Glossary

Artificial lighting - lighting that does not seem motivated by any real light source in your scene.

Available lighting - light normally provided in the location being filmed. Includes indoor and outdoor lighting.

Background - objects or actions furthest from the camera.

Camera angles - the angle from which the camera captures the object being shot.

Camera movement - when the camera physically moves in the process of capturing an image. The camera may move closer, further away, up, down, left or right.

Close shot or Close up (CU) - a shot taken from a close distance so that the object appears relatively large and fills the entire frame. In human terms, a close up might show someone's face.

Consumer culture - a way of life in which consumption (purchasing products and services) are the norm.

Depth of field - the area in a shot in which the elements captured in a camera image appear in sharp focus.

Dissolve - an editing technique in which one shot gradually fades out while another fades in to take its place. This technique often conveys a passage of time.

Dramatize - to present or represent in a dramatic manner. The word suggests an exaggerated emotionalism or theatricality.

Editing - the process of selecting, arranging, and assembling individual shots, images, and/or sound components into a particular order.

Fade (to black) - an editing technique in which a shot slowly fades out to a black screen. A fade can indicate a change of time or place, or it can signal the end of a program, scene or sequence.

Foreground - objects or action closest to the camera.

Frame - the rectangular area captured by the camera.

Framing - the way a shot is composed. How objects and people are situated within the boundaries of the camera's frame.

High angle - the camera is positioned above and looks down on the subject. A high angle image often has the effect of making the subject appear weak or vulnerable.

Long shot or Wide shot (LS or WS) - a shot taken from a greater distance so that the object appears relatively small in the frame. A long shot can convey setting or context. In human terms, a long shot might encompass someone's whole body and the surrounding area. An extreme long shot might encompass an entire cityscape or skyline.

Low angle - the camera is positioned below and looks up at the subject. A low angle image often has the effect of making the subject appear powerful or ominous.

Medium (pl. media) - the technological or physical form in which a creative work or expression appear. Examples of different media include newspapers, film, television, and comic books.

Medium shot (MS) - a shot that usually frames objects so that they appear equivalent to a normal visual perspective. In human terms, a medium shot might show a person from the waist up.

Middle ground - objects or actions positioned midway in the camera frame.

Mise-en-scene - the placement and look of the visual elements within a shot, including the use of lighting, sets, locations, props, makeup, costumes, and actors.

Musical score - music that accentuates mood, creates atmosphere, and adds emphasis to particular scenes. Usually, the musical score contains no lyrics.

Natural lighting - lighting that a light source in your image seems to motivate.

Normal angle - the camera is positioned at chest height and makes the subject appear neutral.

Pace - rate at which sound or image progresses.

Pan - when the camera moves left or right from a fixed point.

Parallel editing/cross-cutting - shot juxtapositions that suggest simultaneous action happening in different places.

Point of view (in relation to visual images) - the visual perspective from which a shot is taken or a story is told.

Scene - an event that takes place in one setting and over a single time period. A feature length film is composed of many scenes. Scenes are composed of anywhere from one to hundreds of individual shots.

Sharp focus - objects or subjects in the image that can be seen in clear detail.

Shot - the basic unit of a moving image. A shot is a single image uninterrupted by editing.

Shot distances - the distance of the object being filmed to the camera.

Shot juxtaposition - the positioning of two shots next to one another which establishes a relationship between them.

Soft focus - objects or subjects in the image appear somewhat fuzzy.

Sound bite - a brief catchy comment used to encapsulate a larger theme or idea.

Sound effects - audio elements that are neither spoken voices nor music. These can be anything from the sound of thunder to a ray gun.

Soundtrack - The audio component of a film or TV program. The soundtrack might include the dialogue, musical score, narration, and sound effects.

Storyboard - a sequential series of illustrations that map out the various shots and their relationship to one another. The storyboard often resembles a comic strip. Click here for an example.

Straight cut - the most common editing technique, in which one shot is followed by another without any special transitional device, like a fade or dissolve. Most straight cuts go unnoticed by viewers.

Tone - a quality of expression that conveys sentiment, attitude, mood, feeling or emotion.

Tracking Shot - when the camera moves with the object being filmed in a side-to-side or forward/backward motion.

Voice-over (VO) narration - dialogue that comes from an unseen, off-screen voice belonging either to a character in the story or a narrator.

Wide shot or Long shot (WS or LS) - a shot taken from a greater distance so that the object appears relatively small in the frame. A long shot can convey setting or context. In human terms, a long shot might encompass someone's whole body and the surrounding area.

Wipes - an editing technique where one image appears to push the previous image off the screen.

Zoom shot - a single shot in which the distance between the camera and the object being filmed changes without the camera physically moving.