Essay on analysing multi camera productions

One form of live event that uses multi camera

is sports. Looking at football in particular, using
26 03 2016 Germany VS England as the main
example. Looking at the coverage of action we
see that they try to show everything that is
going on. So they use multiple cameras to achieve this. A rough
estimate of how many camera there are is roughly 80+. They use a
large amount of angles and shots covering the crowed and any main
action. Having more then one camera it means they can be shooting
nearly everything at once meaning the
literally never miss a moment. They
also use the multiple cameras to
provide verity to the coverage of the
sport by having each camera as a
different angle. They cut between
them so we get the best view of what
going on. Like if a goal is scored they
show a wide of the player running up
and kicking it in. then once its been scored they show a close up of
the shot, then they show the reaction of the crowed and manger as
a close up, they also show the reaction of the team. By them having
this amount cameras it means the have those options to give the
viewer a full understanding of all reactions of everyone at the
match. They have also have the ability to change the view with a
cut rather then a zoom or movement of camera, so if they want a
close up they will already have a camera that is following the action
as a close up, whilst having a wide doing the same along side many
other cameras giving them 100% full coverage of everything and
giving lots of angle and shot styles to choose from.
They communicate meaning by shooting the crowed and other parts
thats not just the main action of the event to build up a certain
felling that comes across to the viewer. So if someone scores a goal
they show the ball getting kick then going in. Then show they show
the crowds reaction, by doing this it means the viewer gets a full
understanding of the entire moment, like what happened and what
that did to the atmosphere of the stadium/match. Thats how they
use the multi cameras to give meaning to whats going on. They
have to give the view a full understanding of the environment of the
match. Like I said before they have lots of cameras there so the can
literally shot anything and everything, this way they give the viewer
a full experience of the whole game. Like when they use GVs around
the stadium showing the crowed, this helps build the vibe of the
match. It builds the atmosphere of the coverage giving the viewer a
understanding of the hype at the match. Like if a goal is missed we
see the crowd shaking their head that shows the emotional

investment thats going on the stadium.

Because they cover this with a close up it
then translates to the audience, showing
them the whole environment of the match
and makes them feel like they are there
more. They have these crazy long telephoto
lenses that lets them shot very far into the
distance and get extremely close to action from
a distance. This means they can shoot close up
on player, mangers, the crowd and any main
action letting the viewer see exactly whats
going on, because they can see the full
reactions of player and mangers it means
these long shot close ups help let the viewer
get a better understanding of how the team
is feeling.

The main visual style is nice clean-cut open shots that deliver the
action in a clean watchable way. Like they use shots of the stadium
and around the stadium before it
starts so we get an understanding
of the environment. Then when
they match plays they do a lot of
over head shots to let us see the
full dynamics and placing of the
players with cuts to side on shots
following the ball. The style focuses
on the action and delivers full
coverage of the game. As a visual style they aim for focus of the
game. A lot of wide is used to make sure we can see the fully whats
going on. The amount of cutting is not often. They use the super
wide shot the most as this gives a full over view of the game letting
us see where the ball is who has it and where everyone in the area
is. This means lots of information is always on show the viewer to
see. When the ball is knocked out or there is a throw in, goal scored
or any break in the game the camera angle is changed most of the
time to a close up of whatever is taking place. Like if the ball goes
off for a corner there will be cut from the wide shot to a close up the
player kicking the ball in. then once the ball is kicked the shot is
changed back to the wide. By doing this it always means they are
covering the main action whilst making sure when the action is
isolated like in a corner it means the viewer gets a better view of the
player it lets them have more access to things like the emotions of
the player, but because they use the wide most often it means the
viewer can always tell whats going on and get a full understanding
of the game. But the close ups allow for a change of shot and make
it more personal. The visual style being focused on good coverage
and giving a full understanding of the game, which means they use
the shots to allow a better view of the game. Like close ups for more
detail of the action, but using wides to make sure all the action is
covered whilst giving a clean, crisp and clean view of the game, and
it gives the view a full view of whats going on.
They keep the viewer interest by making sure they keep everything
up to date and make sure we know exactly whats going on.
Because they have so many cameras there they can show us
basically everything thats going on in the match. So they can film
mangers reactions to the crowds. They keep the focus on the game
whilst showing a full understanding of whats going on there at the
time to keep us engaged by cutting enough and changing what we
see to we dont get board. Also they do a lot of playbacks so us the
viewer can Cleary see what happened in a moment. The play back
often is in slow motion so we can see what happened in that
moment better then we normally could, they do this when a goal is
scored or a bad tackle is made for example. By having this play
back in slow motion it means we can see that moment in real detail

allowing us to really engage in that moment. Especially if it

something like a close goal it makes the skill of goal become more
obvious though this. Also they use lots of logos and graphics to
break up play. They keep a strong focus on the game, with the
match itself being interesting they just
make sure they give a strong coverage
to keep us engaged and not
distracted. They do this by using there
wide which means we get to see the
full action, this view is also similar to
what people see in the stadium. But
they also cut close ups and shots of
other things like the mangers and
playbacks. Which means those watching it on TV get a more
detailed and full view of the game letting them see all the aspects if
the game, this in turn keeps the engaged as they dont want to miss
a moment and the full coverage means they dont.
Because they are on a fully live location environment it means they
only have one chance and they
cant do any retakes. So by having
more then one camera it means
mess ups are less noticeable and
easy fixed. So if one camera fails
or doesnt get a good shot of
something another camera
hopefully will so they can use that
in play back and cut to it. Also
because they out side there is the
element of less control. Even though they use artificial lighting when
needed (like at night) and try to control as much as they can, but as
its a live event they have to work around whats going on there. But
it means unlike a studio production they might not always know
what or where they are shooting so they need free moving cameras
to shot anything unexpected. Another draw back is they are not able
to have cameras on the pitch during the game, because they cant
disturb play. So they have zoom lens, cranes and flying swing shots
to try and get around this issue because all those allow access to
the pitch with out being on it, but its still a form or limitation
because they dont get the same shots as the could.
They record it all simultaneously and cut it simultaneously too. So
they have to constantly be working out what the best view is and
what they want to shoot and show. All the cameras need to
coordinate so they dont shoot the same thing and get different
angles is they do. They also have to cut live as its being shown as it
happens, so they need to keep on their toes getting the shots and
covering whats happening. By having all cameras shooting at the
same time means they can change the shot when needed. Like what

I said before, because they record they use a lot of play backs so
they can show moments in better detail.
Often this in slow motion so the moment
can be seen in even more detail the
second time. Goals are the key times
they use this. In the play back they
sometimes go from showing the goal
again, to cutting to a slow-motion
playback reaction of someone like a
manger. This allows them to show
reactions in more detail too whilst playing the whole moment back
so the viewer sees more and understands better, and having more
then one camera has allowed this.
Another live event that gets filmed is concerts.
Using Slaves Live - Reading & Leeds Festival 2016,
we can look
at how they
shot this
kind of
event. In this
they cover the action in two
main ways with cameras
focused on the band and
cameras focused on the
audience. The main difference
between these two is the
audience cameras dont move as much there are two/three cameras
dotted around the crowed getting reactions that in turn give the
ambiance of the event. With the cameras shooting the band there
many more. With a large range of shot from wide to close up of the
band. With two shots and individual ones. Again like the football
they have many cameras to pick up the
entirety of the event. But unlike the football
nearly all shots are in the event and dont
give a full setting, more focused on the event.
Most of the shots of the band are closer then
the audience see meaning they cover action
up and personal so the viewer has a closer
connection to the event. This also means the broadcast will be a
different experience to the one the crowd gets. They have multiple
cameras on the same thing, but each one has a different angle.
Some of the angles could be classed more as arty and build a more
stylistic look, like they do shots from below showing one of the band
members feet whilst you can see the other member behind.

With communication of meaning they try to bring us into the even

nice and personal so we get a real
understanding of the vibe of the event.
We can hear and see the concert well
meaning we get the entertainment
value and understanding but they mix it
up with wider shots and shots of the
crowds for setting and giving a certain
look and feeling of a festival. The
cutting speed is fairly fast which goes
with building whole upbeat and paced
vibe. The music is quite load and fast these frequent cuts go nicely
with the music and build the atmosphere. Like I pointed out these
more arty and original shots help add character to the broadcast,
which in return add character the whole event. They use the shots
and the cuts to help build up the atmosphere of the event like
showing close up of people in the crowed dancing and singing along
to show us what the atmosphere created by people there is. That
mixed in with shots of the band playing give a strong feeling the
event.
The visual style again is clean but original, as it was a BBC
production so it had to match up with name. So with this type of
production they tried to make it a simple cut as such. Whilst making
it fit the event. They cut so we can see things better or change our
perspectives or understanding, whilst having the cuts build a
stylistic view of the concert. They do this not to take away from the
actual concert, but build up the atmosphere of the actual broadcast,
by having the filming fit the performance well. They make it more
about the performance, then the video its self so it doesnt distract
the viewer but the video build up the performance. The edit style
builds up the pace of the music and
flows well as a visual style as a whole
because the angles mixed with the cuts
complement the bands style and music.
They keep viewer interest by hugely
relying on the performance its self being
interesting because the whole focus
from start to finish is the concert.
However they use a range of camera angles and change up the edit
to help us focus on the performance and get more involved and
have more of an active viewing. They also use faster edit between
the shots to make it good pace to go with the vibe of the upbeat
festival.
Again as this is being shot out side on location at a live event means
more things can go wrong as they are not in a controlled
environment. So more cameras as back ups may be needed. Also as

its shot on more of a temporary sight compared to the football it

might mean the fecitalies to hand are different to normal which
might mean the have to re thing shot methods. So those are some
of the constraints. However due to the nature of concerts they have
a good idea of where most of the main action is so they can set
everything up so the cameras should be able to capture everything,
but it might mean some wide angle cameras and free moment ones
too, so that it guarantees the capture everything. Another thing is
they have to think hard about
where cameras go because there is
a audience and they dont want to
block there view, also they dont
really want all the cameras being
able to see each other. But they
want the cameras to be able to get
the best shots of the action as
possible so thats why do things
like having them higher up above
the crowds and behind them. And they have some in front low down
or out the way to the side so that way they can the different angles
without being in the way.
Again on this event they used simultaneous recording. When
working with more then one camera shooting the same thing its not
particle to shot them separate and mix it later, this event was also
edited live so they had to use simultaneous recording or it would
have been impossible. It also means they could have lots of angles
created at once. As they only have one take, having all the cameras
at once means they are less likely to miss a moment, this is all live
and in a less controlled environment with lots of variables so they
need to be able cut between cameras easy and have them
capturing as much as possible.
Now looking at a studio multi camera shoot.
Dragons Den UK Season 06 Episode 01. They
do the converge of action different to the live
event because its more of a set up sinario and
setting so the cameras have been placed in a
well thought out place. They have a camera
on every person in shot so they can show individual reactions.
Whilst having lots of two shots and overviewing wides so they can
cover everything going. Unlike live events they can do nice small
moments and set up shot of the focused people or objects. As they
are in a controlled environment and things are less likely to happen
in in unexpected places there is less of a need for free movement
cameras. But they still have couple of wides in case. But they dont
need to have the cameras ready to capture thing that arent in the

place they are set up to be. They can just make sure everything is
set to be shot and captured cleanly.
They show meaning by they way they move the camera. If people
are shocked the might zoom into there reaction to give it more
meaning and
bring out the
reaction more by
drawing more focus
to it. They use the
set up setting to
there advantage
meaning they can all
the cameras how
they need it. They have a lot of camera focus on faces and the
actual products. To make sure we can see 100% what the products
looks like and how it works to let see what it is. But by them also
letting us see what peoples faces are like it allows for reactions to
become more clear and give a different understanding of how
people view the product, or how the people selling it, it allows us to
see there emotion whilst giving the pitch. All of this allows us a
insight in though presses and the environment in that moment.
The visual style is probably the most aesthetic out of all the
productions. They mainly use the multi camera just to make sure
they get all the reactions of the people in the shot. But they mix in
GVs to make the visuals more
interesting, the GVs bring in more of the
setting and help set a tone to the whole
thing. Because they use lots of cameras
they can more
arty shot
because they can
have the more
standard ones to fill.
These set up shots
allow them to make
sure the angles
give us the best view
of things, like
having the cameras
set up we get mid,
close and wide shots of the same person or product giving a range
of views of the same things, this set allows for them to have
creative possibilitys.
When it comes to maintaining viewer interest they use a lot of cut
aways. Like the presenter or those GV previously spoken about.
They try to mix up the viewer see to help them focus and stay
engaged my bringing more exiting visuals into the mix. As the
action is not so flashy all the time in this program they use nicer set
up shots to make action more watchable because it makes the
viewer more automatic. They also keep a good focus on the actual
action, with close up of things like products, which keep our interest

as we want to get an understanding of what things look like. Also

they keep interest by not 100% revelling what things are straight
away they build up our understanding slowly so we want to know
more, and they leave the dragons reactions to last so we wait to see
what they think about it.
This production was shot in a studio
which meant they had access to more of
a set up environment. Meaning they had
more control of the visuals. They have a
built up set they figure out a way they
can shot it. With people staying in the
same places almost the whole time
meaning they can have more set up
shots, they have probably used ques and
other set up shots because of the nature of the studio production. As
they are in a studio it means the set can complement camera set up
and they have control of things like power and lighting to mean the
best quality of production is easier to set up. They can also make
sure the action is in places the cameras will get best shots of. And
they can nicer shot easier as they do have the options now and then
for retakes and shooting GVs set up like they want.
They reordered with more then more camera at once so they could
capture one then one thing at a
time. The nature of these no
scripted shows mean they only
have one take so shooting it all
with more then one camera is
better because they have more
chances to git it right even though
its happening once. This probably
wasnt live edited because it didnt
need to be, most likely why it has
more cut ways and set up scenes and shot as that could be edited in
and made work. As there is still the element of live to this they still
need to make sure they dont miss things, so having more then one
camera means they dont miss key things. As 95% of the time they
cant do retakes.
Looking again at a studio production, looking at Hotel Maid offers
Sex to Her Guests - The Jeremy Kyle Show. Similar to the last one
this show because its in a studio they have everything set up to
there advantage with things set up in frame like the main action.
But due to the nature of this show the action sometime doesnt go
how it was planned so there are a lot of handheld camera that have
the ability to go around the entire studio letting shoot anything that

happens even if it moves out

of the set up area. But unlike
the last one the scenario is
less set up so they cant tell
100% where things will be shot
or how much moment there
will be so cameras need to be
able to have free moment, so
in this production they have
shoulder cameras to make
sure they can change angle
when needed. They also need to cover
many things at once. They capture the host,
the guest (who can be in separate locations)
and the audience so they need to be able to
shoot with more then one camera to capture
all of that at once.
The meaning of this show is less a key thing they go for because of
the nature of the show. Its all about Jeremy and his guest so all
shots are of them basically, they set up a certain environment in the
way they do a host format, using multi cam they let us see lots of
reaction so letting get a wider view of opinion. Reactions and dialog
is key to this show so they always need clean and clear shots of the
guest. So they have lot of
cameras focused on them,
and make sure they we can
see their whole reaction and
body langue so we can a full
understanding of whats
being said. So they have
wides and close ups to
achieve this as it gives full
body langue or detail of there
face.
The visual style is basic because they go more portraying the action
rather then distraction from whats being said. They try to keep the
focus on whats happening in shot, so cuts and shots are simple to
keep things clean and focused. This goes with the whole vibe of the
production having more then one camera allows them to do this.
They always have shots that capture everything. Nothing is too
fancy or complicated as they dont want to take away from the core
which is whats being said. They main story is in the guest so they
dont want the visual style to take away from that so the only way it
adds to that is by being basic. They almost rather no have perfect
visuals as long as it lets us understand whats going on, so thats
why at times we can see other camera men in the shot and things

like that, and why we see backstage. This is because they just want
us to constantly see whats going on rather then it look nice.
They keep viewer interest by
breaking up the action with
adverts, and when they come
up they says whats coming
soon to make us want to
come back to see what
happens next. They use a
host to structure everything
because its a live shoot they
need some from of on
camera control. They keep
things simple so we can engage with the people on screen. Like I
said before the content is the main thing, so they keep us interested
by always keeping that as the main focus and not directing from
that by having simple clean cuts and shots that build up the sinario
and situation. The cameras dont stop rolling regardless of where
the action takes place and they make sure we can always see whos
speaking and get a understanding of the situation with camera
changes.
As far as this being in a studio, as I said before this means they have
a controlled environment and they can make sure the gear is set up
show they want so the cover all the action easier then maybe on a
location. They also have set up areas they know they want to film so
they can have those parts of the set sorted so they can shoot it the
way they want. The studio is used as a basic place for the action to
take place. Its open and well lit everywhere so if moment into the
backstage happens it can be shot easy. It being a studio means they
can set up where most of the time guest, cameras, lighting and the
audience are which lets them have more control and make sure the
can capture what they need to.
Because they shoot with more then one camera they can shoot all
around the studio not just on the main stage at the same time. So
shooting all the same time
means they can show
people who are in different
places reacting to the same
thing. It means because
things are live and they
dont have retakes they
dont miss anything that
happens. And it allows for
angle changes to suit and
moment better.

So over all their differences between shooting on location and in a

studio on a multi cam shoot, neither is 100% perfect. So its very
production dependent what works better and how they do it. As
content, location and style can change very much by the way each
one is shot.