Editing and Construction of

UNIT 5 UNDERSTANDING MULTIPLE Meaning

SHOTS AND CAMERA

MOVEMENTS*
Structure
5.0 Objectives
5.1 Introduction
5.2 Shot
5.3 Types of Shots and their Uses
5.3.1 Shots classified by the movement of camera
5.3.2 Shots classified by the subject’s size in the frame
5.3.3 Shots classified by camera angle
5.3.4 Other types of shots
5.4 Camera Movement
5.5 Types of Camera Movements and their Uses
5.6 Let Us Sum Up
5.7 Further Readings and References
5.8 Answers to Check Your Progress Exercise

5.0 OBJECTIVES
After reading this Unit, you’ll be able to:
Understand the different types of shots used in film and video production;
Describe the various camera movements;
Explain the purposes of different types of shots and camera movements;
Select the suitable shot or camera movement for your film or video
production.

5.1 INTRODUCTION
Film is an audiovisual product which generally consists of two elements: audio
and visual. A film communicates its message mainly through visuals, supported
by the audio component. If you want to make a film you must have understanding
of visual language. Visual language has its own grammar, and shots and camera
movements are its important elements. In this Unit, we’ll discuss the different
types of shots and camera movements used in filmmaking. Once you’ll understand
the basics of visual language, you can use it in different audiovisual productions
including ethnographic films. For example, if you know the English language,
you can use this language for writing different things like stories, news reports,
books, articles, novels, etc. The style of language may be different in story writing,
news writing or book writing, but basics and grammar of the language will remain
same. The same logic is also applicable to visual language.

*Amit Kumar,, SOJNMS, IGNOU, New Delhi.

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Techniques of Ethnographic
Film Making 5.2 SHOT
Just like written language, visual language (language of film) has also different
units. You can equate letters with frames, words with shots, sentences with scenes,
paragraphs with sequences and the whole story with the complete film. Though
letter is the smallest unit of written language, it lacks meaning. Collection of
letters form a word which carries some meaning. So, we can say that word is the
smallest meaningful unit of the written language. Similarly, shot is the smallest
meaningful unit of the visual language. It is a collection of frames. Basically,
frame is a still image recorded by the camera and a number of frames together
form a shot. As you know that by playing a number of sequential still images at
a certain speed, the experience of movement can be created, and the film works
on the same concept.

In filmmaking or video production, you can define shot as the recording or footage
without any break. Shot is a single unbroken footage or recording. You can also
say that shot is a footage or recording from one cut to another cut. The duration
of a shot may be a few seconds or up to several minutes. If you see any film
cautiously you can easily identify different shots.

5.3 TYPES OF SHOTS AND THEIR USES

As we discussed, shot is a very important element of visual language through
which you can narrate your story in a film. Every type of shot has its own purpose
and usefulness. You can make your viewers more connected to your film by
using suitable shots. Wrong selection of shots can create disturbance in smooth
storytelling and cause distraction of the viewers.

Shots can be classified on the basis of different criteria. A few important

classifications are given below:
i) Shots classified by the movement of camera
ii) Shots classified by the subject’s size in the frame
iii) Shots classified by camera angle
iv) Other types of shots

5.3.1 Shots classified by the movement of camera

You can classify the shots into two following broad categories on the basis of the
movement of camera:
i) Static shot
ii) Dynamic shot
i) Static shot: If you don’t move camera during recording of a shot, it’ll be
called a static shot. In static shots, camera doesn’t move, only the characters
can move.

ii) Dynamic shot: Dynamic shots are taken by the moving camera. If you
move your camera during the recording of a shot, it will be classified as
dynamic shot. For example, two persons are talking to each other angrily in
your shot, then camera moves to left for showing the presence of few other
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 people. It will be counted as a dynamic shot. We will discuss the different Understanding Multiple
Shots and Camera
types of camera movements in the later part of this unit. Movements

5.3.2 Shots classified by the subject’s size in the frame

Shots can be classified by size of the subject captured in the frame. Here, you
need to know about the two terms: ‘subject’ and ‘frame’.

Subject: A subject may be the character or any object which is the center of
interest for the camera. In other words, subject is the character or object which
will be in focus during recording. More than one character or object may also be
treated as subjects.

Frame: A frame is a still image and the smallest unit of any film or video. As we
discussed earlier, a number of frames together make a shot. In this context, frame
is the space of that still image available to a director or cinematographer to
compose a shot. You can also say that frame is an area which is captured by a
camera and visible to the audience. Anything which is out of frame during shooting
is not the part of film because it is not captured by the camera.

On the basis of subject’s size captured in the frame, shots can be divided into
three basic types:
1) Close-up
2) Medium shot
3) Long shot.
These three basic shots can further be divided into few other types. On the basis
of subject’s size, you can classify shots into seven following types:
1) Extreme close-up (ECU)
2) Close-up (CU)
3) Medium close-up (MCU)
4) Medium shot (MS)
5) Medium long shot (MLS)
6) Long shot (LS)
7) Extreme long shot (ELS)
All these above-mentioned shots can be framed by changing the distance between
camera and the subject. While framing a shot, you can capture anything according
to the need of your story. It may be human beings, animals, plants, non-living
objects, etc. Here we’ll use a female character as an example to explain the
different types of shots and their purposes. But before starting the discussion on
different types of shots, you should be aware of one rule. A shot should never be
cut at the natural divisions of our body like neck, waist and knees. You should
always cut your shots from just above or below these natural divisions.

1) Extreme close-up (ECU): It is closer than the close-up shot and captures a
part of face. It is abbreviated as ECU. Extreme close-up shot is used to
show the important details of a smaller area. You can use this shot to reveal
some important marks on your character’s face or some important and
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Techniques of Ethnographic meaningful activities of your character’s eyes, lips etc. It helps to show
Film Making
detailed facial expressions and emotions. For example an extreme close-up
could be of a character’s tearful eyes. It helps the director reveal the
character’s emotion beautifully. Extreme close-ups of shining teeth are
commonly used in the advertisement films of different dental products.
Figure 1.1 is an example of extreme close-up shot.

Figure 1.1 : Extreme close-up shot

2) Close-up (CU): It captures the whole face. The whole frame is mainly
covered with the face only, so negligible background information is
available. Close-up shots are used to show the facial expressions and
emotions. These shots provide opportunities to actors and actresses to show
their acting skills. Close-up shots are frequently used as reaction shots to
show the character’s reactions and emotions. It is abbreviated as CU. Figure
1.2 shows an example of close-up shot.

Figure 1.2 : Close-up shot

3) Medium close-up (MCU): Medium close-up shot is generally framed from

just below the armpit or lower chest. This shot is also called as head and
shoulders shot because it captures head and shoulders both. Bust shot is
one of the more popular name of a medium close-up. You can use this shot
to show your character’s reactions and emotions. It reveals some information
about the background. Figure 1.3 shows the example of medium close-up.

Figure 1.3 : Medium close-up shot

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4) Medium shot (MS): It is also called as mid-shot. In medium shot, you Understanding Multiple
Shots and Camera
frame your character from just above or below the waist. It reveals Movements
information about the background. You can capture the body language and
the activities of the characters. Figure 1.4 shows an example of medium
shot.

Figure1.4 : Medium shot

5) Medium long shot (MLS): It is an intermediate shot between the medium

shot and the long shot. In medium long shot, you should frame your character
from just below or above the knees. It is also called as three quarters shot
because it covers three quarters of your character. Medium long shot reveals
enough information about the background. You can show the activities of
your characters through medium long shot. Figure 1.5 shows the example
of medium long shot.

Figure 1.5 : Medium long shot

6) Long shot (LS): A Long shot (LS) is sometimes also known as wide shot or
full shot. In a long shot, you frame the full body from head to toe. Long
shot puts your character in the context. You can use this shot to establish
your location. It provides detailed information about the background. You
can show the activities of your characters with clear background details
through this shot. Figure 1.6 shows the example of a long shot.

Figure1.6 : Long shot (LS)

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Techniques of Ethnographic 7) Extreme long shot (ELS): In this shot, background or location is more
Film Making
dominant than the character. It gives larger view of the location. Extreme
long shot is often used as an establishing shot to establish the location.
Generally, it comes at the beginning of any film or sequence to show the
larger view of the location. You can see the example of extreme long shot
in figure 1.7.

Figure 1.7 : Extreme long shot

Activity 1

Watch any film (preferably ethnographic film) just for two minutes and try to
do following things:
Count the number of shots used during these two minutes
List the types of shots used during these two minutes

5.3.3 Shots classified by camera angle

You can also classify the shots on the basis of camera angles. Camera angle tells
about the placement of camera in relation to the subject. For example, if the
camera is placed at a higher place to the subject, it’ll be called higher angle and
the vice-versa. On this basis you can classify shots into following types:
1) Eye-level shot
2) High-angle shot
3) Low-angle shot
4) Bird’s eye view shot
5) Worm’s eye view shot
1) Eye-level shot: It is a normal shot. You can frame an eye-level shot by
placing the camera at the eye level of the character. Eye level shot provides
a normal viewing effect. It is a common and most utilized shot. All the
pictures from figure 1.1 to 1.7 are the examples of eye-level shots.

2) High-angle shot: As name suggests, in high-angle shot, the camera is placed

at the higher level. It gives an effect as you are looking down at the subject.
You can use high angle shot to show your character weaker or less important.
High-angle shots are also used to show those things which can’t be shown
through eye-level shot. Figure 1.8 presents an example of high-angle shot.
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 Understanding Multiple
Shots and Camera
Movements

Figure1.8 : High-angle shot

3) Low-angle shot: In this type of shot, you place the camera at lower level. It
gives the effect as you are looking up at a taller or bigger thing. Low-angle
shot makes the subject stronger, important and dominant. Figure 1.9 is an
example of low-angle shot.

Figure 1.9 : Low-angle shot

4) Bird’s eye view shot: This shot provides a view as a bird observing
something on ground from the sky. It is also called overhead shot. In this
type of shot, you place the camera just above the subject and location. This
shot gives a complete view of the location where the action is going on.
You can use this shot to reveal the information about the location and action
which are not possible to be shown through a high-angle shot. Figure 1.10
shows the example of bird’s eye view shot.

Figure 1.10 : Bird’s eye view shot

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Techniques of Ethnographic 5) Worm’s eye view shot: It is an extreme low-angle shot. It gives effect like
Film Making
a worm looking at the bigger or taller things. You can frame a worm’s eye
view shot by placing the camera far below the subject. It exaggerates the
subject’s appearance and makes it very strong and dominant like a giant.
Figure 1.12 shows the example of worm’s eye view shot.

Figure 1.12 : Worm’s eye view shot

5.3.4 Other types of shots

There are few other types of shots which are used frequently in filmmaking or
video production. You should know about these shots. These are following:

1) Over-the-shoulder shot (OTS): Figure 1.13 shows an example of over-

the-shoulder shot. The name of this shot refers to the placement of camera
just behind the shoulder of a character, presenting a view of what the
character sees. Generally, it is used to show conversations between two
characters.

Figure 1.13 : Over-the-shoulder shot (OTS)

2) Point-of-view shot (POV): Point-of-view shot shows the things from the
viewpoint of a character. Figure 1.14 shows the example of a point-of-view
shot.

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Figure 1.14 : Point-of-view shot
3) Reaction shot: Reaction shot is very important in storytelling. You frame Understanding Multiple
Shots and Camera
this shot to show the reaction of a character on any dialogue or action. For Movements
example, just imagine a scene in which three characters are discussing
something. One of the characters reveals a shocking information. Now you’ll
have to show the reactions of other two characters through reaction shots.
Reaction shots show the facial expressions and emotions of the characters.
Generally, reaction shots are framed as close-up or medium close-up shots.
An example of reaction shot is shown in figure 1.15.

Figure 1.15 : Reaction shot

Check Your Progress 1

Answer briefly.
1) What is shot?
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2) When will you use extreme long shot?

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3) Explain the differences between high-angle shot and low-angle shot.

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Techniques of Ethnographic 4) What is the smallest unit of a film?
Film Making
a) Shot
b) Frame
c) Scene
d) Sequence
5) To show the character’s reaction (reaction shot), you will use __________.
a) Long shot
b) Extreme long shot
c) Close-up shot
d) Knee shot

5.4 CAMERA MOVEMENT

Camera movement refers to the movement of a camera while recording a shot. It
is an important element of the visual language. It helps in storytelling and getting
involvement of the audiences. Camera movements can also create or add emotions
in a shot. The type of movement and the speed of movement both create some
meanings. Camera movements are very important in filmmaking and you must
know about the commonly used common camera movements.

5.5 TYPES OF CAMERA MOVEMENTS AND

THEIR USES
As we discussed earlier, there are various types of camera movements that create
dynamic shots. Few important camera movements are following:
1) Pan
2) Tilt
3) Pedestal
4) Dolly/Track
5) Zoom
6) Truck
7) Arc
8) Crane movements
9) Handheld camera movements
10) Movements with the help of camera stabilizers
1) Pan: Pan is a horizontal movement in which you can move your camera
from right to left or left to right. In panning, camera mount stays stationary.
Panning gives effect like looking from side to side while standing at one
place. You can use pan to follow the movement of a character or to reveal
the information about any place. Figure 1.16 displays the pan movement.

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 Understanding Multiple
Shots and Camera
Movements

Figure1.16 : Pan Movement

2) Tilt: Tilt is a vertical movement in which you can move your camera up or
down. Like pan, camera mount stays stationary in tilting also. Tilting gives
effect like looking up or down while standing at one place. Tilt movement
can be used to follow the upward or downward movements of your character.
You can use this movement to reveal more information about your location.
Figure 1.17 shows the tilt movement.

Figure 1.17 : Tilt Movement

3) Pedestal: Pedestal is a type of camera mount generally used in studios. In

pedestal up/down, camera moves up and down without any change in its
vertical or horizontal axis. You should not be confused between tilt and
pedestal. In tilt, camera mount stays stationary, there is no change in the
height of camera mount, only camera pivots up or down. But in pedestal,
the height of camera mount changes. In pedestal up, camera moves upward
as the height of camera mount increases and vice versa in pedestal down. It
is difficult to do this movement with general tripods. Figure 1.18 explains
the pedestal movement.

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Techniques of Ethnographic
Film Making

Figure 1.18 Pedestal Movement

4) Dolly/Track: Dolly or track is a movement of camera towards or away

from the subject. If you move the camera towards the subject, it will be
called ‘dolly in’ or ‘track in’ whereas if camera goes away from the subject
it will be called ‘dolly out’ or ‘track out’. Wheeled camera mounts and
tracks are used for this movement. This movement maintains the normal
perspective. It gives the effect as you are moving towards or away from the
subject. Figure 1.19 explains the dolly or track movement.

Figure 1.19 : Dolly movement

5) Zoom: Technically zoom is not a camera movement because it doesn’t

require any movement of camera. Zooming changes the focal length of a
zoom lens. While zooming in, you increase the focal length and as a result
the angle of view is narrowed. ‘Zoom in’ magnifies the subject and remove
few elements from the frame due to narrowed angle of view. On the other
hand, in zooming out, focal length is decreased and angle of view is widened.
As a result, ‘zoom out’ reduces the size of subject and includes more elements
into the frame located around the subject.

You should not be confused between dolly and zoom. ‘Dolly in’ gives an
effect like you are coming towards the subject. It provides normal perspective
shifts, but ‘zoom in’ just magnifies the subject. In ‘dolly in’ you feel the
depth of space but ‘zoom in’ lacks it and looks artificial.
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6) Truck: Like dolly, truck is also a camera movement performed with the Understanding Multiple
Shots and Camera
help of wheeled camera mounts and tracks, but in trucking you move the Movements
camera sideways. If you move the camera right, it is called ‘truck right’ or
if you move the camera left, it is called ‘truck left’. You should not be
confused between ‘pan’ and ‘truck’. In ‘pan’, camera mount (tripod or
pedestal) stays stationary only camera moves right or left on its axis, but in
trucking camera mount moves right or left along with the camera. For
example, if you want to stay with your character who is moving straight,
you can use the ‘truck movement’. Figure 1.20 demonstrates the truck
movement.

Figure 1.20 : Truck Movement

7) Arc: When you truck your camera on a curved path, it is called arc. Arc
movement can be arc right or arc left. In this movement, camera moves
around the subject in a semicircle. You can use arc movement to reveal
more information about your subject, to shoot a moving subject and to
bring visual Variety in your film. Figure 1.21 shows the arc movement.

Figure 1.21: Arc movement

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Techniques of Ethnographic 8) Crane movements: In filmmaking or professional video productions, cranes
Film Making
are used frequently. The crane is an equipment which has a long arm and the
camera can be mounted on that. We can perform many movements with the
help of crane. ‘Crane up’ and ‘crane down’ are used for the movement of
crane arm upward and downward along with the camera whereas ‘tongue
left’ and ‘tongue right’ are used for left and right movements of the crane
arm. With the help of crane, we can do multiple camera movements. A camera
mounted on a crane can be operated manually or with the help of remote
control. Generally, the small cranes are called jibs.

You can use crane movements for various purposes. For example, you can shoot
a subject from high angle and then come to eye-level in one shot with the help of
crane movements. Cranes can help to take bird’s eye-view and other high angle
shots. With the help of crane, you can combine multiple movements and get the
desired views.

9) Handheld camera movements: If camera operator holds the camera in

his/her hands during shooting, it is called handheld camera shoot. In handheld
camera shoot, camera is not mounted on tripod or any other camera mounts.
Handheld camera shoot provides greater freedom for different movements
but at the cost of jerks and shakes. You can see the use of handheld cameras
in news gathering because many times camera persons of news channels
don’t find enough time and space to fix their cameras on tripods.
Documentaries also use the handheld camera shots.

Sometimes handheld camera is used purposefully to create certain effects. You

can use shaky handheld camera shots to show nervousness, instability and anxiety.
These shots can also be used for other creative purposes.

10) Movements with the help of camera stabilizers: Movements with the
help of camera stabilizers: Camera stabilizers are the equipment which enable
the smooth and shake free handheld camera movements. Variety of camera
stabilizers are available from simple to complex ones. Steadicam is the
leading brand. The camera operator can wear the suitable stabilizer and
mount the camera on it. Now he can move anywhere and on any type of
surface. These camera stabilizers provide a great degree of freedom for
different complex camera movements.

Suppose you are a camera operator and a camera mount is fitted on your body
with a technology to minimize the shakes created by a human body. Now you
are free to move during shoot. Just think about the degree of freedom you can
enjoy during shooting.
Check Your Progress 2
Answer briefly.
1) What is camera movement?
.......................................................................................................................
.......................................................................................................................
.......................................................................................................................
.......................................................................................................................
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2) Why do we use different camera movements in film production? Understanding Multiple
Shots and Camera
....................................................................................................................... Movements

.......................................................................................................................
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.......................................................................................................................

3) Why is zoom different from dolly?

.......................................................................................................................
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4) Explain the difference between ‘pan’ and ‘truck’ movements?

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5) In pan movement, you’ll move camera ___________.
a) Up
b) Down
c) Up and down
d) Right and left

5.6 LET US SUM UP

In this Unit, we have discussed the different shots and camera movements. If
you want to write a story, knowledge of language is must. In the same way,
filmmaking requires the understanding of visual language and its grammar. Once
you understand the visual language well, you can use it to produce any type of
film including ethnographic films. The theme of the film decides the style of the
visual language. For example, as you learnt in previous units, in ethnographic
films we shoot the reality, so we select the shots and camera movements
accordingly.

Shots and camera movements are very crucial elements of the visual grammar.
The proper understanding of these two elements help the filmmaker to produce a
good film which can communicate its message properly, smoothly and
interestingly.
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Techniques of Ethnographic
Film Making 5.7 FURTHER READINGS AND REFRENCES
Belavadi, V. (2013). Video Production.

Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Maulli, J.V. *2005). Five C's of Cinematography: Mopian Picture Filming

Techniques.

Thompson, R.& C Bowen. (2009). Grammar of Shot: Media Manual

Waltham: Focal Press, Rautledge

5.8 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

EXERCISE
Check Your Progress 1
1) See section 1.2
2) See point no.-7 of Sub-section 1.3.2
3) See point no.- 2 and 3 of Sub-section 1.3.3
4) b)
5) c)
Check Your Progress 2
1) See section 1.4
2) See section 1.4 and 1.5
3) See point no.- 4 and 5 of Section 1.5
4) See point no.- 1 and 6 of Section 1.5
5) d)

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