Dynamic Camera Work
Use camera movement and framing to amplify action energy
Strategic Camera Shake
Adding visceral energy through controlled camera movement
What It Is
Camera shake during impacts adds visceral energy that viewers feel in their bodies, not just see with their eyes. But it must be used strategically - matching the force and type of action - to enhance rather than distract from the core animation.
Why It Matters
Camera shake creates physical empathy between the viewer and the action. When done right, it makes impacts feel more powerful and helps the audience experience the force of the action. Overuse makes it feel cheap and distracting.
How To Do It
Match Shake to Impact
The intensity and duration of shake should match the power of the impact. Small impacts get small shakes, huge impacts get bigger shakes.
Example: Character stubbing toe: 2-3 frames of small shake. Character getting punched by giant: 6-8 frames of strong shake.
Use Direction Purposefully
Shake direction should relate to the impact direction. Horizontal punches create horizontal shake, vertical drops create vertical shake.
Example: Earthquake: vertical shake with some horizontal. Explosion: radial shake from center. Side impact: horizontal shake.
Recovery Matters
Shake should settle back to normal smoothly, not cut abruptly. The recovery curve shows the aftermath of the impact.
Example: Strong shake for 2 frames, medium shake for 3 frames, slight shake for 2 frames, then settle.
Practical Tips
- Use odd numbers of frames for more natural feeling shake
- Shake should be strongest at the moment of impact
- Don't shake for emotional moments - save it for physical impacts
- Camera shake works best when combined with other impact techniques
Common Mistakes
- Using the same shake intensity for all impacts
- Shaking for too long and making viewers dizzy
- Adding shake to every action, reducing its impact
- Making shake too random - it should feel motivated by the action
Push-In & Pull-Out
Using camera distance to create emotional rhythm
What It Is
Moving the camera closer during intense moments and pulling back for wide shots creates emotional rhythm and controls the audience's psychological distance from the action. This technique builds and releases tension like breathing.
Why It Matters
Camera distance directly affects emotional involvement. Close shots make us feel intimate and involved, wide shots give us perspective and breathing room. Controlling this distance is like controlling the audience's heartbeat.
How To Do It
Push In for Intensity
Move camera closer when you want to increase emotional intensity, focus, or create claustrophobia.
Example: Character about to make important decision: slowly push in to close-up to increase tension and intimacy.
Pull Out for Impact
Pull back to wide shot to show the full scale of actions or to give emotional breathing room after intense moments.
Example: After intimate character moment, pull back to wide shot to show them small in a vast landscape.
Use Speed Variations
Fast push-ins create urgency, slow ones build tension. Fast pull-outs show sudden scope, slow ones give contemplation time.
Example: Slow push-in during character's realization, fast pull-out when they spring into action.
Practical Tips
- Push-ins work great for character reactions and realizations
- Pull-outs are perfect for revealing new information or scale
- Combine with other camera techniques for maximum impact
- Use camera distance to match the emotional arc of your scene
Common Mistakes
- Moving camera distance randomly without emotional purpose
- Making camera moves too fast or too slow for the moment
- Not considering what the distance change communicates emotionally
- Forgetting to use wide shots to give audiences visual rest
Tracking Shots
Following action with camera movement to maintain energy
What It Is
Tracking shots follow the action with camera movement, keeping viewers engaged and maintaining the sense of motion. The camera becomes a participant in the action rather than a passive observer.
Why It Matters
Static cameras can make dynamic action feel flat. Tracking shots maintain energy by keeping the camera involved in the motion, and they help maintain focus on the important action elements as they move through space.
How To Do It
Follow the Energy
Track the main source of energy in your shot - usually the fastest moving or most important element.
Example: Car chase: camera follows the hero car. Fight scene: camera follows the character who's driving the action.
Vary the Follow Style
Perfect tracking feels robotic. Add slight delays, overshoots, or anticipatory moves to make it feel more organic.
Example: Camera slightly lags behind fast movements, then catches up. Or camera starts moving slightly before the character.
Use Tracking for Reveals
Follow characters as they move to reveal new information or environments.
Example: Track character walking through door to reveal the new room. Track character's gaze to show what they're looking at.
Practical Tips
- Tracking shots work best when combined with other camera techniques
- Don't track everything - save it for the most important actions
- Camera can anticipate movement slightly to feel more natural
- Use tracking to maintain focus on key story elements
Common Mistakes
- Tracking everything, which makes nothing feel special
- Perfect tracking that feels robotic and lifeless
- Not considering what the tracking communicates about importance
- Tracking too smoothly - real camera movement has character
Crash Zooms & Dutch Angles
Dramatic camera techniques for high-energy moments
What It Is
Crash zooms (sudden dramatic zooms) and Dutch angles (tilted camera) are high-energy techniques that create instant attention and can amplify the energy of chaotic or intense scenes. They're the exclamation points of camera work.
Why It Matters
These techniques create immediate visual impact and emotional response. They can turn ordinary moments into extraordinary ones, but they must be used sparingly to maintain their power.
How To Do It
Crash Zoom for Emphasis
Use sudden, fast zooms to emphasize realizations, shocks, or important moments. The speed creates urgency.
Example: Character suddenly realizes they're in danger - fast zoom in to their face. Important object noticed - crash zoom to the object.
Dutch Angle for Unease
Tilt the camera to create visual unease, instability, or to show that something is 'off' in the scene.
Example: Character feeling dizzy or confused - Dutch angle their POV. Villain's scene - Dutch angle to show wrongness.
Combine for Maximum Impact
Crash zoom into a Dutch angle, or use Dutch angle during a tracking shot for compound energy.
Example: Character falling down stairs - tracking shot with increasing Dutch angle as they tumble.
Practical Tips
- These techniques are like spices - a little goes a long way
- Crash zooms work best when they hit on a strong pose or expression
- Dutch angles should feel motivated by the story or character state
- Use these techniques to punctuate important story beats
Common Mistakes
- Overusing these techniques until they lose impact
- Using them randomly without story motivation
- Making crash zooms too slow or too fast for the moment
- Tilting camera without considering what it communicates