The Focus Pull

The focus pull (AKA rack focus) is a creative camera technique in which you change focus during a
shot. Usually this means adjusting the focus from one subject to another.

The shot below begins focused on the plant in the foreground, then adjusts focus until the girl is sharp.

The focus pull is useful for directing the viewer's attention. For example, if there are two people in shot
but only one is in focus, that person is the subject of attention. If the focus changes to the other
person, they become the subject. This is often used in drama dialogues — the focus shifts backwards
and forwards between the people speaking. A slightly more subtle trick is to focus on a person
speaking then pull focus to another person's silent reaction.

Focus Throw / Defocus

Throwing focus usually means dropping focus completely. This can either refer to certain parts of the
picture (e.g. the background) or to the entire picture.

Throwing focus on part of a picture can't normally be done during a shot — it requires making
adjustments such as changing filter or adding shutter.

Throwing focus on the whole picture can be done at any time simply by turning the focus ring until
focus is completely lost. This can be used as an opening/closing shot or as a transition between shots.
It can also be used for various effects, such as a point of view shot from someone who is drunk or
groggy.

In this age of digital editing, focus-throwing for effect is more commonly achieved in post-production.
This adheres to the general guideline that it's safer to record pictures "dry" (without effects) and add
effects later.

Video Camera Shutter

The term shutter comes from still photography, where it describes a mechanical "door" between the
camera lens and the film. When a photo is taken, the door opens for an instant and the film is exposed
to the incoming light. The speed at which the shutter opens and closes can be varied — the faster the
speed, the shorter the period of time the shutter is open, and the less light falls on the film.

Shutter speed is measured in fractions of a second. A speed of 1/60 second means that the shutter is
open for one sixtieth of a second. A speed of 1/500 is faster, and 1/10000 is very fast indeed.
Video camera shutters work quite differently from still camera shutters, but the result is basically the
same. (The technical difference is that, rather than using a mechanical device, the shutter speed is
adjusted by electronically varying the amount of time the CCD is allowed to build a charge. If this
means nothing to you, don't worry. It really doesn't matter how the shutter works, it's the effect it has
that counts.)

The shutter "opens" and "closes" once for each frame of video; that is, 25 times per second for PAL
and 30 times per second for NTSC. Thus, if a camera has it's shutter set to 1/60, each frame will be
exposed for 1/60 second. If the speed is increased to 1/120, each frame will be exposed for 1/120 of a
second.

The main effect of higher shutter speeds is that individual frames appear sharper, due to the
minimisation of motion blur. Motion blur occurs when the subject moves within the frame while the
shutter is open. The less time the shutter is open (ie. the faster the shutter speed), the less movement
will take place.

One side-effect of higher shutter speeds is that movement appears more jerky. This is because motion
blur tends to smooth consecutive frames together.

The three shots below were each taken as the car travelled past a stationary camera at 100 km/hr.
With the shutter off, motion blur is most pronounced. As the shutter speed is increased, the image
becomes sharper.

Shutter Off 1/120 second 1/500 second

Higher shutter speeds are common in sports coverage. Watch any fast-action sport to see the
"flickering" shutter effect. Notice how the slow-motion replays look, especially when they freeze the last
frame.

Note: As a result of the reduced exposure time with high shutter speeds, the image may appear darker
unless the iris is opened to compensate

Video Camera Filters

Camera filters are transparent or translucent optical elements which are either attached to the front of
the lens or included as part of the lens housing. Filters alter the properties of light before it reaches the
CCD.

Filters can be used to correct problems with light or to create certain effects.

Common types of filter include:

Neutral Density (ND) A colour-neutral filter which absorbs light evenly throughout the visible
spectrum. Used to reduce the amount of light coming through the lens in
strong lighting situations.
Ultra Violet (UV) Video cameras are sensitive to both visible light and ultra violet (UV)
light. UV is invisible to humans but it can create a blue tinge and/or
washed-out effect on video, especially outside. A UV filter removes UV
light while leaving visible light intact. UV filters are also commonly used
as a protective filter for the lens.
Polarizing A special type of lens which removes polarized light, reducing the
washed-out effect sometimes created by reflected light. This results in
more saturated, vibrant colours. Polarized filters are usually mounted
with a rotational adjustment to align the polarization.
Diffusion Effectively blurs the image for a slightly soft look. A mild diffusion filter
can be used to soften faces (remove wrinkles etc), a stronger filter can
be used to create a dream-sequence effect.
Sepia Creates a sepia-tone effect, commonly used to depict historical images
or flashbacks.
Fog Creates a fog effect.
Colour Conversion / Correction Adjusts the colour temperature of the light.
Star Effect Makes single points of light stretch out in various star patterns. This
effect is created by numerous fine etches in the filter, and can be used to
give a dramatic, sophisticated or glamorous look to the image.

Graduated Filters are graduated from one part of the filter to another, for example, a graduated ND
filter might have a strong ND filter on one half and none on the other half. This could be used to frame
an image which is half sky, if you only want the sky to be affected by the filter.

Graduated filters have varying levels of transition. A sharp transition means there is a well-defined line
between different parts of the filter. With soft transitions, the graduation is smoother.