Learning Cinematography: 1 Narrative Fundamentals

Learn how to shoot a motion picture and tell stories in a powerful way—from ASC cinematographer and professor Bill Dill. Part 1 covers narrative filmmaking techniques.

Introduction

• Welcome
• Who is this course for?
• A brief history of motion pictures

1. Before You Start Filming

• Focus on narrative filmmaking
• Pre-production planning
• Develop a process
• Assemble your crew
• The actor's perspective

2. Principles of Storytelling

• The basics of storytelling
• Understand the story
• Choose your own theory of filmmaking
• The audience's experience

3. Composition

• Communicate with shapes
• The visual pattern recognition system
• Orient the audience
• Change a pattern for a purpose
• Elements of composition
• Who's driving the scene?

4. Understanding the Camera

• Types of digital cameras
• Simple cameras
• Complex cameras
• Recording, compression, and storage

5. Optics

• What a lens actually does
• Primes vs. Zooms
• Choose a focal length
• The components of depth of field
• The aesthetics of depth of field

6. Exposure

• The seven elements of exposure
• The speed of the camera
• What is correct exposure?
• Light meters

7. Lighting

• Picture the light in your mind
• How much light do you need?
• Basic lighting
• Quality lighting
• Lighting equipment
• Grip equipment

8. Camera Movement

• Why do we move the camera?
• How camera movement relates to story
• How do we move the camera?
• Blocking and lighting

Conclusion

• Make the best choices for your film