The 30 Camera Shots Every Film Fan Needs To Know (Thirty! Three-Zero!!) - Part Two

Five more examples from the Empire Online article:

Establishing Shot

You could choose the carefully crafted opening shots from Blade Runner as an example but this is a fine establishing shot from a superb film.

Handheld

This is a great scene from Martin Scorsese's Mean Streets (1973). The handheld begins when the bar brawl begins. There are tracking handhelds following the action with cuts to (almost) over shoulder shots of specific action points. The scene as a whole is chaotic, believably ad lib in appearance and the handheld camera supports this.

Low Angle

Why the low angle shot here? Empire's recommended shot was of Darth Vader stalking the Death Star. That's clearer in concept. The low angle exaggerates an on-screen character's height and presence. This scene largely comprises a low angle two shot from the point of view of the viewer. Are we all below these men?

High Angle

I think that this video demonstrates the extreme of high angle shots (referring to it as the "God's eye view"). It does display a very powerful viewpoint. As with my previous comments on chiaroscuro, it's not something to be used lightly (hmm!).

Locked-Down Shot

You'll see this shot at around 4:10 in this scene. The actors wander off screen left while the dialogue and the environment carry the story. For me this works well. It's understated and that suits Allen's style and storytelling. The characters are part of the environment, the characters are a product of the environment. Above all, it strikes me as the way I might observe this scene in real life if I was not watching Woody Allen and Diane Keaton.