[dramatic music] [file scratching]
- You know,
my ma always told me to file my nails.
Otherwise, I might just end up scratching somebody.
[dramatic music]
But me ma ain't around no more, ain't she?
- Pause.
This is what a film might look like
if cameras were set up, someone hit record,
and then just walked away.
There's no thought behind the framing or perspective,
and it lacks any stylistic choices.
It's what might happen if someone like me isn't on set.
My name is Oliver, and I'm a camera operator.
Let's go in and see all the different ways
a camera operator might film a scene.
Rewind.
[tape squeaking]
Before we do anything else,
let's get a camera operator in here.
That's more like it.
Now, let's get to it.
Before, the camera was completely stationary.
By utilizing pans, which are left and right movements,
and tilts, which are up and down movements,
we can let our actors naturally move in the scene
without running into weird cropped frames.
Let's see this scene again with those in action.
[dramatic music] [file scratching]
- You know, my ma always told me to file my nails.
Otherwise I might just end up scratching somebody.
[dramatic music]
But me ma ain't around no more, ain't she?
- [Oliver] In addition to panning,
you can also physically move the camera
to reveal scenes, characters or objects in dramatic ways.
By putting the camera on a wheeled platform called a dolly,
you can connect two shots into one
with a single swift movement.
Let's see what that looks like in action.
[dramatic music]
- But me ma ain't around no more, ain't she?
- [Oliver] Each method provides its own stylized way
of revealing different aspects of the scene.
- You mind telling her to get over here?
- Have you no respect?
She's sleeping with the moles!
- Sorry, no disrespect to your ma, or Meemaw,
or Mamma Mia, whatever, but I'm not really the
getting kidnapped type.
- [Oliver] Notice the camera angles here.
Filming up at someone can make them seem more intimidating,
while filming down on someone can make them seem weaker.
Since the hit man has the upper hand right now,
we should probably swap these angles.
There, that's better.
This really helps put the hit man in a position of power.
- Sorry, no disrespect to your ma,
or Meemaw, or Mamma Mia or whatever,
but I'm not really the getting kidnapped type.
- Shut the hell up and tell me what you know
about JoAnn's Fabrics.
- Listen, I don't want nothing to do with this.
- [Oliver] Close-up shots on a single person,
like the ones we just saw, can be good
when trying to emphasize a moment
or get a character's reaction.
However, let's switch to an over-the shoulder shot.
When two people are talking,
these kinds of shots place them in a scene together,
highlighting their relationship.
Sometimes we call it dirtying up the frame.
- Look, I don't even want Beatrice's money.
Just take it!
Take me out of this.
- I said do yourself a favor
and shut up when I'm talking to you.
- Sorry, but when there's no AC
I got a little bit mucked up.
- [Oliver] So far, we have been using a tripod
to film this scene.
Tripods provide a more grounded, static feeling.
Watch how smooth and stable everything is in the next shot.
- You know, Ma used to say,
"Don't speak until you're finished chewing your Cheerios.
If you keep your mouth shut, you stay out of trouble."
Well, maybe I didn't listen enough to that last one.
- [Oliver] However, filming handheld
can add a dramatic realism.
It feels more spontaneous
and can follow the actors' movement at any moment.
Let's see that line again shot handheld.
- You know, Ma used to say,
"Don't speak until you're finished chewing your Cheerios.
If you keep your mouth shut, you stay out of trouble."
Well, maybe I didn't listen enough to that last one.
- [Oliver] While camera moves on the tripod
keep the film alive,
adding handheld moves can keep the viewer engaged.
Sometimes the uneasiness of the camera
can add tension to the scene.
- Listen.
I'm trying to help you before a guy a lot less nicer than me
fits you with a pair of cement shoes.
I'm talking a huge, nasty, tiny little big boy.
- So is he big or is he tiny?
- What did Meemaw say about-- [phone ringing]
- [Oliver] Hold up.
That cut to the phone right there wasn't very dynamic.
When there's a dramatic action,
you can stir up the scene
and inject a sudden burst of energy with a whip pan.
A whip pan is a pan that happens so quickly
that motion becomes blurred, like this.
Whip pans can also be used as a transition
between two separate shots, creating an effect
both jarring and surprising.
Let's try adding one in as a transition
to the ringing phone.
[tape squeaking]
- What did Meemaw say about-- [phone ringing]
- [Oliver] See how much more exciting that felt
with a whip pan?
It really added some urgency to the moment.
- Ah, [speaking foreign language].
Forgive me, kind sir, but I gotta get this.
[phone ringing]
How you doing?
Wonderful.
Yeah.
Yeah I'm looking at his big, beautiful head right now.
His kind eyes are staring right at me.
He's like a sweetheart.
I almost feel bad about all this.
[dramatic music]
- [Oliver] So far, the camera has been focused
on the hit man for the whole phone call.
Because of this, we miss something vital.
Let's rewind.
[tape squeaking]
- Yeah, I'm looking at his big, beautiful head right now.
- [Oliver] By doing what we call a rack focus,
we can draw the viewer's attention to new things,
forming a connection between two items on screen
that have a physical space between them.
Watch how this technique can shift the focus
from the hit man to the lawyer.
- His kind eyes are staring right at me.
He looks like a sweetheart.
Almost feel bad about all this.
[dramatic music]
- [Oliver] Before, this shot
of the nail file seemed arbitrary.
Now, the rack focus makes it clear
that it's an item that has caught the lawyer's attention.
- Nah, he can't hear a word I'm saying.
Can't say you made settling this easy on us, Mrs. F.
[dramatic music]
- [Oliver] This is an important shot,
but if we want it to seem even more important,
there are different ways we can zoom or dolly in
to emphasize objects or emotions.
[tape squeaking]
You could do a very quick snap zoom.
This immediately shoves whatever it's focusing on
into the audience's faces,
but it has more of a documentary feel.
It might not be the best thing to do in this instance.
[tape squeaking]
Instead, let's try doing a slow zoom.
By doing a slow zoom,
the background around the nail file fades away,
and we focus more intensely on the object itself.
This adds importance to it in a way a stationary shot can't.
Additionally, you can achieve a different feeling
by dollying in on a subject.
Watch this.
[dramatic music]
Dollying in brings the viewer
physically closer to the subject,
moving three-dimensionally through the space.
It can add a very personal feeling
and is great for a tense moment like this.
- [Hit man] Yeah.
We're still working it out.
Yeah.
Wonderful.
- [Oliver] There are tons of different lens types
for your camera which each affect a shot in their own ways.
Normally, it's the director or cinematographer's job
to choose the lens, but a camera operator
needs to know how every lens functions.
Right now, we're using a wide lens
that is fairly close to the lawyer.
This allows us to see a lot
in the background of the shot,
and makes the hit man seem far away.
However, switching to a longer lens that is further back
shrinks the space between them
and brings them closer to one another.
This can make things feel more compressed and tense.
- Frank's gonna take the fall.
Destroy that tape and it's in the bag.
Bada bag, bada bing!
Slap my face and call me Charlie, gotta go.
We got a naughty boy on our hands.
[dramatic music]
- Now let me get this straight.
So Greg, or Sammy, or whatever the hell his name is,
was just a patsy.
Mrs. Frittata wanted her ex-hubby fried,
since his rottweiler scrambled up her workplace.
- [Oliver] Pause.
This whole section, the lawyer transitioned
from a weaker character into a more powerful one.
However, the camera didn't reflect this.
By altering the camera angle during a scene,
we can change how the audience subconsciously views someone.
Let's try that again, but move the perspective
from a high angle to a low one.
[tape squeaking]
- Now let me get this straight.
So Greg, or Sammy, whatever the hell his name is,
was just a patsy.
Mrs. Frittata wanted her ex-hubby fried,
since his rottweiler scrambled up her workplace.
- Listen, Donatello!
- No you listen!
She was having trouble bringing home the bacon,
so now she's over hard with the Mob.
So you guys turned JoAnn's Fabrics into burnt toast,
and she goes and collects the insurance.
- [Oliver] There.
That shift really highlights
how his status has changed in this moment.
- You should've kept your rat trap shut
and chewed your Cheerios!
What did Meemaw say about--
[bat clanking]
- Say hi to your ma for me.
- Now that the scene is coming to a close,
a nice way to exit a scene is with a jib move.
A jib is a piece of equipment with a camera on one end
and counterweights on the other
and allows for a sweeping arc motion.
It's a great way to establish a scene's beginning or ending.
[dramatic music]
How a camera is utilized has an incredible impact
on the way a story is told, and can greatly influence
the types of emotions the audience will feel.
When paired with thoughtful acting and direction,
a skilled camera operator can turn an average scene
into something truly memorable.