Subjects appear in the frame

[Karim23]

Hey sir Roger . I hope you’re doing well .I just have a very simple question and I just want a trustworthy source like you to tell me “ yes it’s the same process and it’s the same thing of how things appear in the frame “ to be sure and stop thinking about it.

I’m 20 years old and I started shooting with my iPhone 13 Pro Max and it’s all good. I’ve never used a professional cinema camera and lenses before .So I just want to ask is the process of framing I mean putting subjects in the center and on the sides of the frame and shooting foreground, middle ground and background in one frame in all different shots and achieving all different shot sizes and all different angles and also all different movements ( I mean the movements itself and the way it look not the grip rigs that are using to move the camera. for sure professional cinema cameras rigs are different 😅 ) and all that stuffs and how they look in the frame and how the frame looks in general on all different shots shooting with my iPhone 13 Pro max is the same thing of how the frame looks like in all different shots using professional cinema cameras and lenses ( I don’t mean the image quality for sure I’m not comparing the image quality and the look of the iPhone with the professional cinema cameras .. I just mean how things appear in the frame )and is it the same process to achieve all that same things using all other professional cinema cameras (film , digital.. 16,35,FF,65 and imax )and lenses ( prime , zoom .. spherical, anamorphic)?

Last question.. for shooting while cropping in mind to get the desired aspect ratio in post .so in this case cropping to get desired aspect ratios is the only thing that change framing and shot sizes in post. Of course unless there’re special cases that require doing other changes in post. Like creating fake shallow depth of field or adding things in frame using cgi for example.. right?

sorry about the long text.

Topic

[Karim23]

*Knowing that iPhone13 pro max main lens has a field of view as a 26mm full frame lens.

[Stip]

I’m not sure if this is what you ask but it will not react the same if you use different lenses. The longer the focal length, the more the image gets compressed, the shorter the more depth will be expanded and that will affect how large or small things appear in the foreground/middle/background  (their relative size to each other), perception of depth and object distortion.

[Stip]

[Roger Deakins]

Great visuals! Thank you for those, Stip.

[Karim23]

Thank you so much for the reply, Stip. But no .. I didn’t mean this 😅 I didn’t mean different focal lengths. I know about the effect of using different focal lengths on the field of view and the subjects.

My question was simpler than that .I just asking about framing foreground, middle ground and background in one frame in all shots and shooting all different shot sizes and shots with all different angles and also movements (just like I wrote in my question ☝️). It’s the same way and process to achieve all that things with my iPhone as with all professional cinema cameras and lenses? And the frame in general on my iPhone looks as the frame looks using all other professional cinema cameras ?( I don’t mean the image quality for sure I’m not comparing the image quality and the look of the iPhone with the professional cinema cameras .. I just mean how things appear in the frame ) in case of using the same focal length ,the same depth of field and the same aspect ratio.
I just want a trustworthy source to tell me “ yes it’s the same process and it’s the same thing of how things appear in the frame “ to be sure and stop thinking about it.

Last question.. for shooting while cropping in mind to get the desired aspect ratio in post .so in this case cropping to get desired aspect ratios is the only thing that change framing and shot sizes in post. Of course unless there’re special cases that require doing other changes in post. Like creating fake shallow depth of field or adding things in frame using cgi for example.. right?

Thanks Roger In advance 🙏

 

[quijotesco24]

I don’t want to be the smart ass kid in class here.
But as someone who is starting is asking questions is better to have this right on first place.

Focal length has nothing to do with image compression. It’s all about distance from camera to subject. And subject to background.

Focal length is only the field of view we are able to see.

I know it’s a common mistake but as I said, if someone who is starting get this right at beginning, understands how important are distances between camera, subject and background the easier the ride will be.

 

 

 

 

[quijotesco24]

An iPhone is a phone but also a camera with a lens.

Same as an Imax camera. Which is also a camera and a lens.

Life appears the same on both of them. You can use an iPhone to learn all cinema theory and even to shoot all the movies you like.

The actual lens of an IPhone is actually a 4mm lens I think. But the field of view it’s equivalent to 26mm or 28mm found in 35mm film photo cameras.

 

[Bernard LIm]

Hi everyone, to sir Roger and all, how do you make a decisive choice lets say between a 18 or 24, or a 28 or 35 (s35 term), without getting overwhelmed by option of focal length

I remember reading master of light where John Alonzo mentioned he’s very deliberate with focal length, difference between 29 & 35 is just moving forward or backward two steps, to get same field size.

Hope i explain my frustration well, thank you for reading

Bernard Lim from Malaysia

 

 

 

 

[quijotesco24]

If you feel overwhelmed about what focal to use think where should the camera and by definition the audience stand.

In my mind, the distance between subject(s) and camera it’s what’s important. And it’s what tells the story. Imagine a 2 people conversation in the middle of the street. It wouldn’t be the same standing 2 feet away of them than 20 feet away.

Once you know that, you choose which focal length to use based on what shot size you want. On the example of the 2 people conversation in the middle of the street. If you want a close-up of them and you are standing 20 feet away you will need a very long focal length. If you want the same close up shot size standing 2 feet you will use a wide lens. Shot sizes are the same but what has changed it’s the distance between camera (audience) and subjects. And this is what really affects us as viewers. The distance between camera and subjects, not which lens was used.

Some lenses are more common than others because they cover standard shot sizes at common distances we usually stand on our daily routines. So they feel natural to us and they feel natural to the audience watching.

Being that said lenses have also particular characteristics. Sometimes a meaningless difference between focal lengths as a 28mm and a 30mm lens doesn’t seem much but it can be quite different because the distortion or lack of it a lens has or because a lens is rendering completely different, etc. This also happens to same focal lengths but different lens models.

As you start working and employing lenses to create images patterns will emerge in your work. You will favor more some focal lengths than others in an organic way. This is why people tend to stick to same focal lengths for most of their work. Because it’s how they see and relate to the world.

[Author]

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