Documentary Voice & Vision

Chapter 10Camera Support

Deciding if your camera should move during a shot and how you want it to move are critical to the tone, style, and meaning of your film. Whether you’re panning, tracking, tilting, or staying absolutely still, choosing the appropriate camera support is vital. You need to understand the equipment you have available to you and the expressive potential of each piece of gear, so that you can achieve your aesthetic goals.

Let’s say during preproduction you decide that your film would best be told as a series of meticulously lit and composed static compositions where the camera barely moves, as in Our Daily Bread (2005), Nikolaus Geyrhalter’s documentary about industrial food production. Or perhaps you want your film to open ...