Deconstruction of Camera Theory

Deconstruction of Camera Shots/Angles:
We see in teaser trailers that various types of camera work is used to signify genre to the audience as well as keeping a restricted narrative. There are three types of camera work beginning with camera shots, camera angles and camera movement.

Camera Shots:

• Ariel Shot - A camera shot taken from an overhead position, looking vertically down.
• Extreme Close Up (ECU) - A shot where only part of a face/body of a character is shown in the frame, for example.
• Close Up (CU) - A shot where only the head a shoulders of a person can be seen, for example. close ups are often used to highlight detail in the frame, emotions on people's faces are a good example.
• Medium Shot - Which is to show more in the frame e.g. a person's body from the waist up to show the character's actions. There are also medium close ups (MCU) which are similar but show less in the frame to get more detail in the shot.
• Long Shot - This is to show a full person's body and the background/setting of the scene. Extreme long shots (ELS) can also be used and are related to establishing shots.
• Two Shot - This is a shot of an object and then a shot of something else but then goes back to the original shot used to establish a connection to something, such as a conversation.
• Point of View Shot (POV) - which shows the view from the subject's perspective.
• Over the Shoulder Shot - This looks from behind a character's shoulder aimed at what they're looking at.
• Overhead Shot - A shot where the camera is placed above the subject.
• Reaction Shot - A shot used to show the reaction of a character from an incident.

Camera Angles:

• Camera Angle - This is the position of the camera in relationship to what is happening in the shot. This consists of a high angle or a low angle.
• High Angle Shot - This is where the camera is placed above the subject. It is used to make the subject more vulnerable and powerless.
• Low Angle Shot - This is where the camera is placed below the subject. It conforms the idea that the subject is portrayed as more dominant and powerful.
• Canted Framing - A camera angle that is distorted or tilted. This could be used to show turmoil in a shot.

Camera Movement:

• Pan - The camera is on a horizontal pivot. It gives the audience a panoramic view of the setting and could be used as part of an establishing shot.
• Track - This is where the camera follows the subject being filmed. It can move horizontally and vertically.
• Crane - A shot where the camera is lifted up in the air when attached to a crane. These shots can be used to conclude a programme, as an example.
• Stedicam - This is a shot which is very smooth even when the camera is travelling across rough terrain as it is mounted onto a structure which absorbs and takes energy off of sharp movements.
• Tilt - This is like a Pan shot but in this case the camera can only point up or down from a certain pivot.
• Zoom - A camera can zoom in or out to make things look either closer or further away which eliminates camera movement. This can be used for dramatic effect to signify urgency if the camera zooms into a subject.