Shot Types
There is a convention in the video, film and television industries which assigns names and guidelines to common types of shots, framing and picture composition. The list below briefly describes the most common shot types. Note that the exact terminology may vary between production environments but the basic principles are the same.
Click the images for more details. See below for more information and related tutorials.
 EWS (Extreme Wide Shot) The view is so far from the subject that she isn't even visible. This is often used as an establishing shot. |
 VWS (Very Wide Shot) The subject is visible (barely), but the emphasis is still on placing her in her environment. |
 WS (Wide Shot) The subject takes up the full frame, or at least as much as possible. The same as a long shot. |
 MS (Mid Shot) Shows some part of the subject in more detail whilst still giving an impression of the whole subject. |
 MCU (Medium Close Up) Half way between a MS and a CU. |
 CU (Close Up) A certain feature or part of the subject takes up the whole frame. |
 ECU (Extreme Close Up) The ECU gets right in and shows extreme detail. |
 CA (Cutaway) A shot of something other than the current action. |
 Cut-In Shows some part of the subject in detail. |
 Two-Shot A comfortable shot of two people, framed similarly to a mid shot. |
 (OSS) Over-the-Shoulder Shot Looking from behind a person at the subject. |
 Noddy Shot Usually refers to a shot of the interviewer listening and reacting to the subject, although noddies can be used in drama and other situations. |
 Point-of-View Shot (POV) Shows a view from the subject's perspective. |
 Weather Shot The subject is the weather, usually the sky. Can be used for other purposes. |
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| Camera Movement Arc Crab Dolly Dolly Zoom Follow Pedestal |
Pan Tilt Tracking Trucking Zooming |
See also: |