Cinematography — Framing, the Camera, and the Image

Cinematography is the craft of translating a story into moving images through the choices a filmmaker makes about the camera. Every shot is a decision about what the audience sees, from where, in what light, and for how long. Learning to read cinematography means learning to notice these decisions and to ask why they were made, because nothing that reaches the screen arrives there by accident.

Shot size and framing

The size of a shot describes how much of the subject fills the frame, and each size carries meaning. An extreme long shot places a figure within a vast environment, often making a character seem small or isolated. A long shot shows the whole body and its surroundings; a medium shot cuts the body near the waist and favors conversation and gesture; a close-up isolates the face or