Technical Camera Terms

After looking at Mise en Scene,  we were finally ready to start picking up a camera and looking at how the different camera angles, distance and composition helps to contribute in telling a narrative in media. We also looked at how the f spot, shutter speed and ISO affect the photos being taken.

CAMERA ANGLES: These are very important as they show the position of what you are taking a photo of. They allow a story to be told just from where the photo is being taken from. For example, if you are taking a photo up high looking down on something, it presents the object you are taking a photo of as very vulnerable and weak. If you are looking from the cameras perspective, it gives the sense of power and strength.

DISTANCE: This is also very important and contributes massively to the narrative. For example, if you were creating the idea of loneliness, the biggest impact would be a long shot (LS) or extreme long shot (ELS) with a singular person in it. However, if you were to take a close up (CU) or middle shot (MS) of a person, the seance of loneliness may then be lost as the background of the photo is not necessary seen.

COMPOSITION: This allows the photos being taken to have a structure to them, allowing them to tell the story without confusion. The “rule of thirds”, splits the photos up into 3 rows and columns, allowing each section to portray something different. This rule prevents the picture from becoming too confusing and crowded; preventing the story from being understood. Lead space is used to also add meaning. For example, if someone was in the bottom left corner but looking towards the top right corner, lead space may be used in the right of the image to suggest them looking at something specific. If no lead space was used, the story may become difficult to understand. Depth of field is another composition technique used and allows the attention of the audience to be drawn to something specific by making the rest of the photo blurry. This technique is created by altering the f spot setting on your DSLR camera, depending on what you want to focus on.

Once we understood the different photography techniques and settings on our cameras, we then experimented with them around school. As well as using the correct camera angles, distance and composition, we also had to remember to consider Mise en Scene and the story which we were trying to convey.

Below are the photos that we took.

From experimenting with our cameras, it has shown me that when creating my music magazine, I will have to consider the use of the camera as well as Mise en Scene. It isn’t just the costume, acting and setting that is important, but the lighting and camera techniques as well. All components will need to be decided carefully otherwise if one is slightly wrong or vague, the narrative may become misunderstood.

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