Characteristics of great camera operators.
Hello, Harry Boy here.
Well after being on the film crew at church for just on 4 years now, i've done alot of camera work, both on static and handheld but mainly handheld in the last few years.. I've also been directing for about a year too which i think has helped me take my camera work to the next level as it's given me better understanding of what shots to give at what times.
So anyway, through my experience as both a camera man and a director.. here's my tips on what makes a great camera op. In no particular order of importance.....
1. Great camera operators always listen to the music. And the music will influence the shots they offer to the director. They listen to what the song actually sounds like musically... Which basically means if there's a guitar solo and they're in a good position to get a shot of it, they'll get it, or if the choir kick in nice and loud in a worship song, they'll offer a choir shot.. It's nice as a director when you don't need to spend extra time telling camera operators to pick up certain featuring shots. (Eg. an electric guitar solo, or a shot of the drums when the drummer is really going for it.)
2. Great camera operators can alter the tempo/movement of their shot in accordance with the song. If a song is very fast and jumpy, they'll make their shot zoom or track at a similar upbeat pace..... Or if the song is soft and intimate, their shot will also be soft, with perhaps a gentle zoom in or a nice close up. It can muck up a directors tempo and structure if the song is fast but the zoom tempo from a camera op is too slow or if the song is quite slow and the shot is much too fast...
3. Great camera operators can offer a variety of different shot types to keep things fresh and interesting. Seeing the excact same shot from the same angle can be quite boring once you see it 45 times in a row... Good camera operators look to get new angles and film a variety of things to keep it a viewer engaged whilst at the same time remembering what their "Core shot" is. For example, if your on camera 1 your main shot is going to be the drums.. and thats what the director will want 65-70% of the time.. however it's important to get different angles of the drums and to use that other 30 - 35% to shoot other things such as Bass guitar, accoustic guitar, or maybe even Profile shots of singers if you can come to the front of the stage and get a good angle. Or if your on camera 3, your main shot is the Midshot of the worship leader.. However a pan across the stage or a pull focus or an occasional shot of a backing vocalist is also a nice change...
4. Great camera ops are fast at getting their shots, fast at setting their focus and are very switched on and alert to what the director is saying. They will offer one shot, and once it gets taken it's only another few seconds until they have another shot ready to go. It's a beautiful feeling as a director to know you can pretty much cut to a camera operators shot at anytime and they'll always have something there waiting. Having to wait an extra few seconds for a camera op to get their focus in can make it much harder on the directors structure.
5. Great camera operators check their preview buttons reguarly.. at least once every minute they will check out their preview button and look at what the other camera operators are doing. A shoot flows much better when each person is looking at their preview button and offering shots that will complement the shots their other team members are giving.
6. Great camera operators understand good framing and keep all their shots framed correctly. There's nothing worse than seeing a drummer or guitar player when all you can see is his neck, shoulders and body with no head in the shot..
7. Great camera operators understand it's a 5-camera shoot.. not a 1 camera shoot. they know their role within the team and have the discipline to stick to it.
8. Great camera operators will often practice key shots before they offer it so the director get's a glimpse of what they're doing and so they're comfortable they can pull it off smoothly..
9. Great camera ops are strong and comfortable with the use of their focus reel. They understand how focus works.... (clockwise = closer to you, anti clockwise = further away from you) and they're good at utilising the focus effectively within their shots.. this is more for handhelds however..
10. Great camera operators watch the shoots back later and analyze their performance. The 5 best camera operators on our crew are all people that regularly review the DVD's and watch the shoots back to see what they did well and what they can work on.. By doing this they also gain insight into the bigger picture of how a shoot comes together when they see what all the camera are doing and how the director is piecing it together.
Anyway, that's all i can think of. I hope that helps some people in some way. Not that being technically skilled is the most important thing by any means... Not everyone is going to be brilliantly skilled, and the main thing we're looking for in crew members is heart and attitude and passion and commitment......however there is still a place for focusing on our technical skill and how we grow in that area.
HB
Well after being on the film crew at church for just on 4 years now, i've done alot of camera work, both on static and handheld but mainly handheld in the last few years.. I've also been directing for about a year too which i think has helped me take my camera work to the next level as it's given me better understanding of what shots to give at what times.
So anyway, through my experience as both a camera man and a director.. here's my tips on what makes a great camera op. In no particular order of importance.....
1. Great camera operators always listen to the music. And the music will influence the shots they offer to the director. They listen to what the song actually sounds like musically... Which basically means if there's a guitar solo and they're in a good position to get a shot of it, they'll get it, or if the choir kick in nice and loud in a worship song, they'll offer a choir shot.. It's nice as a director when you don't need to spend extra time telling camera operators to pick up certain featuring shots. (Eg. an electric guitar solo, or a shot of the drums when the drummer is really going for it.)
2. Great camera operators can alter the tempo/movement of their shot in accordance with the song. If a song is very fast and jumpy, they'll make their shot zoom or track at a similar upbeat pace..... Or if the song is soft and intimate, their shot will also be soft, with perhaps a gentle zoom in or a nice close up. It can muck up a directors tempo and structure if the song is fast but the zoom tempo from a camera op is too slow or if the song is quite slow and the shot is much too fast...
3. Great camera operators can offer a variety of different shot types to keep things fresh and interesting. Seeing the excact same shot from the same angle can be quite boring once you see it 45 times in a row... Good camera operators look to get new angles and film a variety of things to keep it a viewer engaged whilst at the same time remembering what their "Core shot" is. For example, if your on camera 1 your main shot is going to be the drums.. and thats what the director will want 65-70% of the time.. however it's important to get different angles of the drums and to use that other 30 - 35% to shoot other things such as Bass guitar, accoustic guitar, or maybe even Profile shots of singers if you can come to the front of the stage and get a good angle. Or if your on camera 3, your main shot is the Midshot of the worship leader.. However a pan across the stage or a pull focus or an occasional shot of a backing vocalist is also a nice change...
4. Great camera ops are fast at getting their shots, fast at setting their focus and are very switched on and alert to what the director is saying. They will offer one shot, and once it gets taken it's only another few seconds until they have another shot ready to go. It's a beautiful feeling as a director to know you can pretty much cut to a camera operators shot at anytime and they'll always have something there waiting. Having to wait an extra few seconds for a camera op to get their focus in can make it much harder on the directors structure.
5. Great camera operators check their preview buttons reguarly.. at least once every minute they will check out their preview button and look at what the other camera operators are doing. A shoot flows much better when each person is looking at their preview button and offering shots that will complement the shots their other team members are giving.
6. Great camera operators understand good framing and keep all their shots framed correctly. There's nothing worse than seeing a drummer or guitar player when all you can see is his neck, shoulders and body with no head in the shot..
7. Great camera operators understand it's a 5-camera shoot.. not a 1 camera shoot. they know their role within the team and have the discipline to stick to it.
8. Great camera operators will often practice key shots before they offer it so the director get's a glimpse of what they're doing and so they're comfortable they can pull it off smoothly..
9. Great camera ops are strong and comfortable with the use of their focus reel. They understand how focus works.... (clockwise = closer to you, anti clockwise = further away from you) and they're good at utilising the focus effectively within their shots.. this is more for handhelds however..
10. Great camera operators watch the shoots back later and analyze their performance. The 5 best camera operators on our crew are all people that regularly review the DVD's and watch the shoots back to see what they did well and what they can work on.. By doing this they also gain insight into the bigger picture of how a shoot comes together when they see what all the camera are doing and how the director is piecing it together.
Anyway, that's all i can think of. I hope that helps some people in some way. Not that being technically skilled is the most important thing by any means... Not everyone is going to be brilliantly skilled, and the main thing we're looking for in crew members is heart and attitude and passion and commitment......however there is still a place for focusing on our technical skill and how we grow in that area.
HB
posted by HaRRy BoY at 12:00 AM
2 Comments:
I agree with the Chip. Great post Harry, excellent.
Although there is one extremely significant element you have completely neglected which i must say i'm very dissapointed about.. To be a top quality operator an essential part of the package is to have a top quality NICKNAME..
Bruffy, Harry, Chippy, Fleay Bug and PoL are just a few to get the ball rolling.. then theres Smithy, Jenky, Miagi, Zchech Boy, Nat DOG and The Boy... Micky D, Mezza, Kazza 1,2 & 3.. Tech Boy, and Robbity Bob the Corn on the Cob!!
So as you can see a quality nickname is essential to the package! So please apply within if you too would like a quality nickname!
The management of appropriate nicknames.
Awesome tips Harry Boy!
I will recommend my team to check it out.
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