As you cannot notice everything that happens in a shot, what should you concentrate on? Below are a few guidelines:
The largest moving object within the framework of a shot is the most important to observe as the viewer’s attention will be drawn to it – whether it is a head seen in close-up, a person seen in mid shot or a large pink elephant entering frame and dominating the wide shot.
If there is a great deal happening in the shot then you should concentrate on the main characters. Stick to watching the people the production is about, who will hold the audience’s interest and attention. Others in the shot only assume importance in relation to the main characters.
Let us suppose you are doing continuity on a scene containing six principal actors. They are sitting round a table, talking, eating and drinking. How can you possibly notice what they are all doing at any one time? The answer is quite simply that you cannot. But if you ensure that each time the scene is repeated all the props are reset correctly, then the actors will repeat their actions at more or less the same time. Another point to note is that an actor is unlikely to take a bite of a ham sandwich before launching into a speech. But most importantly, you should watch the actor who is talking because the shot used will be more likely to favour the one who is speaking. That is, of course, until the large pink elephant walks into shot!
Bright colours attract the eye, especially if surrounded by drab ones. So notice any areas of bright colour in the shot.
The most interesting part of anyone is the head – unless you are working on a shoe commercial! Coverage of a scene tends, therefore, to travel from the wide shots to the close-ups – inwards and upwards. Thus it is more important to notice the upper part of the body than the lower part and to observe head and arm movements in preference to props littering a table.
‘The largest moving object within the framework of a shot is the most important to observe as a viewer’s attention will be drawn to it …’