Media studies

Pixx Productions
Ayan Magudia

Camera Movements and Angles

Explanation

Tracking Shots-

The movement of the camera when it goes backwards and

Tilt-

The movement of the camera that goes vertically up and

Zoom-

The movement of the camera, which goes away or comes

Crane Shot-

When the camera is elevated and depending on the crane

Panning Shot-

A movement that scans the scene vertically.

Hand Held-

The camera moves or wobbles whilst its held by the

Aerial Shot-

A shot that looks down onto a scene.

Arc-

A full or semi circle shot which moves around the camera or

Types Of Angle

Definition

Canted Angle

Sometimes the camera is tilted this is to show instability.

Eye Level

The camera is positioned as its an actual human eye

Birds Eye View

This angle shows the scene from directly above, this shot
put the audience at a position where they can see
everything in the particular shot.

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High Angle

The shot of this angle is taken from above the character, to

Low Angle

The shot of this angle is taken from below the character,

A close up - is a shot that focuses heavily on the face or an object, usually blurring out the
background to set a deeper focus. This is often used to add emphasis to a scene or image.
An extreme - close up is similar to close up, but an extreme close up usually fits the whole
frame of a photo, and you can only see a certain feature within the frame, for instance a
human feature that focuses solely on the eyes. This is done to create tension within a scene
or image.
A panoramic shot - is a series of landscape photographs that have been put together by
software, but taken individually, then overlapped to create a wide panoramic shot.
Particularly used to show an overview of a scene.
A long shot - shows a realistic scale of an object or human being. It is able to fit objects and
people within a scene in the frame without cutting anything out. It is also able to if necessary,
show other happenings/people in the background.
An extreme long shot - is used to establish the scene and mood of a film. It is typically used
inaction adventure scenes, to create tension. Although little detail is paid to the image you
are able to establish where the scene has been set.
Middle shot - is where the camera focuses on a figure from the waist upwards, or an object
with little zoom. The middle shot outlines the characters and the background has little detail
,very minimal and usually blurry.
Birds eye view - shows a summary of a scene, this is taken in the view high above ground
level, people and objects are smaller than actual size when this camera effect is used, but it
is a good way to show an overall perspective of a scene. It is typically used in action films
when a new location is introduced.
A high angle shot - is similar to a birds eye view, but instead of using a helicopter to get an
overview of the scene, a crane is used to elevate the camera, and then focus on filming
something at ground level.
Low angle shots - are filmed at ground level and are used commonly when filming action
scenes. This adds the effect of anxiousness for the character onscreen, and fear, because
the effect is used to build up tension for a scene.This type shot would be used for example
when; a character has to jump from one building to another, or from one building to the
ground.
Point of view shots - are shot in the perspective of a character within the film, it is as if the
audience are experiencing everything the character goes through within that scene. It is a
technique used to make the audience feel like they are part of the film, and actually are the
main character. It is used to show the audience the perspective of the main character and

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works well in most films. It is typically used so that the audience can engage with the film
and its characters.
Oblique - is the term used for camera shots that are titled slightly at an angle to show
confusion or disturbance within a film. It is a good way to introduce disaster scenes, such as
weather effects. Oblique shots are most popular within horror films as oblique can change
the mood of the film quite quickly. Oblique shots are similar to point of view shots because
there is an eventual transition where the camera becomes the view of a character within the
film.
Over the shoulder shots - are used to show the perspective of a character, as if they are
being watched or followed by somebody. The purpose of this type shot is to engage the
audience as if they are in the presence of the characters.
Medium Close Up - Half way between a mid shot and a close up.
Close Up - A certain feature or part of the subject takes up the whole frame.
Extreme Close Up - The ECU gets right in and shows extreme detail.
Cut In - Shows some (other) part of the subject in detail.
Cutaway - A shot of something other than the subject.
Two Shot - A shot of two people, framed similarly to a mid shot.
Over The Shoulder Shot - Looking from behind a person at the subject.
Point Of View Shot - Shows a view from the subjects perspective.
Weather Shot - The subject is the weather. Can be used for other purposes, e.g. background
for graphics.
Camera Movements
Arc - An arc shot is a camera move around the subject, somewhat like a tracking shot. In
mathematics, an arc is a segment of the circumference of a circle. A camera arc is similar the camera moves in a rough semi-circle around the subject.
Crab - The term crabbing shot is a less-common version of tracking, trucking and/or dollying.
These terms are more or less interchangeable, although dollying tends to mean in-and-out
movement whereas the others tend to mean side-to-side movement at a constant distance
from the action.
Dolly - A dolly is a cart which travels along tracks. The camera is mounted on the dolly and
records the shot as it moves. Dolly shots have a number of applications and can provide
very dramatic footage. A dolly shot is also known as a tracking shot or trucking shot.
However some professionals prefer the more rigid terminology which defines dolly as in-andout movement (i.e. closer/further away from the subject), while tracking means side-to-side
movement.

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Dolly Zoom - A dolly zoom is a cinematic technique in which the camera moves closer or
further from the subject while simultaneously adjusting the zoom angle to keep the subject
the same size in the frame. The effect is that the subject appears stationary while the
background size changes (this is called perspective distortion). The exact effect depends on
the direction of camera movement. If the camera moves closer, the background seems to
grow and become dominant. If the camera moves further away, the foreground subject is
emphasized and becomes dominant
Follow - the Follow shot is fairly self-explanatory. It simply means that the camera follows the
subject or action. The following distance is usually kept more or less constant. The
movement can be achieved by dollying or tracking, although in many cases a Steady cam is
the most practical option. Hand-held follow-shots are quite achievable in many situations but
are not generally suited to feature film cinematography.
Pedestal - A pedestal shot means moving the camera vertically with respect to the subject.
This is often referred to as "pedding" the camera up or down.
Pan - A pan is a horizontal camera movement in which the camera moves left and right
about a central axis. This is a swivelling movement, i.e. mounted in a fixed location on a
tripod or shoulder, rather than a dolly-like movement in which the entire mounting system
moves.
Tilt - A tilt is a vertical camera movement in which the camera points up or down from a
stationary location. For example, if you mount a camera on your shoulder and nod it up and
down, you are tilting the camera.
Tracking - The term tracking shot is widely considered to be synonymous with dolly shot;
that is, a shot in which the camera is mounted on a cart which travels along tracks. However
there are a few variations of both definitions. Tracking is often more narrowly defined as
movement parallel to the action, or at least at a constant distance (e.g. the camera which
travels alongside the race track in track & field events). Dollying is often defined as moving
closer to or further away from the action.
Trucking - Trucking is basically the same as tracking or dollying. Although it means slightly
different things to different people, it generally refers to side-to-side camera movement with
respect to the action. The term trucking is not uncommon but is less widely-used than
dollying or tracking. Yet another equivalent term is crabbing.
Zooming - A zoom is technically not a camera move as it does not require the camera itself
to move at all. Zooming means altering the focal length of the lens to give the illusion of
moving closer to or further away from the action. The effect is not quite the same though.
Zooming is effectively magnifying a part ofthe image, while moving the camera creates a
difference in perspective background objects appear to change in relation to foreground
objects. This is sometimes used for creative effect in the dolly zoom.