Follow shot is a specific
camera angle
The camera angle marks the specific location at which the movie camera or video camera is placed to take a shot. A scene may be shot from several camera angles simultaneously. This will give a different experience and sometimes emotion. The diffe ...
in which the subject being filmed is seemingly pursued by the camera, for example by a
Steadicam
Steadicam is a brand of camera stabilizer mounts for Movie camera, motion picture cameras invented by Garrett Brown and introduced in 1975 by Cinema Products Corporation. It was designed to isolate the camera from the camera operator's movement ...
. The follow shot can be achieved through tracking devices,
panning, the use of a
crane, and
zoom lens
A zoom lens is a mechanical assembly of lens elements for which the focal length (and thus angle of view) can be varied, as opposed to a fixed-focal-length (FFL) lens (see prime lens).
A true zoom lens, also called a parfocal lens, is one ...
es resulting in different qualitative images but, nevertheless, recording a subject (performer) in motion.
Usage
Follow shots are typically used in film to establish audience alignment with the perspective of the character being followed and to follow them. The audience is made aware of the character's presence and is able to observe them in action, while also being forced to identify with the character. It is considered neither first-person perspective
nor third-person perspective.
Examples
*''
Elephant
Elephants are the largest existing land animals. Three living species are currently recognised: the African bush elephant, the African forest elephant, and the Asian elephant. They are the only surviving members of the family Elephantidae an ...
'': Each character is followed continuously during their narrative time.
*''
2:37'': Each character is followed several times, in a style similar to that of the previously-mentioned ''Elephant''.
*''
The Shining'': The
steadicam
Steadicam is a brand of camera stabilizer mounts for Movie camera, motion picture cameras invented by Garrett Brown and introduced in 1975 by Cinema Products Corporation. It was designed to isolate the camera from the camera operator's movement ...
follows Danny as he rides his tricycle through the long hallways of the hotel.
Cinematography
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