How do cinematographers do super zoom out shots?

How do cinematographers do super zoom out shots? - Silhouette of Man Standing in Front of Microphone

Sometimes I will see a super zoom out shot in a movie. For example, in Bourne Legacy, the opening scene has the protagonist swimming in an icy lake in Alaska, then warming himself by a fire. The camera starts on him by the fire, then zooms out hundreds or even thousands of feet so the viewer can see the entire landscape.

How do they do this? I assume there is no telephoto lens capable of doing this, so I guess they must somehow stitch together multiple zooms and make them look seamless somehow. Seems difficult.



Best Answer

Some cinematic shots like this do use CGI or transitions between consecutive shots taken from further and further away; but this one looks purely physical.

2012 is a bit of a transition period for arial camera work. A only a few years before, they would have had to use a helicopter, these days they'd just use a drone. As the shot is not just a simple 'zoom' it has a flying arc, I'd put money on it being a drone. To use a helicopter they would have had to start on a crane, then CGI'd across to a helicopter, otherwise there would be far too much down-draught for the close-up.

You can see down-draught in the water as it pulls away - you can even see spray and a small wave lifted, pushed opposite to the water flow direction, as well as a general water disturbance as the shot moves out.
I've never seen a drone working over water, so I don't know how much down draught they can generate, but the ravine looks a bit of a squeeze for a helicopter.
If you study the first part of the shot carefully, it's logical that this is where the camera starts, directly over that disturbance you see as it moves away. I think it's a zoom lens. You see three kind of step-wise changes in the lens tilt mechanism as it starts to move horizontally. [These days you can program in that kind of move, which the software can then interpolate to keep everything nice and smooth.]
I think they cover the zoom-out through this transition, where it's harder to spot. It also would add to the feeling of acceleration as the larger move begins.
Further supporting theories for it being a zoom lens are - the start of the shot is really quite stable and starts quite tight, it's an elevation change only, similar to a crane shot; and they wouldn't let a drone so close to an actor [or anyone]; the little 'push wave' you see as it moves away looks a long way away from camera, which adds credence to the lens being at its widest by then.

Note that the type of drone used to swing a 35mm cine camera around is nothing like the tiny quad-copters you can get these days. They stand 3 or 4 feet tall, and almost as much in circumference. They have 6 or 8 rotors of maybe 8-10" each - not encapsulated either. There are strict protocols in place to ensure no-one is underneath when it's low and established emergency procedures for if one does start to fall.

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Skyfall is generally thought to be the first movie that really used drones [the opening motorcycle chase across the rooftops] but as Bourne Legacy is the same year, it wouldn't surprise me if it was done the same way, just to lesser applause - it doesn't form a major feature of the entire scene like Skyfall, it's just a single shot.




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How is zoom used by cinematographers?

The technique allows a change from close-up to wide shot (or vice versa) during a shot, giving a cinematographic degree of freedom. Zooming can either be performed towards longer focal lengths, giving a "zoom in" effect: The filmed object will then increase in apparent size, and fewer objects become visible on film.

How is a zoom shot achieved?

A zoom shot is when the focal length of a camera lens is adjusted to give the illusion of moving closer or further away from the subject. Zoom shots are done with a zoom lens, which have variable focal lengths.

What is the shot called when you zoom out?

A dolly zoom (also known as a Hitchcock shot, Vertigo shot, Jaws effect, or Zolly shot) is an in-camera effect that appears to undermine normal visual perception.



Ultimate Guide to Camera Movement — Every Camera Movement Technique Explained [The Shot List Ep6]




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