Single Camera Production Techniques

On this post the essay included is simple about the different techniques within single camera productions.
In single camera productions, it is pretty obvious that only one camera is used to produce a production. The Camera is used to add 'realism' and to add more emotion to the scene. It is also to get the audience to be part of the action/scene. The only exception for using more then one camera on a single camera production is when there is a particularly difficult scen such as a stunt that may not be able to be caught just on one camera. A lot of directors tend to enjoy single camera productions purely because they have a lot more control over the camera. The productions are also well liked because they allow you to film just about anywhere.The only down side to single camera productions is that due to logistical requirements you may be a bit limited. In single camera techniques, the majority of scenes have to acted multiple times therefore the repetition makes the production quite expensive if you were filming onto actual film. The one advantage to filming multiple times is that it allows each Actors/Actress' get a chance to get into character. Below is a diagram of the three main positions the camera could be placed in a single camera production. Usually the production team would shoot the whole scene from position 1, then again from position 2 and then finally from position 3 just to make sure they've covered all angles and to capture the best shoot possible.












Lighting
Doing a single camera production is far easier in the form of lighting because you can light each scene individually. This causes in an uplifted product as appose to a flat piece. Single camera productions are far more detailed and intricate which adds tone and depth to each individual scene. Below is an example of how a single camera production would be lit.
Sound
The quality of the audio on a video really enhance and improve the overall quality of the video that may, if the audio was recorded using just the built in microphone in the camera, classed as child's play or even as a first time video. Each scene filmed requires a certain amount of overlay which means you start filming the scene a little earlier than people start acting and also run over a little as well. This ensures you have not just captured the whole scene but it also avoids awkward editing issues and jumpy cuts between scenes. Certain single camera productions enlist a second camera for scenes with a lot of dialogue. In multi-camera productions they allow microphones to be visible where as in single camera productions a central or directional microphone would be just as adequate.

Coverage

Coverage means how much film is captured meaning good coverage is when there is plenty of material to work with in post production. The down side of not capturing enough footage or not having enough coverage is that if the scenes you have are not up to standard or are just awfully filmed then you may not have anything to replace it leaving you with a less then decent product. It also will effect the overall finished product because there may be a continuity error or it may be jumpy with the dialogue.

Editing

Post production can take just as long as production if not longer as you have to look through and decide which footage you will and won't be using. Though multi-camera productions tend to waste quite a lot of footage it tends to be far cheaper and less time consuming as you wont have to go out and re-shoot wasting more time. The main advantage in editing that multi-camera productions is they can be edited live as thanks to the use of a vision mixer you can quickly switch from one camera to another but being as in a single camera production you only have one came, live editing isn't possible. The only way single camera productions can be edited is after all the scenes have been filmed.
Single Camera Genres and Formats
There are five more dominant genres in single camera productions which are: Period, Crime, Horror, Comedy and Soap opera. Period dramas are set in the part in a specific era and are sometimes described as Costume dramas. A great example of a Period drama is 'Lark Rise to Candle-ford' which is a British television costume/period drama adapted from Flora Thompson's  trilogy of semi-autobiographical novels about the English countryside. Crime dramas focus on criminals and authority figures such as the police etc. A great example of a Crime drama is 'Breaking Bad' which is an American crime drama about a struggling high school chemistry teacher, diagnosed with lung cancer and when struggles get worse he turns to a life of Crime along side an ex high school pupil he used to teach, Jesse Pinkman. Horror's are great as single camera productions because you can really utilize the emotions and increase the realism of the piece really drawing the audience in and making them feel that more in touch with the characters. A great example of a Horror is 'The Walking Dead' which is an American Horror drama about a sheriff who awakens from a coma to find his world his whole world has been turned upside down by an apocalypse of flesh eating zombies. Comedies filmed in a single camera production often seem fake when a joke is told but in multi-camera productions capture the humor. Comedies are best captured using multi-camera's due to capturing the reactions to jokes in different takes. A great example of a Comedy is 'Faulty Towers' which is a British sitcom about a fictional hotel in the seaside town of Torquay and it's workers inside. Soap opera's tend to be multi-camera productions however some sequences may be single camera productions which usually decreases the amount of maneuverability of the camera. A great example of a Soap Opera is 'Hollyoaks' which is about a large forever changing cast aged between 16 and 35 in a fictional suburb of Chester called Hollyoaks. There are three formats of single camera productions which are: Series, Serial and Single Drama. A series is a set/sequence of television or radio prgrammes which will eventually come to an end. A typical series will contain one specific narrative which is introduced usually in the first episode and will flow through the entire series. A great example of a TV series is 'Broadchurch' which is a British television Crime drama involving the death of a young boy and the search for his killer. A serial is an untimed series instead of continuoues. A great example of a Serial is 'Gossip Girl' which is an American teen drama based on the book series under the same name by Cecily von Ziegesar. The final format is a single drama is a one off episode with a self contained story. The minimum length for a single drama is five minutes and they aree really just a television movies.
Multi-Camera Techniques
There are many similaraties and differences between multi-camera productions and single camera productions. The main difference between single camera productions and multi-camera productions is the number of cameras used, there is only one camera used in single camera productions but in multi-camera productions there are many more. Another difference is there are far fewer reshoots in multi-camera productions compared to single camera productions. One big difference between multi-camera productions and single camera productions is the chance of continuity errors. Single camera productions are more known for having continuity errors and multi-camera productions are less likely to have any. An advantage single camera productions have is that the lighting is a lot easier to control for each shot and the director has more control over each and every shot which multi-camera productions don't have. Overall both multi-camera productions and single camera productions can be great if used right and with the right format, it really depends on what type of piece you are creating.