The 'Henley Regatta Sequence' scene analysis

The scene that i choose to do my video analysis of shots and camera angle and composition is from the film ‘The Social Network’. The scene is the twins boat race-’ the Henley regatta sequence’. This scene for me was by far one of the best scene that i have seen so far in this film.

 The shots were fast and short, focusing on the action as well as the emotion of the characters. The background score although did play a huge part in adding emotions to the scene but the shots in itself were also adding a lot of drama to the scene.

The first shot is of course the establishing shot(extreme wide shot) where the camera is panning from right to left to establish the location. It is a birds eye view camera angle. Anyone who belongs to England would recognize this place even if the small caption of the place's name was not given.

The establishing shot explains the environment or the setting that the scene is taking place in. Then a cut away shot, and a panning shot to again establish the scene, the people in the place and the action that is taking place. In one panning shot they show the boats resting meaning either preparing for the race.

Then the main race scene starts from where the camera tilts from the top to the bottom, giving a high and wide angle shot.it shows the entire length of the scene and its widths that establishes its majestic sense.It is a very wide shot. Also this shot features the character and the activity that is going on.(It is a wide angle shot so covers the environment and the characters slightly).

camera is panning with a wide angle, slightly high angle and very wide shot.

The next shot consists of the camera panning from right to left but with the camera static. The shot starts with a full shot that is converted into a medium full shot as the camera is static but the subject is moving.

The camera movement is a tilt up and panning from left to right that focuses on the main two character immediately telling the audience that the focus would be on the twins thus indirectly establishing this fact for the audience that the focus later on would be on the these two characters. Its a close shot.

the first scene is a panning scene with a medium close shot.
the second is a over the shoulder, high angle view, cowboy shot.
the third is a slightly high angle medium close shot.

This shot consists of various camera movements of tilting up, panning and cut away and cut back shots that establishes that the motion is the same again and again. The teams are crewing(rowing boats) and are racing against each others so they again and again look back and forth at the other teams to see how ahead they are or how further back they are. 

The shots are ranging from cowboy shots to extreme close up, medium close up, full close up and an over head shot that is again full close up to medium close up. One scene compromises of two three shots that go back and forth since the movements of the character is back and forth because they are rowing.

the first picture is an example of a full close up shot with adult angle view.
the second picture is an example of an over the shoulder full close up shot 
the third is an example of a wide close up shot of the subject.

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There are various insert shots that focuses on a particular part of the subjects body in this case the focus is on their hands and the pedal of the row boat that shows the masculinity and strength that goes into rowing and that its not as easy as it looks. These macro shots help in building the character identities like focusing on the face to show the enormous amount of physical strength that is required for rowing. Without this emotion shown clearly the viewers would not get the feel of the scene.The close up shots help in this too because it focuses on the emotions of the character that immediately help the audience in understanding what they are feeling and experiencing at the moment.There are a lot of jump cut shots in the scene overall and a lot of cut away shots and cut back shots.
                                                          insert shot, low angle view

 

                                                  close up shot with adult angle view                                               

The scene is a close up shot with the subject on the far corner of the frame so that background is visible that shows the of the entire river and the action going on. The position of the character is such that the audience can assume that he has turned away from the scene that  he was witnessing.either because what he sees has a unpleasent effect on him and does not pleases. Thus m making clear to the audience on whose side he is on and how this effects him and others like him and whether this should effect the audience as well and if they should relate to him and show the same emotion as the subject.

The last shot is again with the camera tilting up and a very wide shot that shows the end of something that started.

shots,camera angles, degree rules and compositions

Head room is the space between the top of the head and the top of the composition or frame.Subjects eyes are on the top third of the composition usually, or on any of the points on the rules of the third as long as they are off center. To much space is left above the head is known as 'dead space' which is undesirable.

Leading room is the space where the dramatic energy is directed.for close up shots lead room is also called 'nose room' more space in front of the face because energy is projected there.

Anticipatory framing establishes that the camera needs to anticipate the movement within the scene rather than react to it. If reacting camera would have jerky movements and the subject would not be positioned correctly in the frame.The camera should bring as little attention to itself a possible.

Choreography of movements is when shots of other cameras are merged into shots of a different camera that when viewed together you don't feel the difference due to skillful editing.
                                         example of head shot and leading room/nose room.

 Camera shots.
We studied various examples of camera shots and so i tried some of them on my own and some with my partner.

there are 3 common mistakes made by film makers and photographer
1.too much dead space/negative space(when you leave to much space on the top of the characters head)

2.fail to leave enough head space above head, in case of close shots its okay but not advisable for full or medium shot.

3.cut of at the limbs(ankles, wrists etc.)

 Full shot
from head to toe.the context should be there.graphically wide area so that body language is visible and more people can come in the frame.

 Giving my image wider space i have a full shot that allows body language and enough space for other people as well.

Medium full shot

first cut just above the knees.

Cowboy/Medium shot
space below waist enough that if the character puts his/her hand down it is not cut.

Medium close shot
great shot for less environment.multitask emotional state, body language, props and other characters.

Close shot
face primarily. focuses on the emotions. head is slightly cut,chest is cut but the eyes and the face remains the center.

Wide close up
inner world of the character is highlighted.just above the top of the characters head,top of the shoulder.

Full close up
rule of thirds must be followed. dont clip the chin but head can be cut slightly again.

Medium close up
eyebrows above can be cut but the chin can be slightly clipped of. basically what is the character saying beneath their words.

Extreme close up
chin to be cut of so that means frame from eyebrows to the lower lips.

Macro close up

features a particular part of the body. punctuate a narrative that points out the smaller details.


 Camera angles
Adult view

Birds eye view

Worms eye view

High angle

Low angle

camera movements, camera angles, shots

In order for us to shoot a short film of 5 to 6 minutes we need to learn the essential rules of video-graphy.

The essential rules of video-graphy are as follows:

• objective/theme:the basic theme and idea of the scene being shot. 
• set up a scene:  establishing the characters setting.
• establish your character(need camera angle for this):the camera focuses on the main character.
• elaborating the activity:focusing on the activity of the character, what they are doing.

 Camera Movements 

Are a very important part of any film. The movements of the camera makes all the difference in instilling emotion in the viewer. The movements enables the viewer to feel like a part of the characters life.

The movements of a camera a divided under two categories

    Stationary movements                                                    

Stationary movements is where the camera is fixed on a tripod(it is stationary and still), the  camera position is stable and the movements involve panning, tilt, zoom, boom, follow, pedestal etc.. 

    Traveling movements

In traveling movements the camera is physically moving. the camera movements are on the horizontal pathway.Either in the form of dolly, crane, crab, tracking, arc shot etc.. 

Camera shots

The exact terminology varies between production environments but the basic principles are the same.

• Extreme wide shot:also known as establishing shot. the view is so far from the subject that he isn't even visible.
• Very wide shot:the subject is visible but barely. The emphasis is still on placing him in his environment.
• Wide shot/long shot/full shot:The subject takes up the full frame, or at least as much as comfortably possible.its a head to toe shot where the subject is given enough space to allow other subjects as well or movements on their part as well.
• Mid Shot:Shows some part of the subject in more detail while still giving an impression of the whole subject.
• Medium full shot:Space is left above the head(head room) but the first cut appears right above the knees
• Cowboy/Medium shot:Space below waist as such that if the subjects let their arms hang loosely the wrist or the hands will not be cut. Head room is given.
• Medium close shot:Great shot for less environment.Cut above the waist. Leaves small head room but will allow for props and other subjects but limited environment.
•  Close shot:face primarily on the emotional state. Head is cut slightly and the frame cuts horizontally right in the middle of the chest.
• Wide close up: subjects head is cut but the bottom frame cuts just below the shoulders of the subject. Inner world of the character is emphasized and leading room is given although the character is not placed exactly on the center of the frame, he/she is slightly off-center following the rule of thirds.
• Full close up: following the rules of third. The top part of the head can be cut slightly but not the chin(below the chin can be cut).
• Medium close up:face can be cut just above the eyebrows of the subject and the chin can be cut but only slightly.
• Extreme close up:from eyebrows to clips. Great details of the characters face.
• macro close up:featuring particular part of the body.
• Cut-In:Shows :some (other) part of the subject in detail
• Two-Shot:A shot of two people, framed similarly to a mid shot
•  Over-the-Shoulder Shot: Looking from behind a person at the subject
•  Noddy Shot:Usually refers to a shot of the interviewer listening and reacting to the subjet
•  Point of view shot:from the perspective of the viewer. Either the viewer, or the subject or the camera.

essential shots of any video

•  jump cut:A sudden cut away.
• shot reverse shot:when the shot cuts from one person to another person, back and forth. For example when a conversation is taking place between two people.
• action shot:a shot that views an action from different angles but each time the shot changes the action shown in one shot is again show in a different shot in a different angle.

Camera angles

• Birds eye view:is where there is an aerial view of the setting
• High angle:is where the camera is right-on the top of the subject so that a proportion of the subjects body is exaggerated that is their head a-is seen to be very large and the feet and legs very small and long.
• Adult angle: is when the camera is on the eye level
• Low view:is the opposite of the high view with the feet of the object exaggerated and the head is very small.
• Worms eye:view is a child's view or a kids view. almost the same as a low view but it is taken from some distance so the camera is not exactly under the main object.

  Composition

Rules of third

Head room

Horizontal and vertical lines

Check your background

continuity shots 

 Establishing shot are long or extreme long shot that has important figures and codes. It shows the spatial relationship between the important figures and objects and its setting in the scene.

Shot reverse shot are 2 shots edited together alternating characters. Characters in one frame usually looks left and in the other frame, right following the 180 degree rule. Over the shoulder framing are common in these shot reverse shot.

180 degree rule is a very important rule for vidoegraphy.It is usually followed in any video and is very rarely broken. The line of axis plays a very important part in the 180 degree rule. This line stretches from one subject to the  other subject creating an invisible but straight line among the two subjects. On the basic of this line does the camera move in an angle of 180 degree.If the camera is placed on the right side of one subject, it would rotate at 180 degree angle. After rotating it will be placed at the left side of the other subject while maintaing the line of axis.The rotation is not always show,but the180 degree rule can be applied in different shots like shot reverse shot or action shot or eye line shot.

Eye line match is that the camera matches your eye direction. It follows your eyes to where you are looking.Like one shot would be a persons face with his eyes look up at something. The next shot would be of what he is looking at, which might be a lizard on the wall.Camera angles play a part here,(high and low camera angles.)
Match on action is are shots that shows an action being carried out like throwing a ball. one shot might be from the back of the person when he pulls his arm back and and brings it forward with speed and release the ball .The next shot would be from his front where we see him releasing the ball, his arm stretched out in front of him, the ball no longer in his hand. it would be the same action continued in two shots.
 

There is also a 30 degree rule that acts as a jump cut, from one shot to an other. often of the same scene showing the subject in one shot, then showing the subject in a 30 degree angle in a other shot just to make it less monotonous.
 

Axial cut is a shot where the camera slowly moves at a 30 degree angle and simultaneously zooms in on the character as well.Also a type of jump shot that moves closer or further away from the subject.
 

Cross-cutting are two scenes from different or same locations going simultaneously together. The directors show it by dividing the frame in half where on one side the activity of one person is show. Simultaneously on the other side of the frame the activity of the other person is being shown.Or it can be simply be shown in various shots,one repeated after the other. Helps to add suspense, thriller and drama to the scene.
 

Cut away is a shot that breaks the continuity of the film by adding another scene relating to it like a scene shows a classroom, a cut away shot is of a boy sleeping at the back. The cut back shot would again be of the whole classroom.
 

Establish and Re-establishing shot is the same of first showing a wide angle shot of the environment then another shot with various close ups of the subjects in the frame, then a re-establishing shot of the environment again.
 

Treatment and buffer shot/cheat shot is a shot that is added after the rough cut of the  film has been made, the director realizes that another shot was needed to show the linking so a new shot, that has been cleverly edited is added to the rough cut of the film.
 

L cut/ Spilt shot is when the shot is cut before the person says something. the shot is changed to show the other subject when the voice of the first character is heard.
 

Fast cutting are several consecutive shots of a brief duration.
 

Slow cutting are shots that are of a longer duration.
 

Match shot also called Graphic shot are 2 different objects, two different spaces , or two different composition in which an object in the two shots graphically match. it helps to establish a strong continuity of action and linking the two shots metaphorically.
 

Transitions comes in the form of dissolve, wipe or iris.