How To Make Good Cinematography
As we already discussed, cinematographers are very skilled in taking beautiful pictures. They also have a pretty important job! That is why it is so impressive to watch them work; they know how to use their skills to tell a story with their photography.
Making good cinematic photos requires more than just knowing how to take nice pictures. It takes being able to put your camera where you want it, understanding when something is not working and finding new ways to make it work, having time to experiment, and using appropriate tools.
This article will go into some of these points as well as different types of lighting for stills and videos.
Learn to read light
A good cinematographer is someone who can use light effectively to convey mood, create shadows, highlight objects, and so on. When shooting a movie, there are many instances where lighting is of importance.
There’s a scene where a person runs across a room or up a set of stairs. The audience wants to know how fast they were running, but it also needs to feel real. You could try using natural sunlight as a source for this, but it may look fake due to all the bright lights being used in other parts of the film at that time.
Instead, find ways to use artificial light to achieve the same effect. For example, an old-fashioned way would be to put a strong reflector under the lamp next to the camera. This would help make the light seem more normal and less overbearing.
Understand composition
A good starting place for aspiring cinematographers is understanding what makes a strong visual argument in terms of composition. This will go a long way towards helping you achieve your goal of becoming a professional photographer or filmmaker!
Composition refers to how an image is organized and this can be done very simply - by using verticals, horizontals, triangles, squares, circles, Vs, and/or diagonal lines. Powerful compositions use these elements effectively to tell a story or create interest.
A triangle creates tension because it doesn’t have complete closure- there is nothing that connects all three points. An example would be putting your hand over a gun barrel, creating a sense of danger while also establishing conflict as you try to pull the trigger.
Another classic example is taking a picture of the sunset - with the sun disappearing behind the horizon, there is no direct light left. There are many other examples like this where the element breaks down the space, making it seem smaller.
Using these types of shapes and patterns, along with contrast, will result in more interesting pictures. The opposite of this is when parts of the frame feel empty or lack anything important. Boring, non-striving images are not attractive to most people.
Practice making good use of your lights
A light is not just a light! There are many different ways to make great uses of lighting in your films. This article will go into detail about how to use sun as a key light, backlight, rim light, and more!
The first way we will talk about using sunlight as a key light comes down to what type of light you want to create with it.
If you would like to create an atmospherey or natural looking light, then choosing a bright area of the sky where there is lots of sun exposure is the best source.
Alternatively, if you would like to create a colder tone light, then choosing a darker part of the sky that has limited amount of sunshine is the better option.
Know your camera settings
A good cinematographer knows their camera very well, which includes all of its functions and modes. This person is also familiar with it’s limitations and how to work around them!
Cameras have lots of different settings such as white balance, shutter speed, ISO, and more. Different settings affect what you can do with the photo, so knowing these things is important.
For example, higher ISOs (intensities of light) mean better quality photos, but they are usually slower to take pictures due to the sensor taking longer to warm up.
A good DP will be careful not to overexpose or under-expose a picture if possible. They will use backlight exposure compensation or neutral density filters when needed to get the right look they want.
And of course, a good DP is aware of each cameras strengths and weaknesses. For instance, many professional still cameras have in-camera stabilizers that help create sharper images.
Be familiar with different film stocks
There are many different types of films that are categorized according to their chemical composition. These include chemically-processed stock, like regular old silver halide (aka “regular” or “classic” film) and aniline, but also more exotic options such as isobutyl alcohol and tungsten hexavalent emulsions.
Some cinematographers prefer one type over another, so it is important for you to be aware of which ones they are! The best way to do this is by watching some movies and studying the settings and lighting styles.
There are several online resources where you can find all sorts of tips and tricks for shooting in various film formats. You may even get lucky and stumble upon someone sharing their secrets!
Hopefully you will soon feel comfortable enough making your own decisions when it comes to developing your cinematic style.
Know your lenses
A lens is the tool that captures light and images it onto a sensor, where photos are recorded. There are many different types of lenses!
The size of the focal length (the distance from the front of the camera to the film or digital sensor) determines what kind of shots you can take, as does the f-stop. The wider the focal length, the more wide angle shots you can get, for example.
A normal lens has a focal length of 50 millimeters (mm), which means its shot field is one half life of the lens - about 16 feet (5 meters). This is usually enough for most still lifes and close up photography.
Wideangle lenses have a much longer focal length than a normal one, often 200 mm or even 400 mm! These give you very sweeping landscapes and vistas, making them great for traveling with a camera. Some professional photographers use ones even 1km long!
Telephoto lenses have a shorter focal length than a standard lens, only 100-150mm, perfect for capturing things in closeup such as a baby sleeping or jewelry.
These three terms refer to three basic shapes of lenses: full frame, cropped frame, and panoramic. Almost every type of photo requires some sort of lens!
Full frame cameras have an image area equal to the size of the sensor, creating nice large pictures. Most professional grade DSLRs are this way, but not all smart phones have one.
Be familiar with different camera settings
A good cinematographer will have several skills in depth, one of which is knowing how to use the various camera settings. There are many types of cameras that require you to know what settings work best for what type of shot.
For example, if you wanted to create an action scene then there’s no setting your camera can have that isn’t hard or noisy. So, instead you must use a slow shutter speed (this creates blurry images as light comes in slowly) or use off-camera lighting (where you have lights attached to a stand next to the subject).
Another example would be creating a moody interior or exterior photograph. This requires neutral colors and shades of shadows and darkness. Only way to achieve this is by using a tripod and pre-lit natural light or heavy black cloth used as background coverup.
Know your lighting equipment
A few pieces of light source equipment you will want to own are at least two lights, a reflector or white card, and a camera body with a tripod. Beyond that, it’s up to you!
The types of lights you use in cinematographic photography depend mostly upon what kind of effect you desire. For example, if you wanted to create an eerie atmosphere then a cream-colored, low intensity light would be ideal. If you wanted to highlight certain areas then a brighter, more intense light would work better.
There are many brands that make very similar products so buying one isn’t necessarily expensive unless you pick something really fancy.