This comes from 12 years of study and practice in narrative theory and visual storytelling. For me, cinematic isn’t about filters or cranking sliders — it’s about fundamentals that shape meaning in every frame.
Mise-en-scène:
Everything in the frame contributes — environment, gesture, costume, atmosphere.
The type of shot (close-up, medium, long) is part of the storytelling:
Close-up → isolates detail or emotion. You’re saying “this moment or expression matters.”
Medium shot → balances subject with setting. It’s about relationships — between characters, or between character and space.
Long shot → establishes scale, distance, vulnerability, or grandeur. It makes the environment part of the narrative.
Framing & Composition:
Framing isn’t just about placing a character in the centre. It’s about using space, lines, and balance to guide the viewer’s eye and shape the meaning of the scene.
Rule of Thirds – Positioning subjects off-centre creates tension, openness, or balance depending on context.
Leading Lines – Natural or architectural lines draw attention to your subject and add depth.
Depth of Field – Foreground, subject, and background layers create a sense of scale and immersion.
Balance & Weight – A frame feels different when one side carries more visual weight — shadows, light, or empty space all contribute.
Lighting:
Whether natural or artificial, lighting is what defines the mood and texture of a scene.
Direction – Side light creates drama, backlight creates silhouettes, front light flattens.
Quality – Hard light emphasises edges and detail, soft light smooths and diffuses.
Colour – Warm vs. cool tones shift emotion instantly (sunset vs. neon).
Contrast – Balancing highlights and shadows creates depth without relying on filters.
Camera Movement & Angles:
Even in still images, implied motion matters. The angle you choose changes how the audience feels:
Low angle → Implies power, dominance, or resilience.
High angle → Implies weakness, vulnerability, or fragility.
Dutch Tilt → Implies unease or supernatural.
Tracking vs static → A static frame can feel timeless and composed; a dynamic tilt or off-centre crop can suggest movement and urgency.
My approach: I like to flip framing theory — using low angles to make characters who are written as weak feel empowered, or high angles to expose a powerful character’s hidden vulnerability. It creates tension between what’s expected and what’s shown.
Lens Choice
Wide, telephoto, focus pulls, bokeh — each creates a different emotional effect.
A crop isn’t a lens.
Wide → exaggerates space, makes characters feel small against the environment.
Telephoto → compresses space, isolates subjects, flattens depth.
Focus pulls → guide the eye, shift attention, create narrative beats.
Bokeh → isn’t just “blur,” it’s the quality of out-of-focus light that adds mood.
Key point: Know your focal lengths. The choice of lens shapes how a story feels before editing ever begins.
Colour & Tone
Grading isn’t about cranking sliders — it’s about building a palette that serves the narrative.
Warm tones → comfort, intimacy, nostalgia.
Cool tones → isolation, tension, unease.
High contrast → conflict, urgency, grit.
Muted/desaturated → loss, memory, fragility.
Key point: Colour and tone are storytelling tools. They should support mood and meaning, not distract with over-saturation or gimmicks.
Blocking & Staging
Where characters or objects sit in frame is just as important as what they say.
Foreground vs background → establishes power, focus, and relationships.
Centre framing → can suggest importance, but overuse flattens meaning.
Empty space → tension, isolation, or anticipation.
Crowded frame → chaos, conflict, or intimacy.
Why this matters:
Virtual photography can be a playground for learning narrative theory, composition, and visual craft. Every image is a chance to build a story, not just chase a “cinematic” label.
