Creating an Effective Image IV 9-17-13

Composition & Motion Movement attracts attention. Changes in movement can: Alter a subject’s prominence Redirect the viewer’s attention Add or remove information as the audience watches Transform the mood of the scene Show movement, growth, and development Composition & Motion

Theory of Dynamic Composition We make judgments as we asses the movements and speed around us. As we drive through flat, featureless country, we feel that the car is traveling at a much slower speed than the speedometer shows. Driving along a tree-lined road, the reverse happens, and we tend to overestimate speed. Theory of Dynamic Composition

Theory of Dynamic Composition We carry over these interpretations while watching movies. We cannot see speed and movement in the picture, we can only make interpretations from the clues that are present in the scene. Against a plain white sky, a fast moving aircraft appears stationary. When we see the landscape beneath streaking past, we have an impression of speed. Theory of Dynamic Composition

How we react to movement in an image: Effort: Slower speeds can suggest effort, or that motion is difficult, especially if it accompanied by sounds that are similarly associated (low-pitched, forceful, percussive). By replaying a normal action in slow motion, the impression of effort involved can be increased. We also interpret the amount of effort from signs of strain, tension, slipping, and so on, even when these have been faked. How we react to movement in an image:

How we react to movement in an image: Relative Speeds: We assess the speed at which someone is running toward us by the rate at which his or her image size grows. (shot with a long telephoto lens, this increase is slow, so we lose our sense of speed.) How we react to movement in an image:

How we react to movement in an image: Gravity: Although gravity is irrelevant, we subconsciously associate movement and position within the frame with gravitational forces. Something moving from top to bottom appears to be moving downwards, sinking, falling, collapsing. Moving from bottom to top, of the shot, it is rising against gravity, floating or climbing. How we react to movement in an image:

How we react to movement in an image: Fixation Point: The visual impact of movement can depend on where we happen to fix our attention. Looking skyward, we see moving clouds and static buildings – or static clouds and toppling buildings. How we react to movement in an image:

How we react to movement in an image: Strength: Something that is large in the frame and is moving toward the camera appears to grow stronger and more threatening. Seen from a side viewpoint, the same action (e.g., a truck backing up) can seem quite incidental. How we react to movement in an image:

Using Dynamic Composition Dynamic Composition is used by the media daily. Some widely accepted working principles have emerged: Using Dynamic Composition

Like vertical lines, vertical movement is stronger than horizontal. A left-to-right movement is stronger than a right-to-left action A rising action is stronger than a downward one. For example, a rise from a seated position has a greater attraction than a downward sitting movement. An upward move generally looks faster than a horizontal one. Direction of Movement

Like diagonal lines, this is the most dynamic movement direction. They also take longer. Diagonal Movement

Movement Toward the Camera Movement toward the camera: All forward gestures or movements are more powerful than a recessive action away from the camera: a glance, a turned head, a pointing hand. Similarly, a shot moving toward a subject (dolly/zoom-in) arouses greater interest than one withdrawing from it (dolly back/zoom-out). Movement Toward the Camera

Continuity of Movement A moving subject attracts attention more readily that a static one, but continuous movement at constant speed does not maintain maximum interest. When action is momentarily interrupted or changes directions, the impact is greater than one carried straight through. Converging movements are usually more forceful than expanding ones. Continuity of Movement

Camera angles can easily confuse the audience’s sense of direction and their impression of spatial relationships if care is not taken when selecting camera positions. For example: During a basketball game, if cameras are placed on both sides of the court, it is confusing to see a player running toward the left side of the screen and then, when the director cuts to the camera on the other side of the court, to see the player running toward the right side of the screen. Crossing the Line

Draw an imaginary line along the direction of the action (called the action line, axis of action, or eye line). Then be careful that the camera shoots from only one side of this line – generally it is not crossed. It is possible to dolly across this line, shoot along it, or change its direction by regrouping people, but cutting between camera on both sides of this imaginary line produces a reverse cut or jump cut. 180° Rule