The travelling
The dolly…it reminds me of good memories. I am sure you are like me ! There are moments that seem innocuous to some, and yet for you it remains a memorable experience.
I remember the first time I took the ” orders “ of a film set, the first time I’ve said : action ! So the first time I’ve asked that one mounts a dolly !
It is silly, but it is a moment that I will never forget. See the chef machino and the machino out these great rails, the snaps one by one, the stall, do the level and then get out of the truck , the dolly and the install…what a time!!!
But I may be too fast, may be that some of you do not know what is a dolly.
Then the dolly shot what is it ?
The dolly is part of the camera movements the most well-known of cinema. To make it simple, you drag the camera on a shelf with wheels that is called a bogie (as of the wheels of the skate), he even put on tubes that are called rails, so that the movement of the camera, which can go from front to back, is taking place without sudden or tremor. In this way we get a plan fluid and in motion.
The rails are “wedged” with small pieces of wood (shims) to fill the imperfections of the ground and to ensure that the rails are level.
Today the term frame also refers to all movements of the front or rear that is being done to move closer to or away from a character. And a movement made towards the front by a cameraman with a camera on the shoulder will still be named : dolly in (even if the camera operator is walking distance).
The dolly track to film what ?
Thanks to a dolly shot right, that is to say that the rails are assembled to each other to form a line (like the rails of a railway), you can follow one character, bringing you closer or you move away .
The possibilities of use are multiple. So you can do :
A dolly : that is to say that the camera in advance
A dolly back : that is to say, the camera pulls back
A dolly on its side-that is to say, the camera is placed perpendicular to the rails.
A travelling circular : the rails are arranged in a circle l
A frame offset : This is a traveling front with a zoom or a dolly back and zoom in
Small note on the dolly compensated : it was invented by Hitchcock in Vertigo, this movement also bears this name : the vertigo.
It gives a feeling of loss of control, or it symbolizes the vertigo ;o) hence the name : vertigo !
Yes, but to film what ?
The use can go from the simple dialogue to the race. Except that to follow a character trying to run this requires a very long-distance rail. It is for this reason that we prefer to use the camera on the shoulder (with or without the easyrig and steadicam.
Panther, peewee, magnum etc… ?
To say it all, in tv or in the movies, it uses any kind of system ranging from a simple tray on which one poses the camera to the more elaborate. For a question of budget, space and possibility we use what is called a dolly.
There are various kinds Dolly like the Panther that is provided with a central column that rises and descends through a compressor. The dolly (panther) is very heavy (120 pounds) and must be driven by a machino.
Some of the dolly allow also the presence of a cameraman as it is equipped with a small seat.
Once the panther “mounted” it can accommodate all sorts of options.
– A large column
– A small column
– A jib
– A mini jibe
Today you can also find mini-dolly as the dolly Husky foldable !!!
I’m not going to clutter the mind with all the materials that exist because to make the tracking shots there are a multitude of possibilities depending on what you need.
Because on some trucks travelling you can secure the arm, counter weight etc… to make a quantity of amazing movements.
Combined movement or upset ?
Don’t worry, there’s nothing complicated about it. When you do your movements travelling forward or back you can combine this movement with another movement : the crane , for example.
If your movement of crane and your dolly go in the same direction (forward for example) it is said that the movements are combined. In the example above our dolly goes in front and our crane goes from the bottom up or the top down towards the front.
On the other hand, if the crane is going in the opposite direction to that of the dolly, movement is so upset.
I’m going to put an excerpt from one of my classes where I used a dolly side slightly and then with an arm.
Among the dolly you have :
– dolly super peewee
– the fisher
– the panther
– the magnum
– dolly spyder
How do I know which dolly to use ?
I speak to you with all the materialsl because some of you would like to go to the or to prepare a short or medium-length film. We find ourselves quickly overwhelmed by all of the terms, the equipment and all the rest ! Don’t worry, you don’t have to know everything because to use such a machine you need a machinist. Meet, called him what you have in mind, and you will refer on the best hardware.
Yes but I have no money !
It is here that you can do miracles. In fact, to make a dolly houses you have at your disposal a lot of tips and tricks.
If you’ve seen it : “a lesson in cinema “, the little short film with the grandmother, you have noticed that the 1st shot is a long dolly shot.
We have made it to the back of a car, the cameraman asked in the trunk ! And the game was played.
You can also use a wheelchair and all the possible ways imaginable.
But be careful ! You can’t use a caddy for example ! Or then it will be necessary to take precautions !
Why ?
Simply because the wheels of shopping carts don’t have depreciated and because of this all of the imperfections of the road (where you drive) will be reflected directly on the camera.
The solution to the imperfections of the road is to put the wall coverings are fixed to the ground and roll over ;o)
We still today use this technique to make a dolly ! So do not hesitate.
There is another way to make a dolly shot without a rail or dolly thatdoes the Steadicam.
But I will come back to this technique which deserves its own article.
That’s it for this article on the dolly, do not hesitate to leave me a message if you want I to clarify one point.
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Soon,
Tom