Chapter 4 Video Camera Operations
81
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Nose Room
Nose room, or lead room, is the space between the tip of a person’s
nose to the side edge of the frame. Novice videographers often make errors
in framing with respect to nose room. The natural tendency is to place the
talent in the center of the screen with equal space on either side. That is
acceptable only if the talent is directly facing the camera. The more the tal-
ent looks to the right or the left, the more room should be placed between
their nose and that same edge of the screen, Figure 4-3.
Correct use of nose room corresponds with the rule of thirds, in that
the most important portion of the image (the faces) are positioned at the
intersection of the gridlines instead of the center of the picture. Framing a
shot in this way creates a more interesting shot for the viewer. If the talent
is walking parallel to the camera, suffi cient space should be placed in front
nose room: The space
between the tip of a person’s
nose to the side edge of the
frame. Also called a lead
room.
Goodheart-Willcox Publisher
Figure 4-3. Nose room
is another consideration
when shooting. A—With
too little nose room in
a shot, the audience
expects something
to happen behind the
subject. B—Correct nose
room framing leaves
sufficient space between
the talent and the edge of
the shot.
B
A