Cinema explained
Cinematography
9 terms from the language of filmmaking and film theory, explained in plain words.
A
- Anamorphic lens
- A lens that squeezes a wide image horizontally onto film or a sensor, to be unsqueezed later into widescreen.
- Aspect ratio
- The ratio of an image's width to its height, such as 1.37:1, 1.85:1 or 2.39:1.
D
- Depth of field
- The range of distance in a shot that appears acceptably sharp.
- Dolly zoom
- Moving the camera toward or away from a subject while zooming the opposite way, so the background appears to stretch or compress.
- Dutch angle
- A shot with the camera tilted so the horizon runs at a slant.
G
- Golden hour
- The short period after sunrise or before sunset when daylight is warm, soft and low.
L
- Long take
- An unusually long, uninterrupted shot that lets action unfold without a cut.
R
- Rack focus
- Shifting focus from one subject to another during a shot.
T
- Three-point lighting
- A standard lighting setup of key light, fill light and back light.
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