camera shots: what they can do

For my advertisement, I'm going to have to be able to use a camera properly to produce the best i can and help the advertisement to show how and what it's advertising. Through the usage of camera shots and angles you can cleverly direct and control how the viewer thinks and reflects on what they've watched. For instance, if i filmed someone from an ariel view (ariel shot)and they were by themselves on a street or road, the viewer would accommodate this shot with isolation and loneliness because the small insignificant human would contrast deeply with the large empty landscape. So camera shots and angles are highly important in setting the mood and atmosphere of the film/advertisement and I find the subtlety of how its done important too.

In lesson we researched how camera angles and framing showed the emotion of the characters in the film "Hunger". The film of which is about an Irish political prisoner who starves himself in protest of the English settlement in Northern Ireland. The scene of which we analysed was an emotional meeting between Bobby (the starving prisoner) and his mother. This is what we found out from it:

The OVER THE SHOULDER SHOT from behind Bobby's mother gave us an almost point of view shot and helped us realise how she's distraughtly looking at her dying, pain ridden son. The over the shoulder shot is similar to the point of view shot as it gives us an insight into what the characters looking at and from this we can gain information on the emotions and actions portrayed.

The CLOSE-UP SHOT of Bobby shows the state he's in. from this shot we can see his pain and how the starvation is taking effect. Close-up shots usually give us a detailed view of a characters emotions and feelings and this shot in the film does just that.

The FOCUS-PULL that focuses on the mother first then Bobby, shows us the relationship and emphasizes the emotions of which are being felt. By pulling from the mothers face to Bobbies, it gives us the viewer the idea she's looking sorrowfully at her son as we see her emotions first and then her son of whom they are directed at. Focus pull does this often and is similar to a two-shot in that it shows emotions between to humans to create contrast and emphasize the state of the atmosphere.

The EXTREME CLOSE-UP SHOT simply emphasizes his illness and well being. The extreme close-up often gives extra detail and implications into how the character/object is.

The POINT OF VIEW SHOT from Bobby's perspective shows his state of mind and illness. During this shot he's looking at the ceiling and him/the camera pans downwards from the ceiling to his mother. Point of view shots usually emphasize how the characters feeling or sometimes simply what they're looking at.

The FADES and BLURS give the effect of his illness. Fading and blurriness for humans is usually a sign of bad health and illness and this is exactly what it's illustrating. Blurs and fades are usually used for point of view shots of a character or cutting from one scene to another.