Grammar of the Shot

Christopher J. Bowen has worked within the motion media industries for over 18 years as a cinematographer, editor, director, and educator. Currently, he is an Associate Professor of Film Production and Visual Media Writing at Framingham State University. He is also an Avid Certified Instructor, Creative Director of his own media production company, Fellsway Creatives, and author of the companion text, Grammar of the Edit.

Acknowledgments Introduction Chapter One aEURO" The Shots: What, How and Why? What to Show Your Audience? Choosing Your Frame Aspect Ratio A Brief History of Aspect Ratios Further Exploration aEURO" Why We Might Like Widescreen so Much An Introduction to Shot Types - The Basic Building Blocks of Motion Pictures Long Shot / Wide Shot Medium Shot Close-Up The Extended Family of Basic Shots aEURO" The Powers of Proximity Extreme Long Shot / Extreme Wide Shot Very Long Shot / Very Wide Shot Long Shot / Wide Shot / Full Shot Medium Long Shot / Knee Shot Medium Shot / Waist Shot / Mid Medium Close-Up / Bust Shot Close-Up Big Close-Up (UK) / Choker (USA) Extreme Close-Up Why Do We Even Have Different Shot Types? Pulling Images from the Written Page Script Breakdown for Cinematographers Shot Lists Storyboards Phases of Film Production LetaEURO (TM)s Practice Chapter One Summation aEURO" The Pictures Speak Related Material Found in Chapter Seven: Working Practices Chapter One aEURO" Review Chapter One aEURO" Exercises & Projects Chapter One aEURO" Quiz Yourself Chapter Two aEURO" The Basics of Composition Simple Guidelines For Framing Human Subjects Headroom Subjective Versus Objective Shooting Styles Look Room / Nose Room The Rule of Thirds Camera Angle Horizontal Camera Angles 360 Degrees Method Clock Face Method Camera Position Method The Frontal View The A3/4 View The Profile View The A3/4 Back View The Full Back View Vertical Camera Angles Neutral Angle Shot High Angle Shot High Angle of an Individual High Angle as a POV High Angle of an Environment Low Angle Shot Low Angle of an Individual Low Angle as a POV Low Angle of an Environment The Two-Shot: Frame Composition with Two People The Profile Two-Shot The Direct-to-Camera Two-Shot The Over-the-Shoulder Two-Shot The Dirty Single The Power Dynamic Two-Shot The Three-Shot Chapter Two Summation - Wrapping up the Basics of Composition Related Material Found in Chapter Seven: Working Practices Chapter Two aEURO" Review Chapter Two aEURO" Exercises & Projects Chapter Two aEURO" Quiz Yourself Chapter Three aEURO" Composition aEURO" Beyond the Basics The Illusion of the Third Dimension The Use of Lines The Horizon Line Vertical Lines Dutch Angle Diagonal Lines Curved Lines The Depth of Film Space aEURO" Foreground / Middle Ground / Background Foreground Middle Ground Background Depth Cues Overlapping Object Size Atmosphere The Camera Lens aEURO" The Observer of Your Film World What is a Camera Lens? Primes vs Zooms The Prime Lens The Zoom Lens Lens Perspective Lens Focus aEURO" Directing the VieweraEURO (TM)s Attention Pulling Focus or Following Focus Chapter Three Summation aEURO" Directing the VieweraEURO (TM)s Eyes Around Your Frame Related Material Found in Chapter Seven: Working Practices Chapter Three aEURO" Review Chapter Three aEURO" Exercises & Projects Chapter Three aEURO" Quiz Yourself Chapter Four aEURO" Lighting Your Shots aEURO" Not Just What You See, but How You See It Light as an Element of Composition Light as Energy Color Temperature Color Balance of Your Camera Natural and Artificial Light Correcting or Mixing Colors on Set Quantity of Light: Sensitivity Quantity of Light: Exposure Quality of Light: Hard Versus Soft Hard Light Soft Light Contrast Low-key Lighting High-key Lighting Color Basic Character Lighting: Three-Point Method Contrast Ratio or Lighting Ratio Motivated Lighting aEURO" Angle of Incidence Front Lighting Side Lighting Lights from Behind Lights from Other Places Set and Location Lighting Controlling Light aEURO" Basic Tools and Techniques Chapter Four Summation aEURO" Learning to Light aEURO|