Camera Movement

Camera movement is a storytelling tool: how the camera moves changes what the audience notices and how they feel. A static camera does not move at all, so the picture stays perfectly still; it usually sits on a tripod for stability, which lets the audience concentrate on the action.

Turning on the spot

A pan swings the camera sideways from one set spot. Mounting it on a tripod keeps the sweep smooth, though it can be hand-held for a rougher feel. It can follow a character as they cross the frame, or sweep across a scene to reveal something new — a pan along a school noticeboard reveals one poster at a time.

A tilt swings the camera up or down without shifting its position, normally with a tripod underneath to keep it steady. It is handy for revealing things stacked vertically: tilt down from a character’s face to the cracked phone in their hands.

Moving the whole camera

A tracking shot (also called a dolly shot) moves the camera physically, often on a wheeled platform or a track. It can follow characters or objects as they move, trail an actor through a scene, or travel through a landscape or building so the audience goes with it.

A dolly zoom changes the zoom at the same time as the camera travels nearer to or further from the subject. The character stays the same size but the background stretches or squashes, which can show that they are unsettled, disturbed or worried. In a quiz final, the studio walls could seem to rush in as a contestant realises they are wrong.

A hand-held shot uses a camera that wobbles. This makes the world feel unstable, lets the audience feel as if they are walking or running, and can reflect a character’s nerves.

Zoom is not a movement

A zoom keeps the camera fixed while the lens changes how close the subject appears. It is often grouped with movement techniques, but the camera itself never moves, so a zoom is not a camera movement.