Traditional and Digital Cinematography
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Transition from Traditional Cinematography to Digital Cinematography By Antonio Aranda Eggermont Advances in cinematography during the 19th and 20th centuries reinforced filmmaking's original emphasis, as a medium, on naturalism and the production ofrecords ofreality . However, after the introduction of computer systems and software programs, the aim of bringing realism on the screen by recording reality and naturalism has been changed. Increasingly, films are no longer based on reality. A film is not simply a random batch of ideas without any connection 1 between them. Like all mediums of artwork , film also has a form. "By film form we refer to the 2 overall system of relations that people perceive among the elements in the whole film. " Films tell us stories and stories are narratives that are considered the fundamental means by which people make sense of their experiences in life. "A narrative is a chain of events in cause-effect 3 relationship occurring in time and space. " In most cases a narrative begins with one situation, then a series of changes take place according to a pattern of cause and effect, and finally, a new situation arises that brings the end of the narrative. Filmmaking provides us with a medium to visualize narratives and deliver ideas and stories to audiences. However, film form and narrative development using film as a medium has depended on the techniques and technology available at a given time. Recent developments in technology have profoundly altered the narratives and stories that are now in film. The digital technological revolution has enabled the emergence of a new cinematic style that stresses visual illusionism in place of realism and in doing so has redefined traditional filmmaking. a. Realism as a Historical Focus and the Shift to Illusionism Visual effects have been used since the beginning of the entertainment industry but whereas previously they were used to support realism, recent developments in technology have been used to support visual illusionism. The techniques that were used to support realism have been replaced by the use of computers which allow for a cinematic style that stresses illusionism. 1. Early Cinematic Techniques in the Late 19th Century and Early 20th Century During the late 19th Century and early 20th Century, a number of cinematic techniques such as in-camera effects, miniature sets, and optical printing were developed to modify the basic record obtained by film cameras. But yet behind even the most stylized cinematic images, we can discern the bluntness, sterility, and banality of early twenty-century films. Regardless of the complexity of stylistic innovations applied to pictures, early pieces of cinematography were deposits of reality and naturalism. The principal purpose at the very origin of the cinema was to record reality and naturalism. In the following paragraphs I will describe and discuss some of the 1 Artworks are human artifacts and because artists live in history and society, we cannot avoid relating the work, in some way, to other works and to aspects of the world in general. Certain trad itions, styles, and forms, will be common to several artworks . These common trails are called conventions. The body of conventions constitutes the norms of what is considered appropriate or expected in a particular tradition . When obeying or violating norms, artist relate their works to other works. 2 Film Art. An Introduction by David Bordwell and Kristin Thompson. Pp 49. 3 Film Art An Introduction by David Bordwell and Kristin Thompson. Pp 69. Transition from Traditional Cinematography to Digital Cinematography By Antonio Aranda Eggermont Advances in cinematography during the 19th and 20th centuries reinforced filmmaking 's original emphasis, as a medium, on naturalism and the production of records of reality. However, after the introduction of computer systems and software programs, the aim of bringing realism on the screen by recording reality and naturalism has been changed. Increasingly, films are no longer based on reality. A film is not simply a random batch of ideas without any connection 1 between them. Like all mediums of artwork , film also has a form. "By film form we refer to the 2 overall system of relations that people perceive among the elements in the whole film. " Films tell us stories and stories are narratives that are considered the fundamental means by which people make sense of their experiences in life. "A narrative is a chain of events in cause-effect 3 relationship occurring in time and space. " In most cases a narrative begins with one situation, then a series of changes take place according to a pattern of cause and effect, and finally, a new situation arises that brings the end of the narrative. Filmmaking provides us with a medium to visualize narratives and deliver ideas and stories to audiences. However, film form and narrative development using film as a medium has depended on the techniques and technology available at a given time. Recent developments in technology have profoundly altered the narratives and stories that are now in film. The digital technological revolution has enabled the emergence of a new cinematic style that stresses visual illusionism in place of realism and in doing so has redefined traditional filmmaking. a. Realism as a Historical Focus and the Shift to Illusionism Visual effects have been used since the beginning of the entertainment industry but whereas previously they were used to support realism, recent developments in technology have been used to support visual illusionism. The techniques that were used to support realism have been replaced by the use of computers which allow for a cinematic style that stresses illusionism. 1. Early Cinematic Techniques in the Late 19th Centuzy and Early 20th Centuzy During the late 19th Century and early 20th Century, a number of cinematic techniques such as in-camera effects, miniature sets, and optical printing were developed to modify the basic record obtained by film cameras. But yet behind even the most stylized cinematic images, we can discern the bluntness, sterility, and banality of early twenty-century films. Regardless of the complexity of stylistic innovations applied to pictures, early pieces of cinematography were deposits of reality and naturalism. The principal purpose at the very origin of the cinema was to record reality and naturalism. In the following paragraphs I will describe and discuss some of the 1 Artworks are human artifacts and because artists live in history and society, we cannot avoid relating the work, in some way, to other works and to aspects of the world in general. Certain traditions , styles, and forms, will be common to several artworks. These common trails are called conventions. The body of conventions constitutes the norms of what is considered appropriate or expected in a particular tradition. When obeying or violating norms, artist relate their works to other works. 2 Film Art. An Introduction by David Bordwell and Kristin Thompson. Pp 49. 3 Film Art An Introduction by David Bordwell and Kristin Thompson. Pp 69. most relevant cinematic techniques developed in the 20th century, which successfully established visual conventions for storytelling that we still use today. One of the earlist films that captured realism and naturalism is Train Arriving at a Station by Auguste and Louis Lumiere.4 This film was reputed to have caused alarm when the locomotive in the film seemed to steam out of the screen towards the audience. G.R. Baker wrote in a newspaper: "The train is seen approaching, and gradually gets nearer and larger until the engine passes where we are apparently standing, and the train stops, the guard comes along, 5 passengers get out and in, and all is real! " The Lumiere brothers succeeded in capturing the public imagination since this film produced an exceptionally level of reality and naturalism using primitive cinematic techniques. The audience's reaction to this type of cinematic effect was the grounds for subsequent advances in photography and filmmaking. It became clear that audiences were interested in seeing images that were out of the ordinary but still preserved naturalism and realistically stylized cinematic techniques. However, these early audiences also demanded that cinematic pieces tell a story, rather than only showing one-shot wonders of a given event, such as a simple train arriving a station. The only way to meet audience demands was to produce films that told stories through narratives using naturalistic and realistic cinematic techniques. Shortly after Train Arriving at a Station, the use of narratives to tell stories had started in filmmaking. Even in the late 1800s, there was not an organized methodology in the world of cinema to make a film. However, as the film industry continued to evolve at the beginning of the 20th Century, artistic pioneers developed the art of filmmaking by creating and revolutionizing cinematic techniques. One of the most notable pioneers is David Wark Griffith. 6 Griffith introduced significant photographic effects for storytelling, such as the command of editing, camera movement, shot composition and lighting. Griffith employed transitions between shots for the editing of scenes, such as the fade-in and fade-out, which were used to visualize the lapse of time between scenes. He achieved this effect during photography by opening and closing the camera aperture diaphragm to control the amount of light reaching the film stock. The camera was also moved on the set to capture different perspectives of the scene, rather than positioning it only in one point in space. This aided the narrative development by presenting different point of views and perspectives for storytelling. In addition, Griffith also made use of the iris-in and iris-out technique to deliver dramatic effects. The iris was a simple device that fitted in front of the camera's lens and could be opened or closed to progressively reveal or conceal areas of the frame.