Any picture in the film is directly related to the film being screened, and everything makes sense for what comes into the picture, from its position to the angle from the shooting. Picture composition can express ideas, and there are certain rules. Choosing the right composition and showing a certain background content in conjunction with the film's storyline is an important step in the filmmaker's process of forming his or her own audiovisual style.
Today, I will list the composition applications and general rules of medium, medium, panorama, large vista, large close-up, close-up, and medium-close-up.
01PART, medium shot
Medium shots typically capture one or more people from the waist up, while also including part of the surrounding environment. The mid-shot shot is an illustrative shot that plays the role of a scene construction, introducing the environment, characters, and their relationships with each other before dramatic changes occur. Two-person, multi-person, and over-the-shoulder shots are mostly mid-shots.
Example – "Naked"
1. The hero is in the focal point of the picture, slightly closer than the pedestrian. In this way, although there are pedestrians walking in the foreground, it is easier for the audience to see the facial expression of the hero. The mid-shot can show the body language and surrounding environment of the character, and can also express the inner world of the character through the character's facial expression, especially when the character's expression in the picture is clearly visible. This is the case with this diagram.
2. The position of the hero follows the three-point composition method to arrange, and there is a suitable head space in the picture. In order to highlight the protagonist, the surrounding visual elements are specially arranged to avoid interfering with the audience's reaction to the hero's reaction to the pedestrians in front.
3. The pedestrians who shuttle left and right not only extend the sense of space of the picture, but also add layers to the composition. The walking of the pedestrian forms a strong visual contrast with the male protagonist who is quietly stationary in the focal position, making the subject more prominent, thus guiding the audience to focus on him.
4. The shallow depth of field is used to blur the foreground, so that the audience's attention is focused on the protagonist. This effect can be achieved with a telephoto lens with a large aperture. The use of telephoto lenses can also place the camera farther away from the character, so that there is no need to worry about pedestrian bumps when shooting.
5. The picture is compressed on the z-axis, so the long-range lens is used when shooting. Because it's outdoors, the camera may be placed relatively far away from the subject to get such a narrow field of view.
02 PART, medium panoramic lens
In the panoramic shot, there are one or more figures, presumably from the knee position. Commonly used on multiplayer shots, two-person shots, or iconic shots. The medium-panorama lens can simultaneously show body language, part of the facial expression and its surroundings.
Through different compositional designs, the middle panorama can also establish dramatic character relationships. The medium-panorama lens needs to stay on the screen for a longer time so that the audience can see these relationships.
Example – "Nineteen Eighty-Four"
1, this poster is carefully placed in the scene, the poster on the "big guy" eyes seem to penetrate everything, is staring at the male protagonist in the middle of the picture. It is implied that in that country, the people were always under the surveillance of the government.
2, for such a scene of the lens, here to give the overhead space is too large. But for this scene, such a large space just shows that the character has been suppressed and succumbed to the "big guy" who has been staring at him on the poster behind him.
3. Including the TV screen is extremely important for the narrative of this picture. The hero on television is confessing to his unwarranted crimes, and he himself sits numbly in front of him, indicating that the crimes shown in the film are not facts, but are planned by the government after coercing and brainwashing the people.
4. The pillar added to the foreground extends the picture space and increases the sense of layering of the picture. Contrasting with the pillar in the background, a good depth clue is formed.
5. Although this chair only reveals a small part, its function is like a guide, which not only increases the depth of the picture, but also directs the audience's gaze to the middle of the picture.
6. When shooting, the distance, focal length and deepest depth between the camera and the character have been carefully designed, so that all the elements required for the picture are contained in the frame, and they are clear enough to be recognized by the audience.
03 PART, panoramic lens
The panoramic shot includes the whole body of the character as well as a large area of the background environment. This kind of lens focuses on the whole body of the character and the content it conveys, and is often used as a construction shot at the beginning of a scene to introduce the location, or to emphasize the change of emotion or the change of the character at the end. Multiplayer shots are suitable for panoramic shooting to show the dramatic tension between the characters. Panoramic shots need to stay on the screen for a longer period of time.
Example – Hacker Empire 2: Reloaded
1. When lighting, both characters have added backlighting to make the characters stand out. In practice, this is a common technique that can focus the viewer's attention on the most important place in the picture, which is usually the characters in the picture.
2. In this kind of scene, the space above the person's head is appropriate. When tightening the scene, the space above the character's head should be reduced. In addition, the overhead space can actually be purposefully expanded or compressed, thereby adding narrative points to the characters.
3. The characters in the picture do not stand according to the three-point composition method, but are closer to the two sides of the picture, there is not much space left behind the characters, and the space between the two is strengthened. This is a very unusual design. This positioning means that the two can only move to each other, indicating that the fight between the two is about to start.
4, the composition of this picture has only two layers: the foreground and background where the character is located, there is no other level, which makes the picture look a little flat, visually limited to the character can only move along the horizontal axis of the picture - rushing to each other and fighting with it. The use of closed composition also further emphasizes that the characters have no other off-screen space to choose from.
5, the illumination of the background is slightly darker than the character in the foreground by one or two F values, so the character becomes the focus of the picture, ensuring that the audience's attention must be focused on the character. Whether shooting is indoors or outdoors, day or night, this is a frequently used lighting strategy.
6. The two people in the picture are of the same size, which means that this is a fight of equal strength. This is a typical application of Heath's composition. The position of the two in the picture also forms a balanced composition, further emphasizing that the two are equal in strength. Add tension and suspense to the scene.
04 PART, large long-range lens
The big vision lens emphasizes the vastness of the environment. Generally used as a construction lens to show the environment itself, the large-scale lens is also suitable for showing the space of the crowd and the relationship between people, which is used for grand war scenes. Methods such as the three-point composition method, the equilibrium/unbalanced composition method, and the Heath's composition method are very useful when designing large-scale visions.
Example – "I Am Legend"
1. It can be seen from these buildings near the edge of the frame that the use of wide-angle lenses distorts the picture and distorts the buildings horizontally. In addition, the depth of the picture is exaggerated, showing the scene of empty people on the road.
2. The horizon is located in the lower third of the picture, which is the conventional composition arrangement of the three-point composition. This area is also the main focus of the picture. We noticed that the building's extension line led the line of sight naturally to this point, further underscoring that the once-bustling streets were now empty.
3. The character is not arranged in a central position, he is walking towards a point of interest in the composition of the three points of the picture, that is, the entrance to the museum, which is the point of interest in the lower right corner of the picture.
4. This street lamp in the foreground provides a visual reference for emphasizing the depth of the picture (compared with other street lights arranged on the background), suggesting the screen space beyond the picture frame.
5. Despite his small size, his dark clothes make him stand out on the bright steps of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. And he's the only horizontally active element in the picture, and it's easy for the viewer to notice him in this informative picture.
Even in such a big vision, it's easy to notice the presence of the characters, especially on the bright steps in the sun. If the figure is on a darker staircase, or walking in the shadow of a street, we won't easily notice him.
05 PART, large close-up
Large close-ups can enhance visual communication by showing a small object or a detail of an actor, reflecting the significance of that detail to the existence of the narrative content. It can also be used as an abstract lens to show the overall dramatic tone and theme.
Since the purpose of the large close-up is to focus the audience's attention on a certain detail of the object, the composition must strive to highlight a certain detail.
Example : Maria Braun's Marriage
1, in such a compact scene, we can adjust the lighting of the shooting. As long as the overall continuity of light is guaranteed, it is visually convincing. In the mid-shot before this shot, the angle of the light is actually completely different. However, due to the lack of change in the quality of the lighting and the overall feeling of the picture, these differences are not noticed.
2. There are only a few packs of cigarettes in this large close-up, but none of them fully appear in the picture, thus extending the space beyond the screen. This routine is often used to increase the depth of the composition of the picture.
3. When designing the picture, the pack of cigarettes is placed in the focus position, and in the two packs of cigarettes that form a diagonal line, the audience's eyes naturally fall on the focus. The use of shallow focus further highlights the cigarette from the picture. Using these compositional methods to emphasize something that doesn't seem too important, one can't help but become curious about the object's role in the film's story.
4. The use of shallow focus can place the focus on important areas of the picture, which further strengthens the emphasis of large close-ups. In this shot, the focus is on two small details: the text "Deutschland" (Germany) on the cigarette case, and the open cigarette. This pack of American cigarettes, produced for German smokers, is a symbol that fits perfectly with the political issues implicit in the film.
5, the big close-up can show all the small details in the picture. Therefore, when composing the picture - it is necessary to avoid things that distract the viewer's attention from the subject. If in this shot, we don't put the cigarette on a blank piece of paper, but replace it with a newspaper, then the picture effect will be greatly reduced.
06 PART, close-up
The most important function and purpose of close-up is to allow the audience to see the subtle movements and emotions (especially facial expressions) of the characters. Therefore, when designing the composition of such shots, visual elements that may distract the viewer should be placed outside the frame or hidden. Depth of field, focal length, lighting, and composition are all carefully designed to create a close relationship between the viewer and the characters.
Example – "Three Monkeys"
1. Please note that compared with the large blank space on the right side of the screen, this example leaves much less space. This design looks directly at the relevant compositional principles to ensure a suitable line of sight space.
2. Why cut off the top of an actor's head? Depending on the size of the lens scene, the space of the person's head must be adjusted accordingly. In this close-up, if the upper part of the actor's head is displayed, the composition will appear uneven and without beauty.
3. In close-up shots, the character's eyes are particularly important. Notice that there is a sparkle in the male protagonist's eyes. Without this light, his eyes would have looked "dead." If we can't get such a natural eye light, we need to carefully adjust the position of the light or reflector.
4. In most cases, although the rule of three-point composition is effective, it is not always applicable when choosing the focus of both sides. In the picture, the characters' heads are all a little forward, and their eyes are slightly off (compared to the three-point composition), and the result is a little crowded and the composition is a little unstable. This dot marks the exact location of the point of interest in the upper left corner.
5, another way to control the background visual information is to choose the appropriate lens to shoot, so that you can control the field of view of the picture. However, it should be noted that the shallow focus lens will deform the character's face, which may be unacceptable to the narrative.
6, the face of the character should dominate the composition of the picture, so that the audience can better see the actor's performance. Anything that interferes with this should be avoided. For this reason, standard lenses or smaller telephoto lenses are used when shooting close-ups of people, but wide-angle lenses are not used to avoid distorting the face.
7. The character is looking to the right side of the screen. This determines the position of the line of sight space, and the position of the character is also determined according to the three-point composition method and the proportion of the frame used. Note that in the frame, the white space on the right is much larger than on the left, and the characters are properly arranged close to the point of interest (although not completely on the point of interest).
8. The effect of shallow depth of field is obtained by controlling the depth of field, and the background is usually in a state of false focus. Without a large depth of field, the purpose is to avoid any content in the background that distracts the audience from the subject of the foreground.
07 PART, medium close-up
In the medium close-up, the person photographed is from the shoulder and chest position to the person's head. The close-up scene shows the character's facial expressions, allowing the audience to see the character's small movements and expressions, but his scene is slightly larger than the close-up, which includes the character's shoulders in the character's body language.
When shooting such shots, the camera is usually closer to the subject, blurring the background with a shallow depth of field, so that the subject is clearly highlighted in the composition. By selecting the content of the background, you can also add dramatic, symbolic, and illustrative elements to the middle close-up. When combined with panoramic, medium, and close-up shots, medium close-ups can convey something that is particularly meaningful or important in a scene.
Example - Perfume
1. At first glance, it may not be aware that this close-up shot is slightly overhead, but the crowd behind the protagonist illustrates this. In this way, the ground of the square behind the protagonist becomes part of the composition. If replaced by a close-up, such a relationship between the background and the subject cannot be revealed. Interestingly, this overhead composition makes the characters look not weak, but more confident and powerful. This shows that it is not the composition of a single shot that produces meaning, but the context of the shot that produces meaning.
2. In this close-up shot, the size of the character determines that part of the top content must be cut off to obtain suitable head space. Such compositional rules have nothing to do with the angle of the shot – unless there is a particular reason.
3. When choosing a camera lens, it is necessary to consider using a wide-angle lens to shoot as many as possible more than 750 extras on the background to emphasize the huge lethality of the protagonist, and also pay attention to the problem of the distortion of the character's face caused by it.
Although the sunlight on the background is stronger, the character's face does not leave any shadows. It is very likely that a butterfly cloth (a large piece of soft light material) was placed on the top of the actor's head. When shooting small scenes of people outdoors in the sun, such technical means are often used.
4. In this picture, the position of the character does not follow the rule of three-point composition, but in the middle of the picture, the symmetrical composition obtains a solid focus to emphasize the lethality of the protagonist at this time. Placing the character in the center of the composition also creates a close connection between the protagonist and the masses who shouted a few minutes ago to execute him.
5. The narrative point of this shot is to use a shallow depth of field to focus the audience's attention on the character's facial expressions, while ensuring that the crowd on the background is clear enough. The latter is an important component of the meaning of the picture, so the two must be harmoniously balanced. If shooting outdoors in the sun, we can choose the right aperture to get such a depth of field effect. It's not that hard to handle.
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