Single Camera Techniques

In this essay I will be looking at everything to do with single camera productions. I will be explaining how different aspects of filming including cameras, lighting, editing and sound are used with a single camera and touching upon multi camera techniques as well.

Single camera productions are filmed with one camera most of the time, an example of when more than one camera is used is in scenes where you can only do one take. For example the scene in Citizen Kane  (Welles, 1941) when Mr Kane smashed up Susan's room. More camera were used in this scene so the editor can have more angles to work with because if something happens to that camera during the take or the angle simply isn't good enough not only would the editor have nothing to work with they
would not be able to re shoot because the scene would be impossible to re shoot because the production company would have to buy all of the props and set them exactly how it was before. Fro my reading from the article (https://screencraft.org/2016/06/21/differences-single-camera-multi-camera-tv-pilot-scripts/) it has told me that we especially television shows have never been better, with also shows like Modern Family, being a leading example in how single camera productions should be carried out. Using boom mics can be very useful when filming films and TV shows because you can get the microphone very close to the actor and still be able too pick up audio. However, in Citizen Kane (Welles 1941) the sound crew decided that having really low ceilings in the production and having the sound crew simply law above it with the microphones to be better. Directors often prefer only using one camera because it gives them complete control. This is because they can stand behind the one camera and tell the camera man what to do whereas if you have multiple cameras the director can't run around the set looking at loads of different cameras. Single cameras allow you to shoot anywhere in the room whereas if you have multiple cameras it can limit you because of logistical reasons, the cameras potentially would hinder the operators to fit in the location. Single camera production does require you to shot the entire scene again and again multiple times, for each angle the shot is being seen on screen. This makes sure you get the right amount of coverage for your film. Sometimes this can be a dozen times or more depending on how many takes it takes the actors to get their lines right or other factors such as camera control or background noise. If using film, this can be very expensive because of all of the film needed to film with, however with digital storage this isn't an issue. Using film allows the actors to get into character because it allows more time for the actors to do this.

Lighting with a single camera is far easier to control because you can light each shot individually. However if you have multiple cameras the two shots or more must be lit well, which is very hard to do. If the lighting team gets this wrong the shot could be flat or fake. Using a single camera adds tone and to the style of the individual because it is there for only the one shot. (Picture, an example of a basic single camera lighting setup)

In these two photos you can see a multi camera setup with a lot of light and single camera lighting used in Citizen Kane (Welles, 1941). On multi-cam setups they're are a lot more lights that are needed for it to look professional. You need a lot more light because it would not be very practical or time-saving to move the lighting around for each different camera. Their can be a lot of cameras used on sets. So, their needs to be enough lights for each camera and angle to be lit properly. It is normally correct when lighting if you can't see any shadows in the direction your shooting, it is lit to a professional standard. However, in single-camera productions it is better if you move the lighting around for each shot so you can get the consistency you need for your different shots.


Using built in audio in single camera production or any production just isn't good enough, so directors tend to use tascams and boom mics. You can also use in this example just use the microphone the girl is standing in front of. These are very good at capturing audio or single and multi camera production. When filming with a single camera, the shots that are filmed you always need to start slightly early to avoid any awkward jumpy transitions. Some single camera productions will use a second camera to get certain scenes that wouldn't be possible to get with only one camera, for example, scenes with lots of dialogue. Background sounds are always added / enhanced in post production. With multi-camera productions it can be easier to mic whoever is front of the camera because a lot of multi-camera productions allow the microphones to be visible within the scene. For example Britain's Got Talent. Whereas with a single camera production you could find that central or directional microphones will be fine. Boom mics are a staple of single camera productions because they allow a sound guy to get really close to the action, so you can get the best audio.



Post production can take a long time because their is lot of footage that needs looking over in order to make the product. Although their is a lot of wasted film or storage space in multi camera production it can often be cheaper because it takes a lot less time to film. In single camera production directors tend to do all of the filming for one scene at one time, for example, if Tom Holland was only needed for 100 shots in a film the director wouldn't make him do 10 shots a day for 10 days he'll maybe try to get all 100 shots done over 1 or 2 days. Multi camera production can often be edited live, for example a live football match can cut between cameras needed live instead of just staying in a master view the whole game. (Picture, an example of a multi camera setup in action) Arguably, using more than one camera can speed up post-production because it would be easier to go through the footage and it would make more sense since the scene would be filmed at the same time compared to single camera you would have to go through a lot of footage to find a sequence of shots, because they could be filmed on different days for example. This clip below shows a multi camera sequence, but, sports can be shot on single camera. Sky Sports sometimes do Championship games for example. What they would do is have a master shot of the pitch and just pan from left-to-right wherever the action is. This obviously isn't as good because you only get one angle  but, it's better than not getting the game filmed at all so it's popular with the football community.




Their are various different genres that are fitted for single camera productions.

Firstly are period dramas, period dramas are set in the past, for example Downton Abbey which has been very successful recently for it's TV show and it's movie. Period dramas tend to fit well into single camera productions because Downton Abbey for example is filmed near the coast where the weather doesn't always favour the cast so it won't be a good idea to have multiple cameras on set because it would cost a lot more to protect them from the bad weather. Although Downton Abbey is a TV series, it also has the ability to look really filmic. This is simply because of what's being filmed in my opinion. Because it's all set in the olden time I believe that makes it more filmic. Another tip to have a TV show to look filmic is to shoot it in 24, not 25 so you're shooting it like you would a film.

Secondly crime dramas tend to fit single camera production to. Crime dramas often utilise low key lighting which is a lot easier to do with  single camera production. TV program such as Sherlock is a good example of this.





Thirdly horror always like to use single cameras as well to create a sense a realism to the audience. Single camera horrors make the audience involved with the 'scares' of the film or TV show. IT, is a good example of this.






However with comedies, these types of shows such as Friends and One Day at a Time uses multiple cameras to make the show feel more natural, for example when a joke is told the camera can switch between different characters to catch their reactions, however if this is done with a single camera it wouldn't feel as natural because it would be harder to get continuity right.




With soap operas they are mostly filmed with multiple cameras. However some are filmed with single cameras especially is the set is a real life set and not set up because it is hard to move cameras around in real life locations because they almost never fer as much space. For example Brook-side is filmed on a real location using a single camera. Soaps are filmed with multi-camera setups because they need to get a lot of filming done in a short space of time, so it needs to be edited quickly. Soaps are also almost filmed with more than one camera because they are filmed live. It would not look good if the camera kept moving live to a different angle. This is why they use a multi-camera setup for soap operas.






Alongside specific genres, there are a few formats that suit single camera production also.

Firstly a series, a series is a run of episodic programming with the same characters but with different story lines, for example Benidorm is a good example of this, the same character all episodes but with different story lines in each episode, for example one episode might be about cleaning a dirty pool and the next one might be about a boos coming to inspect the hotel. These episodes always tend to be based around the main characters. Series such as Benidorm doesn't tend to have open endings. Because it is just a week in the summer when the show is based on. So us as an audience knows when it will be starting and when it would be ending. Watching Benidorm I know that at the end of series 10 (the final season). Pretty much everything was out to an end with only a little room for an 11th season, but still completely possible. This was because if rumours that the show would be cancelled.

Secondly a serial may also run for a specific amount of time, or it may, be never ending, for example Coronation Street has been running for decades and it seems to be never ending, not anytime soon at least, shows like this will release episodes 5 or 6 days a week every week all year. In shows like Coronation Street offer no closure to any episodes instead they just keep the story-line rolling for weeks or in this case years on end. A series almost always have an open cliffhanger at the end of an episode. This is because the shows are never really ending. But on special multi-part episodes a conclusion of some kind can be found at the end of the special episodes.



Finally single dramas are a one off self contained story, told in a single one off episode, like a television movie. The minimum length of these series are five minutes The winner of the 2010 BAFTA for single drama was A Short Stay in Switzerland. Some single dramas can cover multiple parts. One-off series almost always have a conclusion and satisfying ending to their series unless they want to end the series on a cliffhanger on purpose because that fits the story.




Multi camera techniques very often differ from single camera techniques. Multiple cameras are always used in live sports, talk shows and shows like BGT. Multiple camera are necessary for media products that cannot be re shot. For example action movies use multiple cameras to catch all of the explosions. A few advantages of using multiple cameras include less continuity errors, fewer re shoots and the action does not need to be stopped and stared continuously. Some disadvantages include locations being limited, the set being very hard to light and the director has very little control because he cannot look over all of the cameras in use. Shows like Friends really rely on the background noise to bring the show together, also to make the audience think it;s actually funny, from the article I have read (https://www.nyfa.edu/student-resources/evolution-sitcom-part-2/) it showed me a clip from friends without the laughter. As you can see from this clip the show doesn't feel the same without it and it makes the show a lot less funny. This sequence was shot with three cameras it also said.

3) when talking about director control, add more detail about angles and shot lengths too, and then pick a scene from a film and get a number of stills / print screens, showing the change in camera position and what impact it has.



This is a scene from Star Wars Return of the Jedi (Lucas, 1983) where Luke Skywalker fights with his father Darth Vader (Anakin Skywalker). This fight scene is considered amongst fans and critics as one of the best scenes in the prequel movies and of all time Star Wars scenes. Richard Marquand directed this movie and won a number of awards including best dramatic presentation at the Hugo Awards in 1984 and Best International Film at the Jupiter Awards in 1983.

This low angle shot here shows Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) standing on top of the stair case after kicking Darth Vader to the bottom of them. This angle shows that Luke has the moral high ground as well as the actual high ground in the fight itself.  This next shot symbolises and means the same thing just from a different angle which really shows who has the high ground and how low Darth Vader really is now.

From minute 4.20 until 4.27 you can see a wonderful tracking shot of Luke vs Vader which is from a slightly low angle going from right to left. Marquand would have had full control over this and I think it's a wonderful shot because the camera is moving at the pace of the lightsaber battle, also Luke and Vader are moving right to left which shows in my opinion that Luke is winning.


In conclusion, it is a very hard choice when it comes to filming with one ore more cameras. I believe, if you are an experienced film and TV maker and your show is not bring streamed live, I believe that a single camera production would be right for you. But, if you are not so of an experienced film-maker and continuity plays a big role in your final product (which it should) I would say that a multi camera production is your best bet. Being an inexperienced film-maker I would prefer to do a multi-cam setup if I have the crew to do it with because in the long run of the production it would be easier to do.