Camera shot requirements for a psychological horror film

 There are a number of standard approaches used in order to create the scene, mood and atmospheres of a typical psychological horror film .In order to capture this we needed to mimic the same camera shots and components in our opening 'shutter'. Below are the main techniques we used with an explanation of  how and why they are appropriate.

An Extreme Close Up - This is used to emphasise something, and focus on particular details in our opening we use this type of shot to zoom in on the main characters face to show her pure terror as it dawns on her that she is being followed, it allows us to see clearly the emotions she is feeling.  ECU's have a dramatic effect, and can cause the viewer to feel some discomfort to add to the excitement and intensity of a scene.

Long shot - This is a shot by which the whole setting fills the frame. This shot is often used so that the audience can establish what the setting is and emphasise the background and surroundings. This shot is often used in horror films to create atmosphere and tension and to also inform the audience of the creepy setting by which the scene is going to take place. We used this to film the main character walking home from school taking pathways that run through woods. We used it to show her as isolated and vulnerable in a potentially hazardous setting.

High angle shot- This is when the camera is above the character/action looking down on what's happening, this makes the viewer feel more powerful than the character. We used this shot when it dawned on the main character that she was being followed and pictured, the shot also makes the character seem harmless and insignificant and as a result vulnerable. High angled shots are sometimes referred to as the 'victim shot' and are sometimes used to end a scene the same way in which we did in our opening.

Panning- Panning is when the base of the camera remains still while the camera moves from left or right or vice versa, a following pan is used to follow a moving object from the side view and we used in the same shot the long shot to follow the main character waking thought the dodgy paths. The speed of the pan establishes and creates a particular mood.

Hand held camera/ steadicam- a hand held camera shot is used to produce a jerky unsteady shot, which we used when we shot our main character being chased through the woods. This type of shot can be used to intensify a scene of violence, steadicams allow fluidity in tracking, so that actors can be tracked while walking up stairs, riding motorcycles ect, and in our case being chased.