Composition is Key

I'll be upfront, I don't exactly own the newest and latest cameras. For a college student with 1.64 in his bank account at this moment of writing, I don't exactly have the luxury of owning anything of the sort. However, the camera I do own gets the job done. My trusty Nikon D7000, while it's seven years old, still gets what I want it to do. In my four years of owning it, I've mastered what it's capable of and maximized the capabilities of it beyond what it looks on the surface. All it need's to do is capture the image. While, yeah sure, it doesn't shoot RAW video, and doesn't have high dynamic range, the quality of the image rest solely on me and what I do with it.  When I say "quality" I'm not referring to the megapixel count or resolution,  I'm referring to the "quality" of the composition of the image.

Don't get me wrong, the resolution is defiantly something to consider. Of course having a 1080p HD resolution should be a standard in any video camera, but now since 4k UHD resolution is becoming more accessible, it won't be long for it to be the standard. However, it isn't everything. 

What gives your image that "cinematic" or movie quality is in the framing. Photography veterans should be familiar with these but for those beginners, there are a few rules to follow with how to compose an image. 

RULE OF THIRDS

The Rule of Thirds is a long-running rule in film and photography. Basically, the rule states to put your subject on either the right or left of the frame. This keeps the image visually interesting and engaging to the audience. Where do I put these lines? Imagine a grid, much like the one above. Most cameras should have an overlay but if yours doesn't, it's not hard to imagine them.  However, in some cases, you don't have to follow this rule. Take for example Wes Anderson's "Grand Budapest Hotel".

Most of the film is shot with center framing. Anderson does this to create a fluid and symmetrical feeling to his films that are unique to his style. 

HEADROOM and NOSE ROOM

Headroom refers to space between the subject's head and the top of the frame. Generally, you want to leave enough for the actor's head to be just a little under the frame. Too much headroom and you'll chop the actor's head off.

Noseroom refers to space between the tip of the actor's nose/face and the left or right of the frame. Too little nose room and an image can feel claustrophobic or trapped, too much nose room, the frame can feel empty and incomplete.

180 DEGREE RULE/SHOT REVERSE SHOT

The 180-degree rule refers to an imaginary axis between the camera and what is happening in front of it. This also establishes where the characters are, in relation to the setting. If one character is talking to another and looking off to the left, the other character should be talking to the right(this back and forth is also known as a shot-reverse-shot). If one were to jump this line, it would mess the orientation of where characters are in relation to the setting. A perfect example of the 180-degree rule and also the shot-reverse-shot is in Sam Rami's "Spiderman"(2002).

The shot-reverse shot goes hand in hand with the 180-degree rule. Without the 180-degree rule, the shot-reverse shot wouldn't work. Notice how the camera never jumps across to the other side of Willem Defoe talking to himself. The back and forth in this scene gives the illusion that he is talking to someone else. Imagine if the mirror's image was facing the same direction as Willem Defore, the illusion of him talking to his inner demon is lost. For a more detailed look at the 180-degree rules, click HERE for more details.

These rules, of course, don't have to be followed. If it hinders your artistic vision, through it out the window, experiment! However, these methods are what is seen in every movie in some way or another. This is basic knowledge in the film world and having a good grasp of these techniques is vital to produce quality works.  These techniques are easy to understand (although, I'm sorry if I made it seem a little vague) but to master takes time and practice. If you are a young filmmaker not sure what to do, now is the time to start experimenting and playing around with what you like so you know for the future!