pic
ture as well as using poor COM
position. We should also point out
that bad backgrounds are just as
undesirable in motion picture pho
Biography as in stills. And the
background should be of sufficient
contrast to the subject so that the
subject stands out clearly.
Question of Continuity.
In movie photography you often
hear of continuity" This ex-
preston means that there is some ]
connection and relationship be-
tween the separate scenes of the
finn. A good many amateurs, be-
ginnerS in particular, make the
mistake of trying to stretch their
film too far. They will shoot a
few feet of the children at play,
then lay the camera aside. A few
days later another scene will be
added of a family pet. Then, at
another time various scenes of
other activities will be added.
When the roll Of film is screened
it will be distracting as wel as
meaningless. Before the audience
has time to grasp what is going
on in one scene, others on differ
ent topics flash on and off again.
Tell a Story on Each Roll. |.
Don't take movies this way.
You won't even enjoy them your
self. Instead, use each or several
rolls to tell one complete story
about given subject. Then you
will have a movie that people can
understand and appreciate. And
allow the film to run long enough 1
On each separate scene so that it !,
will not fash on and off the screen
before the audience can grasp
what is going on.
Another fault common with be-
ginners is that of swinging the
camera in an arc so as to take in
a great deal of scenery at one
time. This practice, known as
''panning." produces the effect of
the scene swimming across the
scree' and much of it will make
you - - from trying to follow
unless the camera is following a
moving subject. If you must pan
your camera on q static subject,
swing the camera slowly as pos
Sible and very smoothly. And
never pan or swing the camera
in a direction opposite to that in
which your subject is moving.
Always follow the action.
Tripod Is Important.
The use of tripod in movie
filming is even more important
than in still photography. If the
camera is hand held, no matter
how hard you try to hold it still
it will still move up and down
and from side to side. While this
may not be very noticeable to you
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