A cinematographer or director of photography (sometimes known as DP or DOP) is the chief over the camera crew working on a film, TV or other live action piece and is responsible for achieving artistic and technical decisions related to the image produced.
The study and practice of this field is known as cinematography. Some filmmakers say that the cinematographer is only the head over the camera and lightning and, the Director of Photography is the head over the all photography components of the film.
As early as pre production, the DP has to make some crucial decisions about the look and feel of a movie. For example: "Is it going to be colour or black and white?, If colour is used will the colours be vibrant and saturated or fade and dull?"
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| Magazine recommended: American Cinematographer |
The above are questions the cinematographers always deal with and most of the time they don't take the decisions alone. The director is still the "creative tyrant" who has to oversee and approve of any aspects of the production.
Cinematographer's Craft
He's often called a painter. His brush are the actors, lights, locations, props and etc. These are the element the DP has control to make each and every shot of a film. Cinematographers ranks among one of the most complex and challenging facets of filmmaking.
Learning Cinematography
Cinematographers are photographers, so before jumping into cinematography one must know all aspects of photography. It is essential because capturing the image with light is intrinsic to both.
If you are really interested in becoming a cinematographer, here's a simple little trick: Watch films on mute. This is the best way to focus on each and every shot. And see, how the DP designed them and learn from it.
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