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Types of Camera Shots

Extreme long-shotThe extreme long shot is a show which is used to establish the scene. Typically it will illustrate the exterior of a building or the land scape in which the film takes

place. Extreme long-shots give little detail to small scale objects but provides an impression of a place and the mood it holds. It can be used very effectively in a war or thriller film for example to show to the reader the damage or carnage caused throughout the film.

Long-shotThe long shot is a shot used to give the audiences view of a scene if they were acting as a spectator to the scene. It provides a life sized shot of what they

would see from their seat in the cinema to the screen. The focus in these type of shot is of the characters, however there is still a fair amount of scenery in the background.

Mid shot The mid shot illustrates a fair amount of detail of the character the shot is focusing on, and very little of the background, and the background of the mis en scene is typically blurry as the audience is encouraged to only look and feel connected to the character not the background or place. It creates a

certain trust of the character, because if the audience acted as the character the two are too close to be strangers to each other. It can also be used to create maximum effect of dialogue so the characters can be seen but not much eles.

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Close-upThis shot shows next to nothing but the focus of the shot. The shot is used to magnify the person so the audience can take in the detail of the character or object. It could be words written on a piece of paper (no other shot will make

the words legible) or an expression of a characters face. It is used to make the reader feel incredibly comfortable with the character or the opposite.

Extreme close-up

As its name suggests, an extreme version of the close up, generally magnifying beyond what the human eye would see in reality. An extreme close-up of a face, for instance, would show only the mouth or eyes, with no background detail at all. This is a very fake shot but can used for an extreme effect

such as too create tension, it is artificial because the camera shot evades the actors personal space. It is a difficult shot to take because even the slightest camera shake will be noticeable.

High angle shot

The high angle shot makes the audience feel they are above the character literally as well as in terms of class and moral beliefs. It shows the background beneath the character in little detail however the focus is the character beneath. This shot is typically used when the ‘good guy’ has got the ‘bad guy’ before he delivers a long speech before killing them.

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POV ShotThe shot enables the audience to play out one of the characters in the scene. It creates an enforced bond between character and audience as they literally are acting as one another.

Two shotTwo shot illustrates the two main protagonists of the scene. Two shots are a method of establishing a bond between two characters, an example of this would be two sports presenters commentating on a football game. It creates the effect that the two are equal in the shot because it focuses on the two of them. A two-shot could also involve movement or action. It is a good way to follow the interaction between two people without

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getting distracted by their surroundings.

Over the ShoulderThis shot helps to make the audience aware of the position of each person, and get the feel of looking at one person from the other's POV. It additionally illustrates some of the scenery to enforce their position of the mis en scene.

It's usual to cut between these shots during a conversation, alternating the view between the different speakers.