Top 5 Tips on How to Become a Cinematographer

Apart from the stars and directors themselves, the cinematographer is regarded as one of the most sought after jobs on a film set. Also regarded as the director of photography, several young film students also see their command of light. One wonders how to become a cinematographer that they can one day get there. Not only in their backyards with their friends. The roadmap on how to become a cinematographer has not been marked. Also, the journey is different for everyone. Getting into the film industry could also be extremely tricky. There are setbacks. At times, you may also feel like you may also be getting nowhere. However, you also keep going and keep trying. In this article, we will provide you 5 tips on how to become a cinematographer:

Specialize in film or TV

Working on TV has also become very lucrative as a way for making a career. Cinematographers, though, do have a consideration when taking television or films as a profession. It could be easy to get payment in TV than in film. Every episode requires its personal cinematographer, meaning there are more job opportunities. It’s true but weightage that against the ease of finding work and it also starts to look pretty good. The main downside is not the reduced pay scale. This is also the loss of creative freedom. Television shows have been made through a template. Unless you shoot the pilot, there’s a house visual style that had been set before you showed up on the picture. This could be a challenge to work within it. There are a lot of individuals for whom creative freedom is a significant part of what cinematography is as an art.

Learning salary negotiation skills

Cinematographers have been used on every level of the film and video industry. From feature films at the top and down through television, commercials, music videos and simple shorts. Due to this reason, the amount you may expect to be paid can vary wildly. For most films and video professionals, we should know that we will be paid a day rate or also paid a weekly rate. To get a feel for what the market is like, you should also research the fees of your peers.

Become a storyteller

This could be easy for young cinematographers for getting lost in the lights and lenses. We should become deeply focused on making each and every shot as beautiful as possible. This is understandable. As a result, you should also remember that your cinematography is in service the director’s vision of the film. These films are not beautiful but these films could also be grimy. You should also look for places where the cinematography is not beautiful. They are not the places the cinematographer has been serving the story and also not the other way round.

Brushing on technical skills

For knowing how to become a cinematographer, brushing your technical skills is the key. We can’t deny the fact that the job description for the director of photography does require massive technical expertise. Cinematography could be termed as the art of manipulating light. Color, shadow and bounce are also important tools for the purpose of highlighting an important story. However, if you don’t understand using them, you could also direct a crew for implementing them. You could even start directly with youtube tutorials. This will help in providing you a basic grounding in lighting for film. By applying that, it will become easier for you to grab a camera and also start playing around in your backyard.

Enrolling in film school

The most common question filmmakers ask is “Should I go to Film School” to know how to become a cinematographer. Cinematographer is regarded as one of the professions within the film and television that could benefit from a film school education. There are few important and better things that could well help to explain the entire breadth of what cinematography is than the classroom. Most film schools would also provide you with a chance to have on-set time and work through the means of your collaborators. If you have the money or are willing to take on the debt, film school may be worth your time. However, you should also be certain in doing your research, get quality education and also avoid scam artists.