So you need to take your camera work up a notch? There are a few things to know when filming. It can seem overwhelming at first but once you get a grasp on a few terms, you will feel largely improved! Today, our team discusses one of the more confusing of these: “Frame Rates”.
Slow Motion and Other Frame Rates
You’ll hear camera folks talking about frame rates all the time. The simple thing to realize is that the frame rate affects dramatically the overall look and feel.
Knowing ahead of time your ‘output’ frame rate or final video frame rate will determine the best ways to film.
Movies usually are filmed and shown at 24fps (frames per second) as this gives a cinematic look. And this is closest to the way our eyes actually see the world. However event coverage like sports may have a higher frame rate of 30fps. This will keep the fast paced footage looking crisp.
Super high frame rates like 120fps can be used to create a slow motion look. This happens when they are brought into a 24 or 30 frame project. Or even a 60fps project like a home video. With all those extra frames to use you can slow it down extensively for that effect.
Generally when filming, ‘b-roll’ or cutaway action footage can often have more latitude and mix both shots that were filmed at higher or lower frame rates. However, when filming footage of someone talking you’d want to shoot at the final frame speed of the video. This way it appears normal in speed.
For more on frame rates check out this great article here.