Camera skills

What do you mean by camera push?

Camera push is a shooting method in which the camera pushes in the direction of the subject, or changes the focal length of the lens to make the frame of the picture approach the subject from far and near. Moving pictures shot in this way are called push shots. Whether the lens is moved forward or the focal length is changed, these two kinds of push lens shooting have the following characteristics:

A, push the lens to form the visual forward effect. The process of pushing the lens forward causes the frame of the picture to move forward. From the perspective of the picture, the picture is close to the main body, and the viewpoint of the picture moves forward, forming a process from a larger scene to a smaller scene, which has various characteristics of transforming a large scene into a small scene. Unlike fixed the picture, the audience can directly see the continuous process of this scene change from the picture.

B, push the lens has a clear object. No matter how fast the camera is pushed or how long it is pushed, it can always be divided into three parts: framing, advancing and left picture. Pushing the lens forward is neither aimless nor aimless, but it has a clear direction of advancement and an end goal, that is, the object to be emphasized and expressed in the end, because this object determines the direction of advancement and the final placement of the lens. For example, when shooting China athletes who won the Olympic gold medal, the panoramic shot of athletes wearing gold medals and holding flowers on their chests has been pushed to the vivid facial features of athletes with tears in their eyes and smiles. Then, the first panorama is synchronized, the last close-up is left, and the continuous picture movement between synchronized and left is propulsion.

C. Push the lens to change the subject from small to large, and the surrounding environment from large to small. As the lens moves forward, the subject in the picture changes from small to large, from unclear to gradually clear, from small proportion of the picture to large proportion of the picture, and even fills the picture. At the same time, the environment around the object has changed from large to small, from occupying a large picture space to occupying a smaller and smaller space, or even disappearing. For example, when shooting the successful summit of Mount Everest by China mountaineers, the picture begins with the panoramic view of the athletes standing beside the national flag, stepping on the snow-capped mountains with their backs to the blue sky. At this time, the athlete's specific environment is clear, but his facial expression is not very clear; Then push the camera to the athlete's face until the close-up, from which you can clearly see the athlete's chapped lips. Frozen red face and happy expression, but with the advance of the camera, the snow-capped mountains, blue sky and national flag in the environment basically withdrew from the picture.

Function and expressive force of push lens

1, highlight people, highlight key images, push the lens to push the picture to the object, and at the same time, the framing range is from large to small. As the minor part moves out of the picture, the object part to be represented gradually "enlarges" and fills the picture, thus having the function of highlighting the main characters and key images. Formally, the push lens standardizes the audience's viewpoint and line of sight from two aspects through the approach of the frame to the subject. On the one hand, the direction of the lens has the function of "guiding" or even "forcing" the audience to pay attention to the subject; On the other hand, the lens of left picture finally puts the subject in the eye-catching structural center of the picture, giving people a vivid and strong visual impression. In other words, the audience can easily understand the main characters and images in the process of "entering" and "showing". For example, when shooting news scenes, we often use the lens to select and explain important people, leaders or authority figures among many participants. In the CCTV news broadcast, a news about the Sino-British Liaison Meeting on Hong Kong was broadcast. When the delegates stepped out of the meeting and walked to the two vertical microphones in front of the hall to be interviewed by the media, Qian Qishen, the chief representative of China and foreign minister, seemed to be "submerged" in the crowd because of the crowded scene and being surrounded by many reporters. The reporter used a push lens to take a panoramic view at a slight inclination. In this way, the main characters in the news are naturally highlighted from a bustling scene, which does not separate the relationship between Foreign Minister Qian and the surrounding environment, but also enables the audience to clearly see the main characters in the scene and obtain the most important information in the scene.

2. Highlight details and highlight important plot factors. The zoom can start from a larger picture range and visual field space and gradually approach a detailed image in this picture and space. The visual signal of this detail image is from weak to strong, and the audience's attention to this detail is guided by the changes brought about by this movement. In the whole process of advancing, the audience can see the whole in the picture and the related details in the left picture, and can perceive the connection and relationship between the details and the whole, which makes up for the lack of a single detail close-up picture. Moreover, the details of many things and some plot factors are not easy for the audience to see clearly in the big picture because of the tiny and inconspicuous image itself. Pushing the lens magnifies the detailed image and specific plot factors as a whole, and plays an important role in emphasizing and highlighting. For example, in CCTV's excellent program "Focus Interview", when reporters and cameramen rushed to the processing factory that was buying cotton in violation of national laws and regulations, the boss of the processing factory hurriedly avoided it, but the reporter was keenly aware that the temperature of the teacups on the table remained in the boss's office. Obviously, people left soon, and the cameraman pushed the panorama into a close-up of the temperature of the teacup by hand, which conveyed this kind of scene information well. Later, when the reporter asked what the cotton pickers who stayed in the processing factory were doing, the women workers faltered and lied that they were playing. The cameraman found a lot of cotton wool between the braids of the female worker, so he took a close-up of the female worker's hair and cotton wool and clearly told the audience that she was lying. The cameraman at the scene provided important details, images and plot factors that can explain the problem for this report through sharp eyes and powerful modeling expression.

3. A shot introduces the relationship between the whole and the part, the objective environment and the main characters. We can often see some distant or panoramic push shots on the screen. First, the image displayed to the audience is the environment in which people and things live. As the lens moves forward, the surrounding space is gradually drawn, and the characters are getting bigger and bigger, becoming the main image in the picture. Because this kind of push shot starts from the environment and further "goes deep" into the people in the environment through the lens movement, it can not only introduce the environment but also show the people in a specific environment in one shot. For example, in the news broadcast of CCTV reporting the tragic fate of children in the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina, a picture begins with a house full of shells. When the camera was pushed into a bigger hole in the wall, the audience actually saw two children huddled in the corner in the next room through the bullet hole in the foreground. This push-hand lens shows the children's dangerous and helpless plight in the war with great power. This kind of pushing and patting also emphasizes that there is such a part in the overall situation to express the significance of specific characters in a specific environment. For example, the lens is pushed from the panoramic view of the classroom to the student Xiao Wang, and the picture language expresses the meaning of "Xiao Wang in the classroom" and emphasizes the key image of "Xiao Wang"; The extension of such a shot means "there is Xiao Wang, no Xiao Li and no Xiao Zhao in the classroom." However, if the close-up of Xiao Wang is opened, and then a panoramic view of the classroom appears, its picture language conveys the meaning of "Xiao Wang is in the classroom" and emphasizes the key image of "classroom"; Its extension means "Xiao Wang is in the classroom, not at home or in the library." As can be seen from the above push-pull comparison example, the focus of the lens moving back and forth is different. The characteristics of pushing the lens itself forward, from the environment to the characters, from the group to the individual, from the whole to the part, often emphasize the individual in the group of characters in the environment and the part in the whole.

4. The scene of the shot is constantly changing in one shot, which has the function of continuously progressive montage sentences. Progressive montage group is a way to connect large scenes to small scenes step by step, which has a stepped effect and function on the performance of things. For example, from the panoramic view of the dancers dancing in peacock dance, to the middle picture, and then to the close-up picture simulating Kui Ling's hand, it is a progressive montage that emphasizes the graceful hand shape. The shot put is also progressive from big to small in the picture space, but it also has the characteristics that the progressive montage assembly does not have, that is, the scene of the shot put does not change in the interval of jumping, but is continuous and progressive. Its significance lies in maintaining the unity and coherence of the time and space of the picture and eliminating the falsehood that may be caused by montage combination. It constantly changes from the big scene on the left to the small scene, which makes the relationship between the subject and the environment unquestionable authenticity and credibility. For example, shooting a live program of two Qigong masters performing with iron gun tips stabbing each other in the throat, from the panoramic picture of the two masters to the close-up picture of one Qigong master holding a gun tip in the throat, this montage sentence shows that Qigong masters are performing "real knives and guns", eliminating the deception of changing fake props halfway, and making the whole camera show a strong sense of reality.

5. The speed of pushing the lens can affect and adjust the rhythm of the picture, thus producing externalized emotional power. Push the lens to make the picture frame move, which directly forms the movement rhythm outside the picture. If the propulsion speed is slow and steady, it can show peace and tranquility. Peaceful, mysterious and other atmosphere. If the speed of advancement is urgent and short, it often shows an atmosphere of nervousness or excitement and anger. Especially when it is suddenly pushed, the subject becomes larger sharply, and the picture changes sharply from a stable state and then stops suddenly. The explosive force is great, the visual impact of the picture is extremely strong, with shocking and eye-catching effects and revealing power. For example, CCTV Oriental Time and Space's original "Focus Moment" column "Solve Economic Disputes, Don't Take Hostages", the cameraman made great efforts to show the round hole on the darkroom iron gate to deliver food to the hostages, and pushed it from a panoramic picture to a close-up picture, giving the audience a strong visual stimulus of "shock", and the black hole suddenly filled with the picture seemed to be a hint and a hint. For another example, in the excellent music and television works with the theme of Hong Kong's return (A.D. 1997), there are two paragraphs that are in sharp contrast with the slow and urgent. When the lyrics sang the expectation and concern of the people of the motherland for the return of Hong Kong, there appeared one representative figure after another in the picture, each of which was represented by a slow and even lens. These slow-motion groups jointly convey a sense of pride and cohesion of Qi Xin's cooperation, and the slowly advancing screen modeling action indicates this emotional strength. The lyrics sing "1997" and return to the instant. There are several quick shots of clocks in the picture, such as the big clock in front of Beijing station and the top clock in the telegraph building. Close-up photos of these "face-beating clocks" are like giant mouths shouting, telling the world that it is time to take back Hong Kong! This dynamic and impactful push form vividly externalizes the sense of urgency and joy of Hong Kong's return, and fully demonstrates the emotional significance of the song content. It can be seen that the different control of the lens advancing speed can reflect different emotional factors and forces through the picture rhythm and movement rhythm, and can trigger the corresponding psychological feelings and emotional changes of the audience through the different movement changes of the picture and visual image.

6. Pushing the lens can express a specific theme and meaning by highlighting an important drama element. In film feature films and TV series, pushing the lens leads the picture from chaotic scenes to specific characters, or from characters to their tiny expressions and actions. Through the unique modeling form of screen language, it highlights the important drama elements that trigger plots and events and set off emotions and atmosphere, thus forming a unique scene scheduling and screen language for film and television. For example, on a rainy day in a TV series (Phoenix Piano), Teacher Zhang reads a composition in class. The composition is a touching story of a female student telling her mother that she got up early and picked Chinese medicine in the dark to make money to raise money for running a mountain village primary school. The picture begins with the tearful female student who wrote this model essay, and pushes it to the eaves opposite the classroom at a slight elevation. The picture on the left is a close-up of rain dripping on the eaves, which shows the characters in the film and their psychological activities at that time. If this close-up is not highlighted by the zoom, then the rain is only a negligible environmental factor in the scene. When the lens rushes to it and is clearly presented on the screen with close-ups, it becomes an extremely important drama element and lyric element, with profound metaphorical significance and expressive force. It is impossible to show such a schedule and picture in a photographic photo.

7. Pushing the lens can strengthen or weaken the movement of moving objects. When we push the person in the direction of the camera, the frame and the person move in the opposite direction, and the picture runs towards the oncoming person. Two-way movement made them meet halfway. The effect of the picture is to obviously strengthen the person's movements, as if it moves much faster.

On the other hand, when pushing a person far away from the camera lens, the frame of the picture moves forward with the movement of the person, which has the effect of following the camera lens, so that the position of the person far away in the picture is basically unchanged, thus slowing down the movement of the person far away. For example, when shooting revolutionary martyrs who are about to go to the execution ground, the effect of pushing the picture from behind will make the pace of the martyrs dignified and deep, as if there is a kind of reluctance.

This is true for people in motion, as well as for other moving objects. It should be pointed out that if the zoom mode is used in the push shot, the moving range of the lens is limited by the zoom multiple of the zoom lens, and the dynamic enhancement or weakening of the moving object can only be realized within a certain distance.

Shooting with push lens and problems needing attention

1. Pushing the lens should have its clear expression meaning. Pushing the lens forward is the change and adjustment of the audience's visual space. Changing the scene from big to small is both a restriction and a guide to the audience's visual space. This form of modeling itself has obvious expressive force, so pushing the lens should enlighten the audience through the movement of the picture, or arouse the audience's attention to an image, or show some thoughts, or highlight a detail that has not been noticed, or form a rhythm corresponding to the development of the content plot through the advancing movement of the lens. Specifically, the screen modeling shows that the push lens should have a clear push target and the image on the left. In the three parts of lens lifting, advancing and left picture, the left picture is the focus of modeling performance. The kind of shot that has no clear goal, "rambling" is meaningless, and is just pushed for the sake of pushing, should be included in the elimination list in TV programs.

2. The key point of pushing the lens is that the left picture pushing the lens and the left picture are static structures, so the composition should be standardized. Rigorous and complete, especially the picture on the left should be stopped in a suitable scene according to the requirements of the program content for modeling, and the main body should be managed at the best structural point of the plane. The problem that some beginners often encounter when shooting a zoom lens is that the stop point of the left picture of the lens is not the best structural point for modeling, but when the zoom lens can't be pushed (the focal length is the end point). The result of this processing is that the picture stops not because of the need of modeling, but because of the technical limitation of the camera lens. In addition, in order to facilitate the editing in the later stage of the program, the starting frame and the left picture taken in the early stage should be of appropriate length, which can be used as two fixed the picture respectively, so as to facilitate the early stage shooting and provide more picture choices for the later stage.

3. In the process of pushing the lens, the composition should always pay attention to keeping the position of the object in the center of the picture structure. Some photographers use the method of moving the subject to the center of the picture and then pushing it up when pushing, or the method of moving the lens to the left picture scene and then moving to the object when pushing. These two shooting methods do not always keep the position of the object in the center of the picture structure in one shooting. The correct method should be that there is a virtual straight line between the center of the picture and the center of the left picture, which is the center of the lens in the process of pushing the lens. When the lens moves with this line, the dashed box object is always located in the center of the structure during the lens progress. When editing later, no matter where the lens is pushed, the picture is a complete and balanced picture. This kind of push requires that the center of the picture should be close to the center of the left picture while pushing the lens, and always maintain the dominant position of the objects in the picture.

4. The speed of pushing the camera should be consistent with the mood and rhythm in the picture. Generally speaking, when the picture is tense, the push speed is faster; When the mood in the painting is calm, the speed of advancement is slower. On the other hand, when representing some moving objects, the objects should move fast and advance fast, and vice versa. In short, strive to achieve the movement outside the picture and the movement inside the picture to achieve a perfect combination.

5. In the push lens of the mobile camera, the focus of the picture should be shot with the change of the distance between the camera and the object, and the focus of the picture should be based on the object in the left picture. If the focus is based on the object in the initial picture, the depth of field of the picture becomes smaller and smaller because the picture changes from wide angle to telephoto, and the subject will become more and more blurred. When the focus is adjusted based on the object in the left picture, the object is always clear in the wide-angle stage and the telephoto stage of the left picture.