MediaArtTutorials

ART 1T03

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W2 — Camera, Framing & Cinematic Space

Objective

Build on your Week 1 spatial scene by introducing the camera as a spatial body.
This activity focuses on how meaning is produced through camera position, framing, composition, and blocking for camera.

You will move from space → camera intention → multiple points of view, learning how cinematic space is constructed.

Tutorial time may be used to begin or complete this activity depending on your tutorial day. Some work is expected outside of class.

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Materials Required

• Computer (laptop or desktop)
• Blender (free software)
  👉 Download: https://www.blender.org/download/
• Computer mouse (recommended)
• Your Week 1 Blender file (.blend)
• Paper + pen (preferred) or digital drawing tool

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Activities

Complete the following in order. Ask your professor or TA for help as needed.

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[15 min] Camera Intention — Start Here

Before drawing camera positions or opening Blender, write 3–4 sentences describing the intention of the camera in relation to your space.

You may reuse or revise your Week 1 artistic intention, but now focus on what it means to experience the space through the eyes of the camera.

This week, the camera is an active spatial body that determines how the space is seen, framed, and experienced.

Guiding Questions

• What does the camera want to reveal or withhold in this space?
• How close or distant should the viewer feel?
• Who or what is centered, peripheral, or excluded through the camera’s position?

➡️ Save this text for submission.

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[20 min] 2D Floor Map + Composition Map (Design First)

Using your camera intention as a guide, create a 2D camera planning map. See example above (below the main title)

Note: Your drawing skill is not being graded. You are graded on how clearly your sketch communicates the requirements below.

Requirements

• Hand-drawn (preferred) or digital
• Based on your Week 1 floor plan (you may update it)
• Include THREE (3) cameras, each with a different:
  • Position / Point of View
  • Framing. You should have one Wide Shot, one Medium Shot, and one Close-Up Shot.
  • Composition strategy (Use any: Rule of Thirds, Leading Lines, Centered/Symmetry)

Your map should clearly show:

• Camera positions
• Direction the camera is facing (indicate with an arrow)
• Approximate framing area (what is meant to be captured)
• A small sketch or visual reference for the intended look of each camera
• ✅ Note: You are planning three shots, but you will use one camera object in Blender.

⚠️ This step must be completed before working in Blender.

➡️ Save this image for submission (JPEG or PNG).

Relevant vocabulary

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[60 min] 3D Scene + Camera in Blender

Update or revise your space

• You may adjust, refine, or rebuild your Week 1 scene if needed.
• Continue using only basic geometric shapes.
• Keep the Week 1 constraints:
  • ❌ No materials or textures
  • ❌ No lighting changes
  • ❌ No modifiers
  • ❌ No animation

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Add ONE Camera (New for Week 2)

You will work with one camera in Blender and create three different renders by repositioning it.

Workflow (do in order)

1. Place the camera for Shot 1 (Wide) → Render Image 1
2. Move the same camera for Shot 2 (Medium) → Render Image 2
3. Move the same camera for Shot 3 (Close-Up) → Render Image 3

Important: Keep your scene the same across all three renders.
Only the camera position should change.

Camera Constraints

• ❌ No changes in the type of camera
• ❌ No animation
• ❌ Ignore lighting, materials, animation, and other more advance shapes for now
• ✅ Focus only on:
  • camera position (point of view)
  • framing (wide/medium/close)
  • composition strategy (thirds/lines/symmetry)
  • optional: focus and depth of field

Adding a Camera (Try this intro video first)

How To Render Image In Blender - Full Guide

How to Use the Camera in Blender (Full)

• 00:00 — Intro (skip)
• 00:46 — Adding a Camera
• 01:14 — Using the Camera View
• 01:43 — Changing the Active Camera
• 02:34 — Speed Up Preview Times (skip)
• 03:15 — Moving the Camera
• 04:08 — Trackball Rotation
• 05:39 — Move Around
• 07:11 — Fly Mode
• 08:03 — Camera View
• 09:17 — Resolution (skip)
• 09:56 — Composition Guides
• 10:53 — Transparency (skip)
• 11:29 — Lens Settings
• 12:13 — Orthographic Settings (skip)
• 12:39 — Panorama Settings (skip)
• 12:32 — Clip Start Clip End (skip)
• 14:20 — Depth of Field
• 14:50 — Object Focus
• 15:22 — Eyedropper (skip)
• 15:45 — FStop (skip)

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Submission Documents

Create a single document with the following sections:

1. General Information

   Full name, student number, and tutorial number.

2. Camera Intention

   3–4 sentences describing how the camera relates to and interprets the space.

3. 2D Camera + Composition Map

   Include your labeled plan showing all three cameras and intended framing/composition.
   Note: Your 2D Floor Plan must take up at least half a page.

4. Rendered Images (3 total)

   One rendered image per camera.
   These must be renders, not screenshots.
   Note: Each of your screenshots must take up at least half a page.

➡️ Export as PDF
📄 Filename: Lastname-Firstname-W2-Tutorial.pdf

Save Blender File

➡️ Save as .blend
📄 Filename: Lastname-Firstname-W2-3Dscene.blend

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📤 Submission

Component	File Name
Project document	Lastname-Firstname-W2-Tutorial.pdf
Blender file	Lastname-Firstname-W2-3Dscene.blend

⚠️ Follow submission protocols carefully. Incorrect submissions may result in lost points.

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Assessment

This Week 2 activity is graded lightly based on:

• Completion and effort
• Clarity of camera intention
• Thoughtful use of point of view, framing, and composition
• Basic technical application of cameras and rendering in Blender

This is an exploratory exercise — clarity and spatial thinking matter more than polish.

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Credits: Jessica A. Rodríguez

AI Disclosure:
AI Disclosure: ChatGPT was used for editing and clarity only. No original course content was generated using AI.