Recce: Camera Plan
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This is a camera plan for our first location - Slam City Skates, Bethnal Green.
Despite our short film being a documentary, meaning it's all about "raw material", we can still have an idea of where we want to place our camera when filming. The image to the left displays a sketch of the retail store's layout, in which I have marked the spots where we intend to document.
As you can see the main camera spot will be just in front of the counter so we can interview the owner or the store's frequent customers. This camera placement should allow for a medium close-up when the person is seated, enabling us to capture facial expressions and possibly hand gestures/body language.
The second camera spot will be in the middle of the store, in order for us to film their merchandise. This will elaborate on the conventional 'streetwear' line that skateboarders wear, along with the types of skateboards and bearings available, which will be key for our uneducated audience who know nothing of the skating subculture. In addition, we also aim to film a street view just outside the store, in order to capture the location where it's situated; long or establishing shots.
Slam City Skates Store, Covent Garden
The recce for the skateboard store's over branch in Covent Garden will be the same. The layout is very similar to that show in the image above; the main thing is that this branch is slightly bigger. The wider area means that there will be more space for us to place our camera and tripod. As you can see from the image on the right, there are stools in the middle of the store, just like the one in their Bethnal Green store. Yet this can be overcome by simply asking the manager if we could move them to the side if they get in the way of our documentary when trying to film.
We will again place the camera in front of the counter, in the middle of the store and outside the shop front (exterior view).
Here is a camera plan for our second location - Lloyds Park, Skate Area.
The diagram to the right shows all the possible camera spots we aim to use in order to document the best footage. These include low angles when the skater "grinds" the curved ledge (1) and jumps off the ramp (2). The other camera spots may be used to achieve close-ups and medium close-ups. Additional camera placements will be tested to get a range of shots and angles, but these are the main ones.
The shaded green area represents the grass that surrounds the skate park (3). This area may also be used in order to take long shots. This will enable the audience to see a head to toe of the skater we're focusing on.
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Southbank Skate Park is our third location, in which the diagram to the left shows our camera plan. As noted, the space is 'undercroft'; it is covered by the above building - The Queen Elizabeth Hall (a music venue). The walls are full of graffiti and consist of a variety of ledges and banks.
Within this frame there are 3 main spots where we aim to place the camera, but there may also be more depending on the amount of shots we use. For instance, we will probably pan and tilt the camera towards a section of the graffiti on one of the walls, since it's part of the culture.
However, we mainly aim to get a wide shot of the overall skate park (1) and a close-up/low angle of a skater grinding the ledge (2). Our intention is to document the skaters in their natural habitat, hence why the position of camera spot (3) will be used to pan and catch skateboarders in action e.g. skating on the bank.
By Ashley Fontaine
These recce's were helpful because they made us think about the exact placement of our camera in order to get the best shots before even filming.