Motivated Camera Movement

Motivated Camera Movement

Pans and crane shots are often used in movie making as establishing shots or as a transition between scenes. In this example from Peter Pan (2003), the camera pans to the left from behind a bush to display an extreme wide shot of Peter and Wendy. This shot is referred to as a "discovery shot," and could have been made with a dolly or crane. I'm more inclined to guess that is was made with a crane seeing as the camera looks as if its right above the water of the pond. The composition of this shot creates a good transition between scenes as well as set up the next scene of the story to display Peter and Wendy as they are very close.

This scene is full of camera movement, including pans and tilts, to follow a car chase between Marty and the Libyans in Back to the Future. These movements are obviously very motivated as they keep up with the action that is happening. In order for the car chase to seem real, there needs to be movement so that the audience gets a feel for the fast pace of the scene and the intensity of every turn they take.

Everyone loves a great basement circle scene from That '70s Show. This camera movement is quite the opposite of your typical spin around the table scene as it works from the inside and quickly pans from one character to the next between dialogue. I feel like this technique works very well for a TV sitcom, especially That '70s Show seeing as this is one of its signature scenes. The rapid pan from left to right or vice versa really separates the thoughts of the different characters as they are speaking.