1. Vocabulary: Kinds of Shots
Close-up
Deep focus shot
Establishing shot
High angle shot
Bird’s-eye view
Low angle shot
Over-the-shoulder shot
Point of view shot
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2. close-up (CU)
A shot made from a very short distance away from an object or person. Usually a close-up (CU) shows significant, or just the head of an actor talking. Close-ups bring the viewer into the emotion or action of the film.
Kinds of Shots

3. deep-focus shot
A carefully set up shot in which we see the background just as easily as the mid-ground or fore-ground, often put together as layers, in which what is happening in the background is as important as what is happening in the foreground.
Kinds of Shots

4. establishing shot
A shot that usually begins a scene, often a long shot or wide shot identifying (establishing) the location and time frame for the scene.
Kinds of Shots

5. high angle shot
A shot that is taken from above the subject, usually making the subject seem small or weak.
Kinds of Shots

6. bird’s-eye view shot
A shot taken from very high in the sky, looking down on the subject. Often taken from a helicopter or plane.
Kinds of Shots

7. low angle shot
A shot taken from below the subject, usually making the subject seem larger, more powerful, or more dangerous.
Kinds of Shots

8. over-the-shoulder shot
Fairly self-explanatory: A shot that is looking over an actor’s shoulder. Often used in conversations, and when the actor is writing.
Kinds of Shots

9. point of view shot (POV)
Find an example of this in the movie:
A shot taken from the point of view of the actor (or any object). This shot allows us to see what the character is seeing, and therefore we become a part of the action as well.
Kinds of Shots