Wednesday, September 27, 2023

Camera Shots- Blog #8

 





Welcome Back!

This blog will continue and finish displaying the rest of my camera shots. 

Below are the list of shots that will be covered in this blog:

  • Wide shot
  • Two-shot
  • Aerial shot
  • Point-of-view-shot
  • Over-the-shoulder shot


Wide Shot

A wide shot shows the subject within their surrounding environment.  This tells the audience who is in the picture, where the scene is set, and when the scene takes place. In this picture, you can see the effect of the surrounding environment framing the woman in the picture. The frames decreasing in size created by the lighting makes the scene seem ominous. 


 

Two-shot 

A two-shot has two subjects who appear in the frame, this shot is often used for romance, tension, action, or simple dialogue. A two-shot is good to use to show each characters reactions all in one shot. In this shot, you can see the focus is the two girls having some type of dialogue while having certain reactions to that dialogue. 



Aerial shot 

An aerial shot gives viewers a deeper understanding of what is happening below, it can give the audience a different point of view and create a story of some kind. It can also convey a sense of danger. In this shot, you can notice how the poles form a kind of triangle surrounding the fire hydrant. If this wasn’t shot as an aerial shot then you probably wouldn’t have noticed that. If this shot was shown in a movie, it could have contributed to the storyline.



Point-of-view shot

A point-of-view shot is meant to show you what the character sees from their pov. This puts the audience directly into the headspace of the character, this lets them experience their emotional state, their actions, and the reaction of the characters around them but in a more personal level. In the photo above, you can see the people around are talking directly towards the camera, the boy in the middle makes that clear with his hand gestures towards the camera. The audience can personally connect with the characters surrounding the camera by seeing it as their own pov. 



Over-the-shoulder shot

Over-the-shoulder shot is a popular shot where a subject is shot from behind the shoulder of another. The subject closest to the camera is seen from behind/ back of neck or head, and the subject farthest from the camera is seen from the front , making the shot useful for showing reactions, emotions, actions, during conversations. This is used to emphasize the connection between the characters. In the picture above, you can see over the shoulder of a girl facing a dog. You can clearly see the dogs reaction to what the girl is doing. 


* all photos are original

That’s all the camera shots we focused on this lesson. 

Next up, Camera Angles!
See you then!

Monday, September 18, 2023

Camera Shots- Blog #7

 






Welcome back!

Last week I had a lesson on Camera Shots, which I recently learned isn’t just the way you take a picture, instead I learned about what differentiates them based on the way they are taken, what is in the shot, and what it portrays. I had the chance to go around my school and take visual representations so I can show what I learned about each type of shot. There will be two blogs dedicated to these Camera Shots, I will explain what each shot represents or portrays and explain what the certain shot is used for. 

Below is a list of the shots I will mention in this blog: 

  • Establishing shot
  • Master shot
  • close-up shot and extreme close-up
  • mid shot
  • long shot

Visuals of each shot:


Establishing shot

- An establishing shot is usually seen as the first shot of the first scene you see in a film. It’s called an “establishing” shot because it’s meant to establish the location or environment of the science that will commence right after the establishing shot. This shot can give general information just giving the audience visual clues regarding time or just the general situation. Not only can it have a visual effect, it can also have an emotional effect. It can establish the mood of the film based off of what the shot consists of, which can in turn, establish the tone it gives off to the audience. For example, if the shot starts off with a chaotic birthing scene, then the established mood that the film starts off with is chaotic and the audience will start off in constant suspense. In regards to this picture I took here, you can see the “scene” is established outside during the day while the sun is at its brightest. You can probably assume that this takes place in a public place, maybe a school, because of the particular blue benches being seen all throughout the shot. 



Master Shot

- The Master Shot can be confused with establishing shot because it somewhat is but it technically isn’t in the same time. This shot is shown typically after the establishing shot, the difference is that the establishing shot focuses more on location while the master shot focuses on capturing the actors acting throughout a whole scene. A master shot can have other shots woven in seamlessly because it’s the first fully filmed scene. While the establishing shot introduces the location, date or time, a master shot introduces characters and their actions. Referring to the photo provided above, this would be defined as a master shot because it introduces characters in “action” as the first scene in action. Excusing the fact that this is only a shot and not a fully filmed scene, you can assume the characters are arguing or expressing a strong emotion based on their hand gestures and facial expressions. From here you would be judge each character as a first impression based off of how they act and speak in the first scene. 



Close- Up Shot

- A close- up shot is focused mostly on emitting the characters emotions, it not only shows us how the character feels, it also drives us to feel that way as well. The denotation of a close-up shot is that the characters face or an object is meant to fill most of the screen or be at close range. This shot is mostly about emotion, what it makes the audience feel and what the character feels. It can create a relationship between the character and its audience through empathy because the only thing you’re focusing on is what is being shown in the close-up shot. For example, the picture provided above shows a girl who seems confused, surprised, scared, or nervous. As the “audience”, seeing this shot makes the scene suspenseful because I don’t know what is making her emote in that way. This close-up shot makes me feel connected to the character because I’m invested and I want to know more about what is happening or what will happen. 



Extreme Close-Up Shot

- The difference between a Close-Up Shot and an Extreme Close-Up shot its focus and what it emphasizes. In a Close-Up Shot it focuses on the character’s full face or object so it appears relatively large and in detail to emphasize its emotion, in an Extreme Close-Up Shot it’s focus is to emphasize a small area or detail like the characters mouth or eyes. This not only separates good actors from great actors based on whether or not they can show emotion only using their eyes or mouth, this can clearly emphasize what the character is feeling deep inside because “the eyes are the windows to the soul” so you can see what the character is actually feeling inside. 

 

Mid Shot

- A Mid Shot is taken from about the waist up. This is supposed to focus on the character in its environment. Its purpose is to show how the character acts in its environment, this shot is to emphasize the character as well as what is around them, it’s also mostly used for dialogue. In the picture above, you can assume the boy in in school or in a public building based on his environment therefore you can assume his behavior, speech, and outerwear based off his environment. This can also connect the audience with the character because the mid shot makes it seem like you’re part of the scene since it’s taken from the waist up. 


Long Shot

- Long Shots shows the character from top to bottom or from head to toe. There is still some scenery behind the character but the character is supposed to be the main focus. This is to see how the character acts in full body scenes by focusing on their body language more than their facial expressions. This is also to see how the character reacts to its environment and/or people around them. Using the picture above as an example, this long shot shows that this girl is tying her shoe on a ledge in a public building or school. Since this shot shows her full body, you can base her environment off of her clothes alone. 


*All photos are original excluding the graphic in the beginning. 

That’s all for today, I will mention the rest in my next blog!

Sunday, September 17, 2023

Using Canva- Blog #6

 



Welcome back!


This blog is the finale to what I learned in my completed Canva Lessons. 

The lesson I based this blog on is Canva Lesson 7. 


Canva lesson 7 thought me how to create QR codes and use the drawing tool. It also taught me how to explore the apps elements tab to find google maps to insert a location and YouTube to insert videos. 


Below is a visual summery of my completed work for lesson 7 excluding Character Builder.



Created on Canva


Finally, I learned how to create my own character using an app called Character Builder included with Canva. I didn’t involve Character Builder in my visual summery because I wanted to give it a personal spotlight to emphasize how much I enjoyed the app.


Below I will show you the character I created and the setting I had placed them in. 




I found this tool extremely helpful and interesting to use. I really enjoyed creating my own character and making it similar to my own stature. I will be using this in future projects for any of my other Cambridge classes. This will help personalize and have a creative difference on my projects now that I know about the convenience of this tool. 


As you can see, Canva has made it possible, in more ways than one, to creatively express my interests and skills through design. It has allowed me to expand on my creative horizon and has given me the tools to grow further in that aspect. I will be recommending this platform as the first tool necessary for school projects and extracurriculars. I personally, will be using Canva for the rest of my school career. After completing all of my Canva lessons and using my blogs as my canvas for creativity, I can now confidently say that Canva has become my official tool for school. 



Have a great day!


Tuesday, September 12, 2023

Using Canva- Blog #5

 



Welcome back!

Since my last blog I have already learned so much about what Canva can help me with, such as my designs and how creative they are  for my AICE Media Studies project. 

This blog will be a report on what I learned in lesson six of Canva skills.

This lesson was more about animation and effects, unfortunately you guys wont be able to see the animation in action on the blog itself but I will provide a link so you can view the effects yourself. 

Below is a summery page on what I learned altogether in lesson six of Canva




*Each picture will have the animation or effect I added.

I really enjoyed doing this lesson because I loved seeing the effects and animations come to life. The water picture with a flow animation and the elephant with the tumble effect, I really loved seeing a picture come to life with just a few alterations and the click of a button made easy by Canva. 

On to the next blog!

Saturday, September 9, 2023

Using Canva- Blog #4

 



Welcome back!

This blog will be the beginning of a three part blog series on how my experience was on Canva and what I learned. 

Before, what I would hear about Canva is how fun and easy it was, but because I was never interested in designing or creating anything, I never really ventured as far as exploring it myself. However, this Media Studies course has made it a necessity for me to check it out myself, with the help of my teacher, who encourages me to explore the site further on my own. 

We have had already five lessons on what is available to me on Canva. I first learned the basics such as the different designs I can choose from and what the element tabs contain. In my first few lessons, I learned how to insert a line, insert graphics such as pictures and videos, use frames, create and upload recordings and personal pictures and so much more. Once I starting being introduced to what I had access to, I started realizing its potential. 

Below are tasks completed on Canva, this is lesson five and I decided to showcase this one first because I found it very interesting and easy on the eyes:

Removing the background of an image:




Changing the filter of an image:


Adding a shadow drop to an image:



Created on Canva

As you can see, Canva gives me the ability to manipulate and change images to my own liking. This lesson showed me how easy it was to insert photos, change the filter, delete the background, add effects such as shadows, etc. This platform has changed my perspective on creating and designing and has encouraged me to use it outside of school. I will continue learning new skills on Canva and I will report them back to you guys, ASAP. 

Have a great day!