We're back to play a trick on you! Yes, we dare to quote Team Rocket to get this new article off to a good start. Let's get off to a gentle start, now that you're all too familiar with the subject of the day, framing. This time, we're tackling a shot that makes us think big: the close-up!
Théophile, our customer success manager, continues his lessons on plan values with his legendary enthusiasm. Today, he's focusing on that little je-ne-sais-quoi - deep down we know it well - that you may not think you need, but which could turn out to be useful.
What's it for?
The close-up mainly attempts to capture that something that makes a face, that emotion that only a camera can detect if it's close enough. It allows viewers to analyze the feelings present in a simple expression of the eyes. Think of it as the"sentimental" touch of your film. It embodies beauty as well as disgust, revealing more than just a few words.
In your videos, close-ups can be used for interviews or to present people in expert roles. Any viewer can familiarize themselves with any type of speaker with the help of a close-up. It's a way of exposing your speaker andgenerating sympathy. It's also in this kind of shot that we can applaud the benefits of video: it generates feelings, as Rimbaud does so well with his poems such as Dormeur du val.
Nevertheless, not everyone can write as well as the poets and authors of recent centuries, who have given France its reputation as the world's cultural capital. Capturing a plan like this is much more affordable - particularly affordable, in fact - if you follow the following tips to the letter.
How does it work?
A few shakes in this shot won't interfere with your frame as long as the face of your interviewer remains discernible. In fact, at EasyMovie we prefer the insecurity of movement offered by the grip to an overly fixed shot on a tripod. Slight agitation offers a slow evolution towards a feeling, whatever it may be. We even recommend switching from a close-up to a close-up for a more imaginative effect. The emotion will be all the stronger!
To do this, you can zoom in, but we advise you to do a tracking shot, i.e. move towards the face in question. Don't overdo it, though: the strength of this frame lies in its rarity. Too much of it could make your video disturbing. We advise you to use it to support a statement or to capture the reaction of your speaker. It takes on added importance when inserted between two close-ups. And, unless you're sure of your shot, avoid switching from an extremely wide shot to a tighter one like this. The result can be quite surprising.
Now that you've learned all you need to know about this close-up, we hope you'll be able to capture emotions like Jean Renoir and his filmmaker friends.
Apart from that, we've got good news and bad news: there's only one more tutorial on framing left before you're fully up to speed on the shots that make our favorite movies. This also means that we'll only be back one last time in two weeks' time for our final article. See you in two weeks.
While we wait for our next video, here's something to keep you waiting :
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