Primary Shots List

Aerial Shot

An exterior shot filmed from the air. Often used to establish a (usually exotic) location.

Arc Shot

A shot in which the subject is circled by the camera.

Close Up  Shot

A shot that keeps only the face full in the frame.

Crane Shot

A shot where the camera is placed on a crane or jib and moved up or down. Often used to highlight a character's loneliness or at the end of a movie, the camera moving away as if saying goodbye. 

Deep Focus Shot

A shot that keeps the foreground, middle ground and background ALL in sharp focus.

Dolly Zoom Shot

A shot that sees the camera track forward toward a subject while simultaneously zooming out creating a woozy, vertiginous effect. 

Dutch Tilt Shot

A shot where the camera is tilted on its side to create a kooky angle. Often used to suggest disorientation.

Establishing Shot

A shot, at the head of the scene, that clearly shows the locale the action is set in. Often comes after the aerial shot.

We plan to use an establishing shot we got from Dubai as well as shots from London and maybe Paris to help establish the setting of the movie, We will do this by  using shots showing major landmarks in the city, for example from the Burj Khalifa, the Shard and Eiffel tower.

Handheld Shot

A shot in which the camera operator holds the camera during motion to create a jerky, immediate feel.

High Angle

A shot looking down on a character or subject often isolating them in the frame.

Library Shot

A pre-existing shot of a location (typically a wild animal) that is pulled from a library. Aka a "stock shot", it says this film is old. Or cheap. 

Long Shot

A shot that depicts an entire character or object from head to foot. Not as long as an establishing shot. Aka a wide shot.

Low Angle

A shot looking up at a character or subject often making them look bigger in the frame. It can make everyone look heroic and/or dominant. Also good for making cities look empty.

Matte Shot

A shot that incorporates foreground action with a background, traditionally painted onto glass, now created in a computer.

Medium Shot

The shot that utilizes the most common framing in movies, shows less than a long shot, more than a close-up.

Over The Shoulder Shot

A shot where the camera is positioned behind one subject's shoulder, usually during a conversation. It implies a connection between the speakers as opposed to the single shot that suggests distance.

Panning Shot

A shot where the camera moves continuously right to left or left to right. 

POV Shot

A shot that depicts the point of view of a character so that we see exactly what they see. Often used in Horror cinema to see the world through a killer's eyes. 

Sequence Shot

A long shot that covers a scene in its entirety in one continuous sweep without editing.

Steadicam Shot

A shot from a hydraulically balanced camera that allows for a smooth, fluid movement.

Tracking Shot

A shot that follows a subject be it from behind or alongside or in front of the subject. Not as clumsy or random as a panning shot, an elegant shot for a more civilized age.

Two Shot

A medium shot that depicts two people in the frame. Used primarily when you want to establish links between characters or people who are beside rather than facing each other. 

Whip Pan Shot

A shot that is the same as a pan but is so fast that picture blurs beyond recognition. Usually accompanied by a whoosh sound.

Zoom In Shot

A shot deploying a lens with a variable focal length that allows the cinematographer to change the distance between camera and object without physically moving the camera.