medium shot



Close up



Long Shot



Shot Size
A professional looking video shoots pictures in recognisable shot sizes. These are different sizes of picture that have evolved to be most effective from the viewer’s point of view. Also by selecting different shot sizes and different camera angles you can edit the pictures together to make an interesting video.

Someone making a home video tries to contain all the activity in a Wide Shot which is not surprising as this is how the eye generally sees the world.

If you put yourself very close to the action or sit next to a person then your field of view is limited. The camera uses the zoom lens to restrict the view of the action or a person – Close Up - or widen the shot to include say two people – a Two Shot.

You can tell a story visually by filming it in three ways:
1 A Wide Shot of the whole scene – a person in a garden or lets say the beach (or football field) and the sea and some selected people about to swim (or do fitness training) on a cold day.



2 Close Ups of a person’s face- perhaps before and after the plunge into the freezing sea.



3 Medium Shots of one or two of the featured people before and after to show some of their features and to be able to distinguish them.


Put these shots together with a voice over commentary, and you could have a funny film about the joys of doing exercise in the middle of winter.




Camera Moves
To create a really professional look to your video you need to employ standard camera moves. The way you move your camera can be described in standard ways;
Zoom: In & out, By using the zoom control the camera seems to move closer to or further away from the subject. There is a difference between zooming and moving the camera itself closer or further away (tracking) – experiment and you can see the difference in the viewfinder. When a shot zooms in closer to the subject, it is called getting “tighter”. As the shot zooms out, it is getting “looser”.

Track: when the camera itself moves closer to the subject or further way. Track in or track out.

Pan: The camera moves left to right, or right to left with no up and down movement.

Tilt: The opposite to pan, the camera moves up and down, with no horizontal movement.

Follow shot: Any sort of shot when you are holding the camera, and you follow the action whilst walking or in a vehicle. Needs practice to keep it really steady.

In practice camera moves are often a combination of several basic moves. For example, when you’re zooming in, unless your subject is in the exact centre of frame, you’ll have to pan and/or tilt at the same time to end up with a good shot.

General Tips
Successful filming is about checking for things that could go wrong before they go wrong and spoil your video. Many people come back with no sound on their DV tapes, or really bad pictures because they have not checked that everything works before going out to film.

Before leaving for the location:

Check the mic on the camera works
Check the external mic works too
Check the camera works
Check the battery is fully charged
Take a spare battery with you
Don’t forget the tripod.
Remember to take mini DV tape or memory card

1. It is better to use preselected shot sizes such as a wide shot or close up, than to over use the zoom in and the zoom out – keep the zoom in for dramatic moments.

2. Video generally looks better with as much light as possible - within reason - on the subject or the action, so it is good to shoot outside with daylight.

3. If you are filming inside put on all the lights in the room. You can use film lights but they take some time setting up. Set the white balance for interior – some cameras have a button that will set the camera for interior and exterior shooting – remember to change it when you go back outside.

4. Shoot the same action with a variety of shots and from different angles and positions. Yes you need to ask people to do the same thing several times, in exactly the same way.
Shoot much more than you think you will need – video tape is cheap.

5. You may need permission to film in some public and private places – get this permission before arriving on location.

6. Get your friends to help - people usually find filming can be fun and you can always use another pair of hands.