However, to truly unlock the power of cinematography<\/strong>, and to train your eye to find the most distinguished compositions, you need to understand, embrace, and master the multiple layers<\/strong> available to you.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s explore the foreground, middleground and background layers of shot composition<\/strong> and how you can harness their distinctive natures to create truly eye-popping and engaging cinematography<\/strong>.<\/p>\n As you might expect, of the three layers, the foreground is closest<\/strong>\u00a0to the audience’s eye.\u00a0Using an\u00a0example from user\u00a0<\/em>wowzabob<\/a>‘s\u00a0imgur post<\/a>\u00a0where he breaks down compositions in Francis Ford Coppola’s<\/a> Apocalypse Now<\/a><\/em>, we see the foreground layer outlined in red<\/strong>. Focus notwithstanding (more on that below), the red area is the foremost\u00a0plane<\/strong>\u00a0in the composition.<\/p>\n The middleground is the space within a composition between the foreground and the background<\/strong>. In the shot composition above, it is the yellow-outlined space<\/strong>, which you can see juxtaposed against the red foreground<\/strong> (the obstructive bars) and the out-of-focus\u00a0background<\/strong>.<\/p>\n The background is the space further away<\/strong>, behind both the foreground and middleground<\/strong>. You can see it illustrated above: the flag (outlined in red) is in the foreground<\/strong>, and the ship (outlined in yellow) is in the middleground<\/strong>;\u00a0the land, helicopters, and sky (outlined in green and blue) are in the background<\/strong>.<\/p>\n Now let’s look at an image without the outlines<\/strong>. In\u00a0wowzabob<\/a>‘s\u00a0imgur post<\/a>, we also see a shot composition from Martin Scorsese’s<\/a>\u00a0Taxi Driver<\/em><\/a>. Can you spot the three layers in the composition?<\/strong> In the foreground we have the out-of-focus steering wheel, in the middleground we have Robert DeNiro’s character, and in the background we have the extremely out-of-focus cars.<\/p>\n Notice how the three different layers<\/strong> work together to provide depth and complexity<\/strong>. Focus is a large part of where your eye comes to rest, but beyond\u00a0that, you see\u00a0a sophisticated composition that makes full use of the available imagery<\/strong>. See how the above image from Taxi Driver<\/em> compares to a composition from a different film: the 2005 adaption of The Producers<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n This composition is much more simplistic<\/strong>. There are only two layers<\/strong>, a middleground (or foreground, depending on how you look at it) and a background. For some, this may seem more inviting<\/strong>, while, for others, it may just be boring and bland<\/strong>.<\/p>\n Image via Wikipedia<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n Without getting too deep into the technical aspects of focus and depth of field or range<\/strong>, it’s important to understand how you can use focus to emphasize different layers. In the image above,\u00a0you can see the three distinctive layers<\/strong>. However, only one of the three is in focus.<\/p>\n The foreground (where the cat’s paw is) is slightly out-of-focus<\/strong>, while the background (the vague colors behind) is severely\u00a0out-of-focus<\/strong>. You can see the difference in the following two photos<\/strong>.<\/p>\n Images via Wikipedia<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n In the top photo, the foreground is in focus, and the background is slightly out-of-focus<\/strong>. Your eye moves naturally to the flower in the foreground, but just barely<\/strong>. The background can still draw some of your attention.<\/p>\n In the bottom photo, the flower in the foreground is still in focus<\/strong>, but the background is heavily out-of-focus<\/strong>. This forces you to focus exclusively on the foreground<\/strong>\u00a0since the background is merely\u00a0a smear of colors.<\/p>\n So how do you make a composition where all three layers are equally in-focus?<\/strong>\u00a0This technique is often called deep focus<\/strong>, or, more plainly, a very large depth of field<\/strong>. There are many ways\u00a0to achieve deep focus in photography and video<\/strong> (which you can read about here<\/a>). Perhaps the best example is the iconic deep focus shots<\/strong>\u00a0in\u00a0Orson Welles’s<\/a> Citizen Kane<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n
\nThe Foreground<\/h3>\n
![\"Cinematography](\"https:\/\/www.premiumbeat.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/04\/Foreground.jpg\" "\\"Cinematography")
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\nThe Middleground<\/h3>\n
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\nThe Background<\/h3>\n
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\nWorking with Multi-Layered Compositions<\/h3>\n
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\nUsing Focus and Depth of Field<\/h3>\n
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\nUnderstanding\u00a0Deep Focus<\/h3>\n
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