What is cinematography. What Is Cinematography?: Acting & Filmmaking Tips. Cinematography. Cinematography (from Greek: κίνημα, kinema "movements" and γράφειν, graphein "to record") is the science or art of motion picture photography by recording light or other electromagnetic radiation, either electronically by means of an image sensor, or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as film stock.[1] Cinematography is employed in many fields of science and business as well as its more direct uses for recreational purposes and mass communication. §Etymology[edit] The word "cinematography" was created from the Greek roots κίνημα (kinema) i.e "motion" and γραφή (graphé) "representation by means of lines" or "drawing", together meaning drawing motion.
§History[edit] §Precursors[edit] Muybridge sequence of a horse galloping In the 1830s, moving images were produced on revolving drums and disks, with independent invention by Simon von Stampfer (Stroboscope) in Austria, Joseph Plateau (Phenakistoscope) in Belgium and William Horner (zoetrope) in Britain. §Black-and-white[edit] Color theory. Cinematography - actor, film, director, name. In the earliest days of cinema, before the dominance of the narrative mode, movies were made almost wholly by cameramen. Le Repas de bébé ( Feeding the Baby or Baby's Dinner , 1895) by Auguste (1862–1954) and Louis Lumière (1864–1948) is a stunning example of composition with movement. As early as the second shot of The Great Train Robbery (1903), filmed for Edison by Edwin S. Porter (1869–1941), one can see, in the depiction of the train moving past a water tower where the desperadoes are hiding, the influence of the finely trained cameraman's eye, sensitive to subtle modulations of light and shadow and adept at composing a well-balanced and beautiful cinematographic frame.
This is an exquisite example of black-and-white photography of motion, with a sumptuous range of mid-tone grays, a rich and textured black, and pearly highlights in the sunny spots. Later, Porter was teamed with director J. Gregg Toland's deep focus cinematography in Citizen Kane (Orson Welles, 1941). The cinematographer's technique - Cinematography - film, show, director, scene. It is often difficult for technically naive viewers to grasp that although in everyday situations the eye typically adapts to variations in light and produces a credible "image" of reality under most lighting conditions, the camera—even an extremely expensive and elaborate one such as the Mitchell BNC 35mm or the Éclair, Arriflex, or Aaton 16mm—can "see" only what the film stock with which it is loaded is sensitive enough to record within a field that has been adequately lit. Onscreen, even darkness, shadow, gloom, and mist need to be properly lit in order to show up visually as such.
Simply withholding light from part of a scene will produce a completely underexposed patch in the negative, not an area that will seem to be rich with the characteristic texture of darkness. Also often taken for granted are the delicate screen compositions with light that can move the eye systematically through the editing. The cinematographer's tools - Cinematography - film, wife, director, name, scene, book, story, documentary.
Collaborating with the director in terms of the vision sought for a given scene, the cinematographer will direct the lighting, select from a variety of film stocks, and choose a lens. Lenses range between the very short focus wide-angle type (for instance, 8mm through 30mm) through the mid-range "normal" (50mm), to the very long focus telephoto. The longer the lens, the more the focused image is collapsed into a single plane. In the climactic scene of The Graduate (1967), Benjamin (Dustin Hoffman) runs down a suburban sidewalk toward the camera, turning at the last moment to race off-camera into a church to stop a wedding. Shot here with a very long lens, Benjamin seems to float in the frame.
Although we see his legs pumping and his face picking up an expression of agonized exhaustion, he does not seem to approach us, as he would if photographed with a normal lens. GREGG TOLAND b. Bazin, André. Bogdanovich, Peter. Callow, Simon. Eyman, Scott. Kael, Pauline. Murray Pomerance. "good" cinematography - Cinematography - film, movie, director, scene, book, story. While an intrinsic part of the viewer's evaluation of a film is often an assessment of the cinematography—"Good cinematography! "—it is actually very difficult to tell when a cinematographer has made an astounding accomplishment in his or her work. This is so largely because cinematographic results generally look wonderful to the untrained eye. In most situations, the professional cinematographer and gaffers, using a full range of lighting equipment, dollies and cranes, and camera mounts, can make a beautiful image with ease.
In short, a pretty shot is not necessarily "good cinematography" in and of itself. A full appreciation of cinematography requires some knowledge of the circumstances in which a difficult shot is made. Sometimes a shot is an achievement because of the extraordinary concentration of material or ingenuity required to make it. Cinematographic problems are virtually always idiosyncratic to a particular film and director's intent. Rear-projection and other challenges - Cinematography - film, director, scene, role.
Few problems confront cinematography more vexingly than the rear-projection plate. The plate, a strip of film projected onto a screen behind actors in a soundstage (alternately called a stereo when it contains nothing but a landscape), is shot by a special effects team, almost always in advance of principal cinematography. During the 1950s at Paramount, where the rear-projection process was worked out most intensively by Farciot Edouart (1895–1980), special cinematographic techniques were developed for making the plates. In more modern film-making, companies that specialize in plate photography are hired to accomplish specific shots or sequences for a production. All motion in the final narrative scene where the plate is to be used has to be replicated backwards and inverted in the plate for in the actual process of studio composite photography, the projection screen remains rigidly fixed in a position perpendicular to the sound-stage camera.
Almendros, Néstor. A Man with a Camera . Video: Rear Window.
Visions of Light: the Art of Cinematography (Abridged Version ) Cinematographer Style — The Art and Craft of Filmmaking.