Cinematographer Journal

As a camera person, I had to make sure that throughout our two minute sequence, I
use a various of different shots and angles, as it allows the audience to see the films
narrative in many different ways.
To make sure that I was a good cinematographer I researched about all the angles
and shots and how I can use them. There were certain rules I had to research about
regarding how to operate the cameras while filming. Such as; the rule of the thirds,
this was very important as I had to know the importance of focus and how that
affects the audience. I also made sure that the 180 degree rule wasnt broken during
filming. Again, this was very important as if it was broken it could confuse the
audience. After doing a lot of research of how to operate the cameras, I wanted to
apply all the knowledge I had when filming. I was able to test out the skills I had
when doing the preliminary task, it gave me a chance to get used to some of the
features within the camera, before I started this I attended a after school session
where my teacher taught me all about the camera in depth. I learnt how to safely
eject the tape, and how to fit the tripod on to the camera etc. I found this really
helpful as I felt more secure using the camera by my self. My teacher gave me few
tips such as, taking 2 batteries and 2 SD cards while filming just in case one ran out.
As a cinematographer my role was very important, as I had to film everything
accurately using different shots and angles. Before I started this, me and my director
planned everything on how and what we should film first, we discussed about all the
different shots that we will be using, by doing this it made it very easy for me as I
knew what I had to do each time. While filming I made sure that I used a tripod, so
that I can film clearly without anything moving. It was also very important that I took
care of all the equipment used, as I was responsible for them all.
I also had to make sure that the lighting was good, as this could affect the whole
footage, some scenes were filmed in the dark, so I made sure that we used some
kind of light source, which allowed us to see the actors clearly even in the dark. I
believe that my group chose suitable actors as we didnt have an major problems. All
the crew members showed up when we was filming, this was very helpful and
important as we all had different rolls.
Overall, I believe that the filming went well, as no major problems occurred, if it did
we was able fix our problem immediately , this was mostly because our whole
opening sequence was filmed inside the school, which means we could get help
from the teachers.This role has taught me many things of how to be a good
cinematographer.