INTRO TO CINEMATOGRAPHY QUIZ 1 QUESTIONS ANSWERED CORRECTLY LATEST UPDATE 2026
"cinematography" roots - Answers the term comes from the Greek roots meaning "writing with
motion"
conceptual tools of visual storytelling - Answers the frame, light & color, the lens, movement, texture,
establishing, POV
the frame - Answers choosing the frame is a matter of conveying the story, but it is also a question of
composition, rhythm, and perspective
the view of the lens - Answers different focal lengths are a powerful tool of storytelling, allowing
optics to alter our perception of the physical world. Long lenses compress space and wide lenses
expand and distort space.
color and light - Answers light and color are some of the most powerful and flexible tools in the
cinematographer's arsenal. lighting and color are visual tools that add layers of meaning to the
content of the story
visual texture - Answers changing color and contrast, desaturating the color, filters, fog, smoke
effects, rain, film stocks, printing techniques, and digital manipulation
movement - Answers often a visual metaphor that can signify change, action, and more
establishing - Answers the ability of the camera to reveal or conceal information, providing the
background information for the viewer to understand context. establishing is accomplished primarily
by a choice of the frame and the lens, but it can also be done with lighting that conceals or reveals
certain details of the scene
point of view - Answers a key tool of visual storytelling, most often used meaning is to have the
camera see something in much the same way as one of the character's point of view, directs viewers'
attention
design principles - Answers Unity, balance, visual tension, rhythm, proportion, contrast, texture,
directionality
unity - Answers the principle that the visual organization be a "whole," self-contained, and complete.
this is true even in a deliberately chaotic composition.
balance - Answers visual balance (or lack thereof) is the idea that every element within a composition
has a visual weight. this visual weight is determined by an object's size, its position within the frame,
its color, movement, and the subject matter itself
visual tension - Answers The interplay of balanced and unbalanced elements and their placement in
the frame
rhythm - Answers rhythm of repetitive or similar elements can create patterns of organization.
proportion - Answers based on the idea that the Golden Mean is a way of looking at proportion and
size relationships in general
contrast - Answers an important visual component in defining depth, spatial relationships, and also
carries considerable emotional and storytelling weight as well.
texture - Answers texture gives perceptual clues. textures can be a function of the object themselves,
but usually requires lighting to bring it out.
directionality - Answers a key element of its visual weight, which determines how it will act in a visual
field and how it will affect other elements. anything that is not symmetrical is directional.
depth - Answers elements that create a sense of visual depth include: overlap, size change, vertical &
horizontal location, linear perspective, foreshortening, chiaroscuro, and atmospheric perspective
overlap - Answers clearly establishes front/back relationships
relative size - Answers although the eye can be fooled, the relative size of an object is an important
visual clue to depth. it can be used to focus the viewer's attention on important elements
vertical location - Answers gravity is a factor in visual organization; the relative vertical position of
objects is a depth cue
horizontal location - Answers the eye tends to scan from left to right or right to left. it is crucial to how
the eye scans a frame and thus the order of perception and movement in the composition
linear perspective - Answers important to recognize its importance in visual organization
Foreshortening - Answers since things that are closer to the eye appear larger than those farther
away, when part of an object is much closer than the rest of it, the visual distortion gives us clues as
to depth and size.
Chiaroscuro - Answers graduations of light and dark, establishes depth perception and creates visual
focus
"cinematography" roots - Answers the term comes from the Greek roots meaning "writing with
motion"
conceptual tools of visual storytelling - Answers the frame, light & color, the lens, movement, texture,
establishing, POV
the frame - Answers choosing the frame is a matter of conveying the story, but it is also a question of
composition, rhythm, and perspective
the view of the lens - Answers different focal lengths are a powerful tool of storytelling, allowing
optics to alter our perception of the physical world. Long lenses compress space and wide lenses
expand and distort space.
color and light - Answers light and color are some of the most powerful and flexible tools in the
cinematographer's arsenal. lighting and color are visual tools that add layers of meaning to the
content of the story
visual texture - Answers changing color and contrast, desaturating the color, filters, fog, smoke
effects, rain, film stocks, printing techniques, and digital manipulation
movement - Answers often a visual metaphor that can signify change, action, and more
establishing - Answers the ability of the camera to reveal or conceal information, providing the
background information for the viewer to understand context. establishing is accomplished primarily
by a choice of the frame and the lens, but it can also be done with lighting that conceals or reveals
certain details of the scene
point of view - Answers a key tool of visual storytelling, most often used meaning is to have the
camera see something in much the same way as one of the character's point of view, directs viewers'
attention
design principles - Answers Unity, balance, visual tension, rhythm, proportion, contrast, texture,
directionality
unity - Answers the principle that the visual organization be a "whole," self-contained, and complete.
this is true even in a deliberately chaotic composition.
balance - Answers visual balance (or lack thereof) is the idea that every element within a composition
has a visual weight. this visual weight is determined by an object's size, its position within the frame,
its color, movement, and the subject matter itself
visual tension - Answers The interplay of balanced and unbalanced elements and their placement in
the frame
rhythm - Answers rhythm of repetitive or similar elements can create patterns of organization.
proportion - Answers based on the idea that the Golden Mean is a way of looking at proportion and
size relationships in general
contrast - Answers an important visual component in defining depth, spatial relationships, and also
carries considerable emotional and storytelling weight as well.
texture - Answers texture gives perceptual clues. textures can be a function of the object themselves,
but usually requires lighting to bring it out.
directionality - Answers a key element of its visual weight, which determines how it will act in a visual
field and how it will affect other elements. anything that is not symmetrical is directional.
depth - Answers elements that create a sense of visual depth include: overlap, size change, vertical &
horizontal location, linear perspective, foreshortening, chiaroscuro, and atmospheric perspective
overlap - Answers clearly establishes front/back relationships
relative size - Answers although the eye can be fooled, the relative size of an object is an important
visual clue to depth. it can be used to focus the viewer's attention on important elements
vertical location - Answers gravity is a factor in visual organization; the relative vertical position of
objects is a depth cue
horizontal location - Answers the eye tends to scan from left to right or right to left. it is crucial to how
the eye scans a frame and thus the order of perception and movement in the composition
linear perspective - Answers important to recognize its importance in visual organization
Foreshortening - Answers since things that are closer to the eye appear larger than those farther
away, when part of an object is much closer than the rest of it, the visual distortion gives us clues as
to depth and size.
Chiaroscuro - Answers graduations of light and dark, establishes depth perception and creates visual
focus
