Camera Shots and TV Programming: A Comprehensive Look

Scripted and Unscripted TV Programmes

Scripted programmes: dramas, situation comedies, comedy shows, soap operas, documentaries, etc.

Unscripted programmes: talk shows, game shows, reality shows, news, sport and current affairs, etc., and may be either live or recorded.

Basic Camera Shot Types

• The Rule of Thirds: Dividing the frame into 9 equal sections to make the picture more appealing to the eye. It might be better used as a guideline.
• Extreme Wide Shots (EWS): Act to establish the area.
• Wide Shots (WS): Show the entire person or area. They are great for establishing the scene and allow for good action of the characters. Sometimes this is known as the long shot.
• Medium Shots (MS): Frame the subject from the waist up. This is the most common shot and allows for hand gestures and motion.
• Medium Close-Ups (MCU): Show the subject in more detail and are often framed from just below the shoulders to the top of the head.
• Close-Ups (CU): Show a particular part of your subject. For people, this usually means the shot frames just the head!
• Extreme Close-Ups (ECU): Are much tighter close-up shots in which you get detail greater than the human eye might be able to normally perceive. An example of this shot might be of the mouth and eyes together.

Advanced Camera Shot Types

• Two Shot: This is a shot of two people (or other individuals) together.
• Cut Away (CA): Cut-aways are used in the editing process to fill in footage, which is different from the main action.
• Over the Shoulder Shots (OSS): Are shots from behind the person towards their subject. Generally, the frame is cut off just behind the ear, although there are several variations.
• Point of View (POV): This is an effective shot that gives the audience the feel that you are seeing it from the eyes of the performer. It is taken from near the eye-level of the actor and shows what he might see.
• Selective Focus: This effectively leaves one part of the frame in focus while blurring others, such as the foreground or background. When you change the focus in the shot from the foreground to the background you are doing another advanced camera shot called a rack focus or pull focus (trasfoco).

Main Criteria to Determine TV Programming

• Selecting contents.
• Establishing hierarchy of priorities.
• Setting time slots, duration and periodicity of programmes.
• Determining broadcast mode (live or recorded).
• Research of target audience each programme is addressed to.
• Broadcast a programme with a different content and style at the time offered by a competing channel.
• Broadcast a programme with a similar content and style at the time offered by a competing channel (direct counter-programming).