Tilting is a

cinematographic Cinematography () is the art of motion picture (and more recently, electronic video camera) photography. Cinematographers use a lens (optics), lens to focus reflected light from objects into a real image that is transferred to some image sen ...

technique in which the

camera A camera is an instrument used to capture and store images and videos, either digitally via an electronic image sensor, or chemically via a light-sensitive material such as photographic film. As a pivotal technology in the fields of photograp ...

stays in a fixed position but rotates up/down in a vertical plane. Tilting the camera results in a motion similar to someone raising or lowering their head to look up or down. It is distinguished from

panning Pan or PAN may refer to: Food * Pan (cooking), a piece of cooking equipment * Harina P.A.N., a pre-cooked corn meal * Pan or Paan, a North Indian term for betel Prefix * ''Pan-'', a prefix meaning "all", "of everything", or "involving all ...

in which the camera is horizontally pivoted left or right. Pan and tilt can be used simultaneously. In some situations the lens itself may be tilted with respect to the fixed camera body in order to generate greater

depth of focus Depth of focus is a lens optics concept that measures the tolerance of placement of the image-capturing plane (the plane of an image sensor or a film in a camera) in relation to the lens. In a camera, depth of focus indicates the tolerance of the ...

. The camera's tilt will change the position of the horizon, changing the amount of sky or ground that is seen. A tilt downward is usually required for a

high-angle shot A high-angle shot is a cinematic technique where the camera looks down on the subject from a high angle and the point of focus often gets "swallowed up". High-angle shots can make the subject seem vulnerable or powerless when applied with the c ...

and

bird's-eye view A bird's-eye view is an elevated view of an object or location from a very steep viewing angle, creating a perspective (graphical), perspective as if the observer were a bird in flight looking downward. Bird's-eye views can be an aerial photog ...

while a tilt upward is for a

low-angle shot In cinematography, a low-angle shot, is a shot from a camera angle positioned low on the vertical axis, anywhere below the eye line, looking up.worm's-eye view. The vertical offset between subjects can reflect differences in power, with superiority being above. Tilting can be used as a reveal as in tilting up from seeing the murder victim, to the weapon, to the identity of the killer. It can also be an

establishing shot An establishing shot in filmmaking and television production sets up, or establishes, the context for a scene by showing the relationship between its important figures and objects. It is generally a long or extreme-long shot at the beginning of ...

, tilting down from a tall landmark to the characters or as in the '' Star Wars: A New Hope'' opening, tilting down from the stars, to the arc of the planet. A tilting

Point-of-view shot A point-of-view shot (also known as POV shot, first-person shot or subjective camera) is a film scene—usually a short one—that is shot as if through the eyes of a character (the subject). The camera shows what the subject's eyes would see ...

expresses either attention or head motion. Attention might convey a potential love interest with "elevator eyes" or concern with sizing up an opponent. Head motion could show a nodding "yes". Combining tilt with camera position could show a face planting or tipping over backwards. Minor tilting is used for reframing to maintain headroom. Extreme tilting would follow the subject past the zenith or nadir to a full 180 degrees, starting or ending with an inverted view of the world. The

Dutch angle In filmmaking and photography, the Dutch angle, also known as Dutch tilt, canted angle, vortex plane, or oblique angle, is a type of camera shot that involves setting the camera at an angle so that the shot is composed with vertical lines at an ...

, also known as Dutch tilt, is a head tilt to one side, is a type of camera shot where the camera is set at an angle on its roll axis so that the shot is composed with vertical lines at an angle to the side of the frame, or so that the horizon line of the shot is not parallel with the bottom of the camera frame.

References

Cinematography Photographic techniques Television terminology {{Filming-stub

See also

References