Chapter Two
Understanding the Visual Material
• Basic Shot Types Used as Cinematic Language
• Shot Categories: Simple, Complex, and Developing
When you watch a stage play, a music concert, or a sports event in an actual public theater, club, or stadium, you generally only get to observe the actions of the performers from one static viewpoint. If any of these events are recorded and broadcast on television, the person watching at home, although missing out on the thrill of being at the live event, will benefit from having a more “intimate” viewing experience. This is due to the event’s coverage by multiple cameras from varying positions and with differing lens focal lengths. The person at home “sees” more views and details on the broadcast images than the person at the actual event can see.
It is this same concept of coverage that allows people watching a motion picture to feel as though they are observing actual events unfolding before their eyes. They get to “see” more because the camera records the people, places, and actions from many different vantage points that show varying magnifications of detail. Typically, following the master scene technique, the production team photograph all of the important action from what they consider to be the most advantageous and necessary points of view. Each one of these camera views is called a shot.
These shots, or individual units of visual information, are eventually given to the editor during post-production. Even though the editor had no control over which shots were recorded on the film set or how they were composed, it will be his or her job to review all of the material and choose the best viewpoints and performances – to pull the selects – and to combine these various shots to show the audience the best presentation of the story, whatever it may be.
You may consider the individual shot types to be like a vocabulary of sorts: the visual phrases of our cinematic language. Knowing the “words” and their interpreted meanings will help an editor to construct visual “sentences” that may be more broadly understood by a diverse viewing audience.
The Basic Shot Types
Most editors get involved with a project only during post-production. Although many professional editors may have worked in production on a film set or in a television studio at some point in their careers, it is not that common for them to work both production and post-production jobs. What is common, however, is the need for editors to know certain production concepts and terminologies and be well versed in the visual grammar of filmmaking. Knowing the basic shot types and how to best juxtapose them during the edit is a key responsibility for the editor. He or she should know how to best show the story with these shots. As a review, we present the following section, which highlights and illustrates the main building blocks of cinematic language – the basic shots:
• the extreme close-up (XCU/ECU)
• the big close-up (BCU) (UK)/“choker” (US)
• the close-up (CU)
• the medium close-up (MCU)/bust shot
• the medium shot (MS)/mid-shot
• the medium long shot (MLS)/medium wide shot (MWS)
• the long shot (LS)/wide shot (WS)
• the very long shot (VLS)/very wide shot (VWS)
• the extreme long shot (XLS/ELS)/extreme wide shot (XWS/EWS)
• the two-shot (2-shot/2S)
• the over-the-shoulder shot (OTS/OSS).
Shot Descriptions
The basic shot types can be used to record subjects or objects of any size. For demonstrative purposes, we are going to focus our examples mainly on the framing of a human subject. Obviously, you will encounter these same shots framing non-human objects or even “empty” film space without any human figures present and you will understand them just the same.
FIGURE 2.1 The extended family of basic shot types from our cinematic visual language.
The Extreme Close-Up (XCU/ECU)
1. Purely a detail shot. The framing favors one aspect of a subject such as his or her eyes, mouth, ear, or hand. It may be a magnification of any object or item or just a part of an object or item.
2. Lacking any points of reference to the surrounding environment, the audience have no context in which to place this body part or object detail, so understanding will stem from how or when this shot is edited into the motion picture. It is often helpful, but not required, that the subject whose body detail is displayed in the XCU is shown before or after in a wider shot so that context may be established for the viewer.
3. This type of extremely magnified imagery can be used in documentary work such as medical films or scientific studies, more fanciful projects like music videos and experimental art films, or as appropriate in a fictional narrative story.
4. Editor’s Main Concerns? Focus – Video clips of objects recorded with this level of magnification may have soft-focus issues due to a very shallow depth of field (especially if the subject or camera are in motion). Framing – Such extreme close-ups may suffer from poor framing or difficult-to-decipher imagery of unknown, enlarged subject parts.
FIGURE 2.2 Examples of extreme close-up (XCU/ECU) shots.
The Big Close-Up (BCU) (UK)/“Choker” (US)
1. The human face occupies as much of the frame as possible and the image still shows the key features of eyes, nose, and mouth at once. The top of the frame is just above the eyebrows and the bottom of the frame is just below the lips.
2. Such an intimate shot puts the audience directly in the face of the subject. Every detail of the face is highly visible, therefore facial movements or expressions need to be subtle. Very little head movement can be tolerated before the subject moves out of the frame.
3. This shot is about who and how that who feels: angry, scared, joyful, etc.
4. Editor’s Main Concerns? Framing – Beyond the possible issue of the lower lip/mouth dropping below the bottom edge of the frame when the subject speaks, the entire “concept” of the BCU composition for a human face can be awkward. It is not a common framing in many genres of motion media productions, so make sure that its use has solid purpose in the visual design of your project. Make-up – Almost all performers (fiction or non-fiction) wear some sort of make-up to beautify or enhance their facial features. A shot this close (in UHD) could be ruined by improperly (or excessively) applied make-up.
FIGURE 2.3 Examples of big close-up (BCU)/“choker” shots.
The Close-Up (CU)
1. Sometimes called a “head shot” because the framing is primarily the face, but it may cut off the top of the subject’s hair. The bottom of the frame can begin anywhere just below the chin or, more traditionally, with the neck and some upper shoulder visible.
2. A very intimate full-face shot of a human subject showing all detail in the eyes. It conveys the subtle emotions that play across the eyes, mouth, and facial muscles of an actor. Health conditions and facial hair in men and make-up use in women are clearly visible.
3. The audience should be totally focused on the human face. An emotional connection to the on-screen subject can be easily made. A non-human subject will fill the frame, and should be easily identifiable.
4. Shows who but not so much where or when.
5. Editor’s Main Concerns? Subject’s eye-line – If using an objective shooting style (as for fictional narrative), do the subject’s eyes look out of the frame in the correct direction, matching the context of film space in the wider shots of this character? If using a subjective shooting style (as for a news reporter or show host), do the subject’s eyes look directly into the lens (connecting with the audience) or just awkwardly off the lens axis (not connecting with anything)?
FIGURE 2.4 Examples of close-up (CU) shots.
The Medium Close-Up (MCU)/Bust Shot
1. Sometimes called a “two-button” for the tight bottom frame cutting off at the chest, roughly where you would see the top two buttons on a shirt. Definitely cuts off above the elbow joint. The bottom of the frame may be slightly different for men or women, depending on costuming.
2. The subject’s facial features are rather clear. Where the eyes look is obvious, as is emotion, hair style and color, make-up, etc. This is one of the most common shots in filmmaking because it provides much information about the character while speaking, listening, or performing an action that does not involve much body or head movement.
3. The audience are supposed to be watching the human face at this point in the framing, so actions or objects in the surrounding environment should hold little to no importance.
4. Depending upon lighting and costuming, you may discern general information about where and when.
5. Editor’s Main Concerns? Composition – Is the human figure frame left, frame right, or central? Is continuity of screen direction being maintained? Does the background compete too much with the subject? Is the depth of field too large?
FIGURE 2.5 Examples of medium close-up (MCU) shots.
The Medium Shot (MS)/Mid-Shot
1. May also be called the “waist shot” because the frame cuts off the human figure near the waist.
2. The human torso is most prominent in the frame. However, the eyes and the direction they look, clothing, and hair color and style are all plainly visible.
3. Beware of the subject breaking frame (when an actor’s body part touches or moves beyond the established edge of the picture frame).
4. Certainly shows who and also provides generic detail about where (inside or outside, apartment, store, forest, etc.) and when (day or night, season).
5. Editor’s Main Concerns? Beyond subject movements breaking frame, watch out for matching headroom and look room (also known as looking room) in dialogue coverage shots that need to edit back to back in a scene.
FIGURE 2.6 Examples of medium shots (MS).
The Medium Long Shot (MLS)/Medium Wide Shot (MWS)
1. The first shot where the surrounding environment occupies significantly more screen space than the subject. Traditionally framed such that the bottom of the frame cuts off the leg either just below or, more commonly, just above the knee. The choice of where to frame the leg may depend on costuming or body movement of the individual in the shot. If you cut the bottom of the frame above the knee, it is sometimes referred to as the “cowboy.” (In classical Hollywood Westerns, it was important to get the obligatory “six gun” strapped to the hero’s thigh in the shot.)
2. The human figure is prominent and details in clothing, gender, and facial expressions are visible. The environment is clearly conveyed and understandable.
3. Shows who, where, and roughly when.
4. Editor’s Main Concerns? Awkward bottom of frame – Keep an eye on the subject’s legs and costuming (especially when the subject is in motion). Is there an aspect of those elements that is distracting? Similarly, is there some sort of “slice” of distracting object hovering just inside the bottom of the frame? It may be possible to scale the image up slightly to remove these from view.
FIGURE 2.7 Examples of medium long shots (MLS).
The Long Shot (LS)/Wide Shot (WS)
1. This is usually considered a “full body” shot, wide but still in close to the figure. It often frames the feet just above the bottom of the frame and the head just below the top of the frame. It may often be noted as a generic wide shot (WS) as well.
2. The tall vertical line of the standing human figure attracts the viewer’s eye away from the surrounding environment; however, a fair amount of the location is visible and should be considered important to the composition.
3. May work well for an establishing shot of a smaller interior location or a contained exterior area like a storefront doorway.
4. Shows where, when, and who. Gender, clothing, movements, and general facial expressions may be seen but real facial detail is somewhat lacking.
5. Editor’s Main Concerns? Visibility of emotion – With the face being so small in the frame, try not to use the LS for highlighting emotion, unless the overall movements of the subject’s body are being used to clearly convey that state.
FIGURE 2.8 Examples of long shots (LS).
The Very Long Shot (VLS)/Very Wide Shot (VWS)
1. A proud member of the wide shot family.
2. Easily recorded in exterior locations but may be accomplished in interior shooting places where enough width and height exist within the studio set or location building.
3. The human figure is visible but only generalities of race, mood, clothing, and hair may be observed. The environment within the film space dominates much of the screen.
4. May be used as an establishing shot.
5. Shows where, when, and who (but usually they are too small to see real detail).
6. Editor’s Main Concerns? Visibility of subject – Does the subject get lost among the background elements in the shot? Does the composition of the frame incorporate enough visual information to be useful to the audience?
FIGURE 2.9 Examples of very long shots (VLS).
The Extreme Long Shot (XLS/ELS)/Extreme Wide Shot (XWS/EWS)
1. Also referred to as an extremely wide-angle shot.
2. Traditionally used in exterior shooting.
3. Encompasses a large field of view, and therefore forms an image that shows a large amount of the environment within the film space.
4. Often used as an establishing shot at the beginning of a motion picture or at the start of a new sequence within a motion picture. An XLS may be cut in whenever a very wide vista needs to be shown in the story.
5. Shows where (urban, suburban, rural, mountains, desert, ocean, etc.) and may show when (day, night, summer, winter, spring, fall, distant past, past, present, future, etc).
6. May show a lone stranger walking into town, or a massive invading army. Most often, the human figures in the XLS are so small that details are indistinguishable. General, not specific, information will be conveyed about a character.
7. Editor’s Main Concerns? Horizon line – If it should be level, is this the case? Unwanted objects – Due to the potentially large number of objects visible in this wide vista of film space, is there an object that should not be present in this shot (a period-piece XLS showing a cell tower, or a billboard for an inappropriate product or business)?
FIGURE 2.10 Examples of extreme long shots (XLS/ELS).
The Two-Shot (2-Shot/2S)
1. Contains two subjects who generally either face toward the camera (but not into the lens) or face each other and are seen in profile or 3/4 profile.
2. The framing depends on whether the subjects are standing or sitting, moving or static, or making gestures and performing actions. A medium two-shot (M2S) is common but allows for little gesturing or body movement. Medium long shot or long shot two-shots will allow more room around the subjects for movement or action.
3. The framing for tighter shots (MCU, CU) would entail extremely close proximity of subjects’ heads, implying intimate connectivity or aggressive posturing like two boxers in a clinch. To see the faces of both subjects in a very tight two-shot, you would have to “favor” one body before the other, literally overlapping the people within the frame. The person closest to the camera and seen fully by the viewer is given favor. No overlapping is required if seen in CU two-shot profile, as in a kissing shot, a slow dance, or boxers before a match.
4. Adding persons creates a three-shot (3-shot), a group shot, or a crowd shot, depending on how many individuals are clustered together in the frame. The framing would be wider for the extra people who are added to the composition and the bodies would have to be staggered into the depth of the frame.
5. Editor’s Main Concerns? Continuity – As we now have two or more persons in the frame, it becomes difficult to always match continuity of action, eye-line, etc. when you cut to other coverage shots of the same people in this scene.
FIGURE 2.11 Examples of the two-shot, the overlapping two-shot, and the group shot.
The Over-the-Shoulder Shot (OTS/OSS)
1. A special two-shot in which one subject is favored by facing the camera (either frame left or frame right) and the other subject has his or her back turned toward the camera on the opposite side of the frame. The non-favored subject creates an “L” shape at the edge and bottom of the frame with the back of her or his head and shoulder; hence the name. The camera shoots over one subject’s shoulder to frame up the face of the other subject for the viewer to see.
2. Due to the “shoulder subject” being partially cut off at the edge of the frame, the shot type used for the OTS shot may be as tight as a medium close-up – or maybe even a full close-up. Anything closer and the composition would alter the balance of the frame and the shoulder may get lost, creating what some may call a dirty single.
3. It is often helpful to have a decreased depth of field so that the portion of the shoulder subject visible in the corner of the frame is a bit blurry while the face of the favored subject is well focused. Having a well-focused back of the head may prove to be distracting for the audience. Editing software matte and blur effects can help with this if needed.
4. Editor’s Main Concerns? Audio – You may need to layer in the audio from a good close-up shot for the subject whose back is to the camera. As his or her mouth is not visible, exact sync is not an issue, but beware of how the head and/or jaw move in conjunction with the differing voice track.
FIGURE 2.12 Examples of over-the-shoulder (OTS) framing.
Shot Categories: The Increasing Complexity of Motion Imagery
It is worth noting that all of the shot types outlined above have one thing in common: they belong to an over-arching shot category that we will call simple shots. They could, however, evolve into two other categories: complex shots or developing shots. Before we clarify what constitutes a simple, complex, or developing shot, we should give just a bit of attention to the four basic physical components of shot creation. How these elements are used helps to determine the category into which a shot may be placed.
1. LENS – Does the camera’s lens move during the shot? Does the lens alter its light-gathering characteristics while the shot is being recorded? Lens movement, optical alteration of the angle of view, can only be achieved when using a zoom lens (or varifocal lens) with a stationary camera. So you have to determine if there is a zoom or a focal length change during the shot (Figure 2.13).
2. CAMERA – Does the entire camera body move during the shot? Essentially, is there a panning action or a tilting action executed while the camera is recording the shot? The camera mount (tripod head) would have to allow for these horizontal and vertical axis changes, but the camera support (tripod) would not be in motion (Figure 2.14).
3. MOUNT/SUPPORT – Does the camera’s mount or support physically move the camera around the film set or location during a shot? In a television studio, the camera is mounted atop a pedestal, which can boom up (raise camera height) or boom down (lower camera height) and roll around the smooth floor. On a film set, the camera can be mounted to a moving dolly on tracks or a slider (for crab or truck moves), attached to a crane or jib arm, suspended from cables, or carried with a Steadicam™, a drone, etc. (Figure 2.15).
4. SUBJECT – Does the subject being recorded move during the shot? The subject can be a person or many people, an animal, an animated object (something non-living capable of movement, like a remote-controlled toy car), or an inanimate object (something that does not move, like a brick or a pirate’s treasure chest) (Figure 2.16).
FIGURE 2.13 A camera lens with zoom or varifocal capabilities.
FIGURE 2.14 A camera mounted to a pan and tilt tripod head.
FIGURE 2.15 A camera on a dolly.
FIGURE 2.16 Subjects in motion and at rest.
Because you, as the editor, were not on set during production, you will not definitively know which shots contain these four elements. Most often, their presence or lack thereof will be noticeable to some degree because they all involve movement of some kind. What you should understand, though, are the basic categories that shots will fall into when one or several of the four elements are present. These three basic categories are simple shots, complex shots, and developing shots. Describing these over-arching shot categories now will help us in our analysis of editing them together – a topic we cover later in this book.
Simple Shots
• No lens movement ✗
• No camera movement ✗
• Mount movement ✗
• Simple subject movement ✓
Simple shots are just that: simple. They have no focal length changes (zooms). They have no tilts or pans. They show no camera body movement, as with a dolly or a jib. They do show the subject moving in simple ways across the screen, standing, sitting, speaking, gesticulating, etc. The basic shot types, discussed earlier, are all covered from a particular angle, with a set focal length on the lens and a locked-off mount. Whatever simple action unfolds before the camera, it happens within that set and finite framing. Often, simple shots can make up the bulk of fictional narrative motion picture content that is dialogue driven. Talking-head interviews for documentaries or news anchor MCU shots may be considered non-fiction simple shots (Figure 2.17).
FIGURE 2.17 A simple shot has no lens, no camera, and no mounting or support movement but may have subject movement.
Complex Shots
• Lens movement ✓
• Camera movement ✓
• Mount movement ✗
• Simple subject movement ✓
A complex shot may contain:
• a pan (horizontal)
• a tilt (vertical)
• a pan and a tilt (diagonal upward or downward camera lens movement)
• lens movement (a zoom or a focus pull)
• lens movement and a pan (hiding a zoom by panning the camera)
• lens movement and a tilt (hiding a zoom by tilting the camera)
• subject movement and a pan to follow action
• subject movement and a tilt to follow action.
If a shot contains any combination of the three active elements (lens movement, camera movement, or simple subject movement), then it may be considered a complex shot.
FIGURE 2.18 A complex shot may combine a zoom with a camera tilt in order to follow subject movement.
If the complex shot does contain a pan or a tilt, then the production team should have ensured that it begins with a static start frame, goes through its move, and completes with a static end frame. The static start and end frames of these pan and tilt shots are very important to the editor. You will find that it may be difficult to cut from a static shot into a shot already in motion, or to cut out of a motion shot to a static shot. Entering or leaving movement at the cut can be very jarring for the audience. The best-case scenario is for you to be presented with pan and tilt shots that start and end with static frames and contain smooth, even movement in between. With complex shots containing subject and/or camera movement, it may be challenging to match continuity of action at the edit points (Figure 2.18).
Developing Shots
• Lens movement ✓
• Camera movement ✓
• Mount movement ✓
• More complex subject movement ✓
A developing shot incorporates movement of all four elements. As such, you can imagine that these shots are rather difficult to accomplish. Subjects may move in complicated blocking patterns on set, the camera is moved about following action (perhaps handheld, on a dolly, a Steadicam™, or a drone, etc.), the lens may be re-focused or perhaps zoomed, and there will be a panning or tilting action at some point to maintain good composition.
As an editor, you should watch these developing shots very carefully for quality assurance. They will most likely start and end with static frames, but the middle portion could be a hodgepodge of actions. Watch for proper focus, good framing, and smooth movements. These types of elaborate developing shots are designed by the filmmakers to be used as one stunning show piece, so there is often little actual editing that you may need to do beyond cutting the shot into the overall scene at the appropriate point. Cutting into and out of moving developing shots can upset the flow of the entire shot and take away from its effect on the viewing audience. This may be necessary for creative purposes, or if some of the action within the developing shot is not top quality – or if there is a lot of good coverage available to show a very dynamic action sequence.
A specific example of a developing shot is known as the “Vertigo shot.” Alfred Hitchcock incorporated this type of in-camera visual effects shot in the 1958 Paramount Pictures release Vertigo. The camera either dollies toward a subject while simultaneously zooming wider or dollies away from the subject while zooming in. The goal is to keep the “foreground” object (the subject) the same size in the frame throughout the move. The result is a warping of perspective/magnification on the visible background elements in the shot. The audience are made to feel uneasy because of this unnatural visual trick. It is often used in filmmaking to indicate a disquieting, imbalanced, or freaky feeling for that character or within the narrative at that moment. This shot is sometimes called a “zolly” or a “dolly zoom.”
FIGURE 2.19 A developing shot follows complex subject action with lens, camera, and camera mount movements.
Keep in mind that the category names (simple, complex, and developing) are not the significant element here. The take-away for you should be the thought processes involved in analyzing the treatment of shot content that they denote. Watch shots for any sort of focal length changes, camera head movements (like pans and tilts), and subject movements. Additionally, you may also find shots where all of these aspects of the shot coverage and content exist plus there is major camera body movement (via support device movement) inside the one shot. These basic shot categories relate to the production team’s chosen visual style(s) and will influence how you choose to work within (or around) both their treatments of the individual shot content and the overall visual style of the entire program.
Chapter Two – Final Thoughts: Camera Shots Are Your Building Blocks
When editors sit down in their chairs to begin work on a project, they usually do not know what the material that they are being tasked with editing will look like. Reviewing the video and audio assets is an important early step in the post-production process. Understanding the visual language of the basic shot types and being able to quickly categorize the shot style(s) of the director or director of photography will start the creative wheels turning in the mind of the editor. She or he can already begin pre-envisioning how the assembled piece might look. Figuring out how it all might sound is another thing all together, and we cover the types of audio files an editor may encounter in the next chapter. Then, in Chapter Four, after you’ve become comfortable with the visual and aural assets you will eventually have to work with, we present some criteria that may help you to assess all of this material and choose the best shots for the assembly.
Related Material Found in Chapter Eight – Working Practices
#14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 33
Chapter Two – Review
1. An editor may show the actions of a scene unfold in different ways when presented with a good variety of coverage shots. If the editor lacks diverse or usable source material, his or her choices are greatly reduced.
2. The basic shot types are the extreme close-up, big close-up/choker, close-up, medium close-up/bust shot, medium shot/mid-shot, medium long shot/medium wide shot, long shot/wide shot, very long shot/very wide shot, extreme long shot/extreme wide shot, two-shot, and over-the-shoulder shot.
3. Simple shots are static shots with only slight subject movement.
4. Complex shots will contain a zooming focal length change and/or a pan/tilt action.
5. Developing shots have subject movement, lens movement, camera movement, and mount movement all within the single take of action coverage.
Chapter Two – Exercises
1. Watch your favorite movie or TV show and take note of how many CU, MS, LS, OTS shots, and two-shots occur. Which shot type is used more? At what points in the show do they get used? Do you notice a big difference in shot selection between theatrically released “big-screen” movies and “small-screen” TV or streaming media programming? How about among the different genres of shows you may watch?
2. Develop a very brief scene between two people having a dialogue in any location you wish. (You may use the short script in Appendix C if you wish.) Plan the coverage shots for three separate versions: one with simple shots, one with complex shots, and one with developing shots. Edit the footage from each shoot separately. Which cuts together best and why? After comparing each separate sequence, take all of the footage from all three shoots and cut a new combined sequence. Do you find it easier to edit a sequence with all three shot categories represented? Yes or no, and why?
Chapter Two – Quiz Yourself
1. Name as many of the basic shot types as you can remember.
2. When and why might you add an extreme long shot to your edited sequence?
3. What information can a close-up convey to the audience?
4. How might an extreme close-up provide important detailed information to the viewing audience, and in what ways (editorially speaking) might it keep information from then?
5. How can a dialogue scene two-shot possibly cause continuity of performance and continuity of action concerns for an editor?
6. Why would the American version of the MLS be called a “cowboy?”
7. Subjective question: what might the audience “feel” when a big close-up or choker of the film’s villain is shown on the screen?
8. Can a drone’s hovering camera be used to record a simple shot?
9. How does a “zolly” shot affect the audience and in what possible scenarios might it be used in a motion media piece?
10. Can you have a panning and tilting camera lens movement in a developing shot?