Amateur Movie Makers (Dec 1926-Dec 1927)

because he was not bored by watching someone in the distance doing something which he could barely distinguish. Furthermore, it made unnecessary some definite statement of what was happening through the medium of a title. Proper photography can safely leave much to the imagination. The audience delights in forming its own conclusions from the close-ups, and people much prefer them to the less realistic and more formal titles. The close-up became more and more popular as its importance became evident, and today the nearer the scene is to the camera, and the more close-ups used, the better the picture is frequently considered to be. If scenery is arranged especially for the filming of some scene, a great deal of work can be saved by taking close-ups rather than trying to cover a large area. While a distant shot might include a half acre of space, all of which would have to be arranged, a close-up would serve the same purpose, be much clearer, and necessitate the preparation of only a very small area of scenery immediately surrounding the picture subject. The length of the close-up is also of importance, though there is no definite length which could be called the standard and proper length of such a scene. Good judgment alone can determine length, though it should not be so long as to bore the audience. Fifteen seconds is about the limit. It should not, on the other hand, be too short, so that scenes will flash on and off of the screen. It should never be less than three seconds or about one foot in length. Less than that amount lasts so short a time that the action is over before the audience realizes what it is about. In making a close-up, particularly a very intimate close-up of a person or object, the background should be selected which will best enhance the picture. If a person with black hair were to stand in the deep shadows in front of a dark gray wall, he would "take" very poorly. For persons with dark hair, a light background and for those with light hair, dark back grounds, give a contrast to the picture which greatly betters its appearance. A dark object should be contrasted with a light one wherever possible and should also be placed in some light which will cast a slight shadow. The shadow detail of a picture adds appreciably to its beauty. When making close-ups there is less light reflected from the object, BUT THE CLOSEUP HAS THE PUNCH due to its nearness to the lens, than when taking the same picture at normal distance. In order to compensate for this, the lens is usually opened one stop wider than for the normal shot. With certain types of amateur cameras, pictures made at less than eight feet from the camera must be made with the aid of a portrait attachment. This enables the subject to be brought into sharp focus at very close range. With the focusing models, close-ups can be made with the subject as near as three and a half feet to the lens. When the camera is used extremely near to the subject, some correction may also be necessary to allow for the difference in positions of the finder lens and main camera lens. If a close-up of a man's head were to be made, it would be ruinous to the good looks of the picture to cut a slice from the top of his head. Yet, this may be very easily done if the photographer fails to raise the camera enough to leave a small space at the top of the finder and above the highest point he wishes to see in the finished picture. If a scene is dependent upon artificial light, another advantage of the close-up is apparent. The amount of available light may be concentrated upon a small area which will make it quite intense, while if it were spread over a wide space it might be inadequate for the filming of the desired pictures. Backlighting, that interesting effect produced with either natural or artificial light by having an intense light strike the back and top of the subject, while the shadow side is lightened by reflectors, is particularly good in close-ups, and presents a wide field for the advanced amateur experimentalist. If make-up is to be used for a close-up it must be put on smoothly, so it will not be obvious when seen through the critical lenses of the camera and projector. Make-up, however, has a decided advantage in bringing out features which, under an intense light, would hardly show on the sensitive film. Animal pictures should almost invariably be taken at the shortest range possible. This is not hard as the clicking of the camera will interest your pets. They will show curiosity in what you are doing and therefore hold a wonderful pose for a movie portrait, moving just enough to avoid that dead appearance which sometimes results from a too perfectly posed picture. The thousand and one uses for which the close-up has become popular make it a broad field for study. The amateur will be greatly benefited on this score by emulating his predecessors — the professionals. Everyone should constantly strive to work in more and better close-ups. They sustain interest and supply character and vigor to the picture. Try using more of them and you'll agree. Twenty-one