Week 4

It’s important for a director to understand focal lengths because of the many ways it can impact the visual storytelling. For example, wide angle lenses give more depth to the world surrounding the subject, which can be used to make them feel small or isolated. With the widest of lenses (>25mm), distortion can also occur, which could be an artistic goal, but could also be a negative for actors who wish to maintain an appearance. Longer focal lengths make the world surrounding the subject feel flat while compressing the space we’re looking at. This can result in more tension and intimacy within the scene, providing a completely different feel than shorter lenses. The focal lengths also factor in to blocking, camera placement, and the perspective the audience feels they’re seeing the story from.

Focal length affects depth of field, angle of view and magnification of subjects all in different ways. Depth of field increases with shorter focal lengths, often with the background being in focus. Longer focal lengths shrink the amount of background we can see while also being more likely to cause the background to be out of focus. Shorter focal lengths also result in a wider angle of view (hence the term ‘wide angle’ lens), making the world feel bigger as a result of literally capturing more of the world. Longer focal lengths tighten the field of view, building tension and making the space claustrophobic. As far as magnification goes, the wide angle lens results in the subjects feeling smaller compared to the world around them. Only when they move closer to the camera will they seem bigger, which also results in distortion. Long focal lengths make the subject appear bigger compared to the surrounding world, making them seem closer even at longer distances.

In the recent music video for “WDF” by B.U.G. Antman, he appears distorted in this early frame due to the wide angle lens used to film it. In this case, the distortion was clearly intentional, along with the 4:3 aspect ratio that was meant to give it a VHS type feel.

Historical ties and emotional impact are two very important factors when choosing an aspect ratio. Historical ties refers to the well-known differences in aspect ratio through eras of cinema and how those can be used to help tell the story. When you use an old, square-like aspect ratio, if the context makes sense, audiences will naturally attribute that to something from the past. This can help give a film (or scene) the extra edge it needs to immerse the viewer into the past, if that’s what’s necessary for the film. Emotional impact refers to the feeling an audience gets because of the aspect ratio. A 4:3 aspect ratio, if used properly, can give feelings of claustrophobia, tension, or even nostalgia. Extreme wide screens can add to the drama and make the place feel larger (and maybe more isolated). It’s important to carefully consider how the aspect ratio will effect your film’s feel to make sure you choose the right one.

Lining scripts during production helps ensure complete coverage and provides a guideline for how everything is being shot. This is especially helpful for editors because they can easily refer to it to figure out how each scene was shot and easily locate the right footage.

A shot list provides a game plan for how the crew will attack any given day of shooting. It includes all important information about what’s being shot, where, how, with who, and in what order.

Directors and DoPs should use visual references to communicate with each other because it’s the most surefire way to get everyone on the same page. With an existing example, the tone and style of the photography is much easier for everyone to understand with very few possible ways to misunderstand.

Camera diagrams show the placement and movement of the cameras compared to the placement and movement of the actors and set. These assist with communication regarding blocking by helping keep everyone on the same page (actors and camera operators) and limiting the number of surprises for everyone involved. With a plan in place, small adjustments can be made where necessary without having to re-explain everything to everyone.

While there is technically no minimum required number of shot types for any given scene, it’s helpful to have a master, over-the-shoulder (or conversational equivalent), close ups, and cutaways. This ensures proper coverage while also giving flexibility to showcase the emotion, dialogue, environment, or whatever is necessary for the scene.