the elusive zoom

**mulanie** · November 26th, 2000, 11:51 PM

You know when a film reaches a dramatic stage and the camera zooms in on a subject while the background is zooming out to make it look weird (e.g poltergeist, umm films I can't think of right now), does anyone know if this can be done with a normal digital camera?

**shirt** · November 27th, 2000, 03:34 AM

sure it can...
it is achieved by dollying out, while zooming in... very difficult to do affectively...

**LAmind** · November 27th, 2000, 07:36 AM

Or you can zoom in on the subject and WALK away of you don't have a dolly. But it will be shaky no doubt, so use SOME kind of a dolly, even if it a shopping cart or a wheelchair (compliments or Mr. Rodruigez). And I don't think it's hard to do at all. It looks very beutiful once you get it perfect. Make it play in slow motion for an extra dramatic feel.

Hey I never tried this but heres an idea!!!!...

If you can zoom IN and dolly/walk AWAY. Can you zoom OUT and dolly/walk CLOSER to the subject? How would that look? Hmmmmmm....

-Ivan

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"A place for everything and everything in it's place".

**LAmind** · November 27th, 2000, 07:38 AM

By the way, this effect can be done with ANY camera that has zoom. Not just digital. ANy old piece of shit will do as long as it has zoom.

-Ivan

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"A place for everything and everything in it's place".

**marti-c** · November 27th, 2000, 06:13 PM

I think you may find that this shot is actually a dolly in zoom out. ( as in the shot in jaws when the chief is sitting on the beach )

This happens because of the characteristics of a narrow angle lens ( ie zoom in ) and a wide angle lens ( ie zoom out ) narrow angle will compress the distance between the subject and background whereas the wide angle will seperate them ( this is amongst the other characteristics of the different lens angles ) Although we call it zooming it is actually changing the angle of the lens. The zoom is merely a variable angle changer.

All the different shot sizes were calculated by the BBC yonks ago as they were the first ones to standardise the angles. They worked out the correct angles to give a medium long shot/ mid shot /medium close up all from exactly thr same distance from the subject....................sorry for rambling................ohh and by the way the name for the weird shot is the TROMBONE shot.

marti