Urls of Interest: COMPOSITION:
  1. Composition Guidelines

    • Guide the eye (lighting - composition - editing and cutaways)

    • Static and dynamic (still image v. moving over time)

    • Objective (i.e. movement with purpose in case of pan: beginning, middle, end) - what is the point of this shot? what is the central information to give? what is the most important frame of the shot?

    • Speed (internal measure/counter - issues when too slow or too fast)

    • Composing your elements - do not rely on found environments - stage your elements - create your composition : for aesthetic purposes - for technical purposes (i.e. white shirts) - for meaning (give information or meaningful information through the composition)

    • What is the most important element and build composition around that

    • Avoid: centered composition - splitting the screen in halves or twos - use rule of thirds (i.e. in interview placement of head in frame for interview and negative space in the background)

    • The rule of thirds
           
           
           

    • Balance: tonal balance - mass or weight balance

    • Tricks - selective focus and lighting

    • Perspective and lines (creates dynamic compositions)

    • Use color to differentiate subject matter

    • avoid merging (plant out of the back of one's head)

  2. Exposure/Focus/Color Balance: while not issues of content are technical considerations which will take away from your content if done poorly)

    • importance of manual focus v. auto focus (ex. of subject moving in and out throw focus out momentarily)

    • focus of subject re: depth of field

    • focus of subject re: exposure

    • exposure re: video color

    • overexposure re: lens shades and backlight feature

    • White balance and color balance (setting white card to avoid blue or red skin tones)

    • Black balance (only available in professional cameras)

    • Color balance multiple cameras for multi-camera shoot

    • when to oversaturate (reality v. "healthy")

    • (reminder to check viewfinder and LCD viewer settings)

    • camera mounts/tripods: when to use tripod and when to use handheld - steadicams

    • title safe/action safe areas (standard NTSC 4x3 v. HDTV 16x9)

VIDEO COLOR: