Making movies
Compose yourself!
Using the tried-and-tested rules of composition – and then adding motion – can transform your filmmaking to a Hollywood standard
PART SIX
“Don’t be tempted to just slap your subject right in the middle”
For wider shots, like landscapes, we need an eye-catching middle ground and background. But most crucial is some foreground interest, to lead our viewer’s eye into the shot and take them on a journey. Lines, whether man-made or natural, can help lead observers’ eyes into and through the shot. Power lines and roads can be simple yet effective tools here, particularly an s-shape, such as a winding path. Setting our camera up so we have a low perspective can make a straight road ahead of us appear triangular in shape and draw the eye towards the horizon. And whatever the case, we need to make sure our shapes and lines are taking the viewer where we want them to go, while keeping our horizons straight! Another helpful compositional tip that works for stills and video alike is using the frame-within-a-frame
technique – utilising surrounding objects to form a natural frame. If shooting a house, for example, overhanging branches from nearby trees can help frame the subject and draw the eye into our shot. Photographing or recording a subject through an actual window frame is another tried-and-true tip. These compositional hints are guidelines rather than rules, though. Sometimes ignoring the rule of thirds and going for a totally symmetrical shot can really work. But getting to know the standards before breaking them gives you a solid foundation. Golden rules With a still photograph, we’re often trying to tell a story within a single frame. But in video we usually need many shots that link together in short clips. A much-used video rule is wide, medium, tight, repeat.
WORDS BY ADAM DUCKWORTH
COMPOSITION IS ONE area where photographers making the move to shooting video have a big advantage. Many of the rules of organising the elements within a shot still apply. The classic rule of thirds is a good example, whereby we divide our frame into thirds – both horizontally and vertically – to create a nine- section grid. The most important elements are placed at the points where the grid intersects, as these are where the eye tends to go first. Don’t be tempted to just slap your subject right in the middle, or place the horizon across the centre of the frame. Aim for a third of the way in. And when there’s a moving subject, think about placing them on the third, providing space to move into.
This series is designed to help novice filmmakers get to grips with the essentials of making movies. In every 2023 issue so far, we have been covering key parts of the process. Follow along each month and by the end of the year, you’ll have all the advice to be the next Spielberg! Your teacher is Adam Duckworth, editor-in-chief of our sister title Pro Moviemaker. This instalment covers composition and motion.
It helps to start a scene with a wide establishing shot, so the audience can understand the environment. From here, move into medium and close-up shots. Then do it again. You often need a wider variety of shots, from different angles, to tell an effective story. Try not to make any shot last longer than ten seconds. In fact, the shots in most films only linger for three or four seconds. That’s
Issue 108 | Photography News 23
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