Depth of Field in Cinematography

 

A still from Victorious(2011)
showing how deep is used to convey conflict

A still from henry danger (2017)showing
 how shallow is used to convey character

A still from Toy Story(2010) showing how
 soft is used to convey character

A still I created showing how
 deep is used to convey development

A still I created showing how
 soft is used to convey development.

A still I created showing how
 shallow is used to convey character

The main challenge I had while doing all three types of still shots was the deep depth of field shot. When I originally did my deep depth of field shot it took me 5 times to retake the pictures because I did not know if I had to take a picture with a regular background or a background that keeps goes into depth more about what is in the back of the objects that are meant to be the main focus in the shot. Once I realized how I was supposed to do it, I was still confused on how much the depth of field of the background had to be. Then, I figured I should make sure my background looked far from the objects that I made as the focus in the shot. Next, as I was creating my shallow depth of field shot it was not hard because I watched videos for my type of phone on how to blur the background and that made the process much easier. My only concern is if it does not matter how much I blur the background out. Finally, as I was creating my soft-focus shot, I had come to realize that it was not all about the colors of the shot, but about the way it looks which made it turn out to look like a soft shot. Also, I realized the more vaseline I put on my camera made the entire still shot come out to be blurred.

Camera Position

 

A still from the movie Back in Action(2025) showing how
 angle is used to convey conflict, character, or development.

A still from the movie Us(2019) showing how shoulder
level is used to convey conflict, character, or development

A still from the movie Thor(2011) showing how
height is used to convey conflict, character, or development.

 A still from Sam and Cat(2013-2014) showing how
 distance is used to convey conflict, character, or development

A still I created showing how angle is used
 to convey conflict, character, or development.

A still I created showing how eye level is
used to convey conflict, character, or development

A still I created showing how height is used
 to convey conflict, character, or development

 A still I created showing how distance is
used to convey conflict, character, or development

I did come across a few challenges when I was making my still photos with the several types of camera positions. While I was creating my angle shot, I could not tell if the picture was angled enough to grab the viewers attention by the angel of the shot or just what objects is in the shot. I also had to make sure that the way I took the picture was portraying that you look up to that person and no other feelings grabbed from the shot. As I was creating my shot focused on level, I was trying to do an eye level shot with the stuff animal and I was struggling on how close it had to be to the face while, still using the rule of thirds for the shot. Also, I am not sure if taking a shot of the entire face only is an eye level shot as long as I align it with the rule of thirds. As I was doing my height photo I wondered if I could do an over the shoulder shot showing the point of view of the taller and bigger object looking down to the smaller and shorter object. Lastly, as I was doing my distance shot, I trying to show the black small and short object coming out the frame showing the audience it is running away from the tall and big grey and white object that is trying to come closer to it showing the small object to being afraid from the other object.

Balancing Mise en scene

 

A still from the movie Encanto(2021)
showing how contrast is used to guide the viewer’s attention

A still from the show Black lightning(tv series 2018-21)
showing how color is used to guide the viewer’s attention.

A still from the show SpongeBob SquarePants(tv series 1999-now)
 showing how size is used to guide the viewer’s attention.

A still from Cruella(2021) showing how
frontality is used to guide the viewer’s attention

A still I created showing how 
contrast is used to guide the viewer’s attention

A still I created showing how
 color is used to guide the viewer’s attention

A still I created showing how 
size is used to guide the viewer’s attention.

A still I created showing how
frontality is used to guide the viewer’s attention

I did not come across a lot of challenges when I was creating my still photos. Although, For the size picture I created, I did not know if there was a big enough difference in the size because I was not sure if the smaller item should have been smaller than it was. I made sure to use the rule of thirds since it is two items in the picture across from each other and using the rules of third would make the picture better.  For my contrast picture I created, it was not hard for me to find a toy that could light up and the thought of having the background to be black would make the lit up toy immediately be the main focus when someone looks at the picture. While I was making the picture that's main focus was color to grab people’s attention, I was not sure about the how bright or dark the color had to be to catch the reader's attention therefore I just made sure it was a bright color. Also, it was challenging for me to take the picture because I did not know how I was going to have color in the background until I remembered by brother had Led lights. In the making of frontality picture I created I had challenges knowing if I had to make the item in the picture be centered or jus in the frame to catch people’s attention when they look at the picture.

Rule of Thirds

 

Still image from the movie Sinners,
 April 18th, 2025 

A photo taken without the regard of the rule

A photo taken with the horizon correctly aligned with
 a horizontal rule line, and focal objects lined up
with hot spots

One figure photo taken without regard for the rule

One figure photo taken with the object figure
 aligned with hot spots on either vertical line

Two-Figure photo taken without the regard for the
 rule

A two-figure photo taken with eyes and landscape
 aligned according to the rule and figures with
 neutral spacing

A photo taken with eye and landscape alignment
 and vertical placement to suggest agreement
 or attraction

A photo taken with eye and landscape alignment
 and vertical placement to indicate a threat

                                            

5(a). The still from sinners show uses “The Rule of Thirds” to suggest the plot to be leaving the audience thinking about something bad that was to happen next. This is all being shown by the audience is not able to see what they're seeing, the body placements of the characters, how close they are to each other. You can already tell something good is not happening based of their face but also the tugging on the boy shirt shows he was telling the boy something was about to happen and be ready for it. The background falls on the upper part of the thirds. The vertical and horizontal intersections do not align with their face specifically their eyes, but it does for the boy's chin on the right.

5(b) The image from question 4(b) tells the desired story of two action figures the action figure on the left looks dangerous and the action figure on the right look extremely afraid of the action figure on the left. The photo shows the eyes and landscape aligned according to the rule and figures with neutral spacing. The top vertical lines are both on the left action figure eyes and the background is in the two top thirds of the photo. The spacing in between them shows the action figure on the left could be bullying the one on the right. The positions of their bodies show there are many complications between the two as you can see the action figure on the left seems to be powerful and above the action figure on the left who looks small, short, and powerless. They're facial expressions shows the action figure on the right is scared and confused but the other action figure facial expressions shows that it is angry and yelling at the other figure.