Course Description
A hands-on course that trains students in the aesthetic and technical aspects of camera and lighting for episodic television and narrative film production. Students will be exposed to a variety of lighting and camera styles and the instruments and equipment used to plan and execute them.
Athena Title
Cinematography I
Equivalent Courses
Not open to students with credit in FILM 6041
Semester Course Offered
Offered fall
Grading System
A - F (Traditional)
Student learning Outcomes
- This is an intensive, hands-on course that examines the technology and aesthetics of lighting and motion picture camera work, as well as the techniques, the thought processes, and the methodology of how a scene gets lit, made ready to shoot, and shot.
- Students will complete weekly camera and lighting exercises, with an emphasis on understanding the relationship between time, budget, and working efficiently with each department of a production crew.
Topical Outline
- Fundamentals of Lighting: An exploration of the process, requirements, and tools of the lighting process. Special emphasis on quality of light, direction relative to subject, and fill ratios.
- Exposure Theory: An examination, through shooting exercises and tests, of film/sensor response to light, brightness perception, ISO/ASA speeds, and lighting source distance.
- Basic Scene Lighting: Analysis and practice of three- and five-point lighting, contrast, mood, and genre lighting.
- Composition and Shot Size: An examination of aspect ratios, frame axes, camera angles, depth cues, and focal points. These principles will be taught through in-class execution of wide, medium, and close up shots.
- Dynamic Range and Contrast Ratios: Discussion of various cameras and sensors and their ability to handle a wide range of brightness in a scene followed by testing and in-class exercises. Special emphasis on the minimum amount of light a camera needs, highlights, and gamma and knee settings.
- Camera Placement and Camera Movement: Classroom shooting exercises that explore how to manipulate time, space, and aesthetic distance through camera movement and camera placement.
Special emphasis on how the camera impacts narrative meaning.
- Color Theory: An analysis of hue, value, and color temperature and their narrative impact on story and the
emotional response of the audience. Color mixing and stylistic choices in color control will also be explored.
