Why has the zoom changed over the decades?

I

ironpony

Carbonite Member
In the 60s and 70s, cameramen and women would use the lens zoom to zoom in, but now it seems almost everyone is doing the truck these days. Even on bigger budget movies in theaters, where the probably could afford a zoom lens if they wanted to. So what is the particular reason for this change I was wondering? Thanks.
 
Different shooting styles aside, it wasn't till then when professional cine zooms were on par with prime lenses, so it was all the rage. The lens that really changed things was the Cooke 20-100 released in 1971. I still use this lens today.
 
Last edited:
Being able to do a zoom which held focus through the entire zoom range with a quality level on par with a prime lens. it just wasn't available before this, so it was more or less "the new toy" so you saw a lot of zooming.

By the way, a truck is a move left or right.
 
Oh okay thanks. So why doesn't everyone use this toy still, as oppose to moving the camera on a dolly back and forth? Why not just zoom with the lens?
 
ironpony said:
Rage with what though? Who cared? You can still do it.
Click to expand...

Sure, and most 'power zoom' sequences look like ****... but heck, do it...

Also, one of the theories of The Shot, is that the shot should support story, rather than be a display of technique. Most 'power zooms' were just technical displays.
 
A 'zoom in' is not the same a dolly 'push in' - when camera moves - something magic happens with a moving camera- you 'prove' 3d of the scene

Really a 'zoom in' tends to look unnatural - so its not used much (except where practicality forces it - real ENG shooting - or to create a pseudo ENG look in drama)

S
 
morgan_moore said:
A 'zoom in' is not the same a dolly 'push in' - when camera moves - something magic happens with a moving camera- you 'prove' 3d of the scene

Really a 'zoom in' tends to look unnatural - so its not used much (except where practicality forces it - real ENG shooting - or to create a pseudo ENG look in drama)

S
Click to expand...

I use a zoom... because I can't afford a set of primes of various focal lengths... but I'd never 'zoom' during a shot, unless it was a 'realtime' ENG type event shot... but never for narrative work.

The problem with using a zoom as a 'set of primes' is that one has to 'mark' the barrel and be able to return to the same setting every time, if one wants the FOV to match. The other problem is if one wants to 'match' a second camera that is using a different lens, or a different manufacturer...
 
To my way of thinking, most folks aren't particularly cognizant of the fact that the camera is the eye of the viewer, and is used to direct the viewer's attention to that which the director wants. A dolly move allows the viewer to be a part of the scene and wander (3-dimensionally?) within the narrative. A zoom move is a substitute for a cut, to take the viewer to a generally more intimate look into the narrative without having to change the camera set-up (as with fixed lens). The zoom move was quicker and cheaper and was accepted as a "new" tool. I think that the zoom can be an effective tool when used sparingly and tastefully, but it is not a good tool when it becomes a distraction. . . as does any effect that upstages the story and doesn't support the story.
I understand that the zoom lens was develped for sports news reel filming. Most likely its changes over the years has been to refine its look and movement as it was recognized as a more widely used tool.
 
Last edited:
A zoom draws attention to itself, it looks "unnatural" most of the time, so after the "new toy" wore off it went to it's proper place as something you do when it serves the story. It CAN be done elegantly, but usually makes it look like you're watching a 70's kung fu movie.
 
gonzo_entertainment said:
A zoom draws attention to itself, it looks "unnatural" most of the time, so after the "new toy" wore off it went to it's proper place as something you do when it serves the story. It CAN be done elegantly, but usually makes it look like you're watching a 70's kung fu movie.
Click to expand...

So, here you go, all the worst of a 70's Kung Fu movie... and good reason why one would not let a bunch of Austrians drink and shoot a film...

 
They say a (slow?) zoom OUT to reveal more information as the shot progresses, can be a good thing, and I've read that you can "hide" a zoom in within a pan for a cool shot, apparently.

There's at least one cool-looking shock zoom in Django Unchained (check the trailer), but Tarantino likes to use those kind of self-referential throwback techniques.
 
My understanding in video is simply that zooms were introduced to replace turrets - initially on obs, and studio cameramen couldn't see the initial limited zoom range as being useful when the cameras could track and crab (UK terminology). However, as soon as the ratio of the field of view increased, and the f stop got more suited to indoor studio work, the take up was rapid. At first, on-shot zooming was frowned upon, but soon it caught on as an 'effect'. In studios, nobody wanted to go back to prime lenses - and on obs, zooms became critical components. I've usually accepted the fact that for movies, where shots can be rehearsed and tweaked, prime lenses were simply used because they were the best quality. Studios had a big range of grip equipment, so moving in and out of the scene was never a problem. Video often forces cameramen to be fixed, working off a tripod, for example - so a zoom is the only way of getting accurate framing if you can't physically move. For my type of work, for example, moving is rarely possible, so a zoom is essential. I also need to be able to crash zoom, losing as little time as possible that has to be covered by a cut-away.

I think the reason we see more physical camera moves now is a reaction to the use of a prime lens - you have to move, it's not an option.
 
Breaking the magic.
A zoom reminds the audience, that it looks trough a camera - that's why I avoid it.

Frank
 
Zoom shots have been used masterfully. Stanley Kubrick used them extensively; especially in "A Clock Work Orange". He even used zoom shots in "Barry Lyndon", a period drama. He even used a snap zoom in "Full Metal Jacket", when Cowboy is shot by the sniper, he snap zooms to the whole in the wall where the sniper shot through.

Also, the very opening shot of "The Godfather", directed by Francis Ford Coppola and photographed by Gordon Willis, is a very slow zoom out shoot with a motorized zoom lens.

I think that the "New Toy" idea is correct and it did get way over used during the '70's. However, I think that the real reticence to use a zoom today has a lot to do with the rise of amateur film and video making, and the overuse of zooming in and out in the same shot (Called "Tromboneing"). Anybody who has had any kind of basic filmmaking production class has been warned about avoiding "Tromboneing". After a while the idea that "Tromboneing" is bad kind of morphed into all zooming is bad.

That is kind of sad, as a zoom shoot, done appropriately, can be very cool and I have liked to do them from time to time. Back in the day, I shoot a long form fictional narrative on 16mm (With an Arri SRI and an Angenieux 12-120mm zoom lens) and was able to use some zoom shots on that and even pulled off a dolly/pan/zoom shoot I was real proud of. That was a lot of fun. I also shot for a long time with handycam style SD DV cameras where I got pretty good at feathering the zoom rocker subtly during shots. Now, shooting with an interchangable lens large sensor HD camera, being able to do that is a tad bit more difficult... and expensive.
 
One zoom shot that I always remember is in LA Confidential, directed by Curtis Hanson and DP'ed by Dante Spinotti, where when Ed Exley (Guy Pearce) and Bud White (Russel Crowe) face each other on the street after the police has broken into a house to rescue a captured woman, where Bud White kills the criminals and Exley faces him, there's a zoom while dollying which looks stunning, going from a wide to a tight two shot with almost only their faces in frame. The result is stunning and it works very well.
Another great zoom is in Blazing Saddles by Mel Brooks, where the citizens of Rock Ridge has just built a fake version of their town. Even then they're bodies are full in frame and we can't really make out their faces. Then the zoom pulls out to reveal the fake Rock Ride that they've built going all the way to wide and the people are now small specks on the screen.

Zooms can be useful. It's just that most of the time you can count their use on one hand, as their effect as mentioned really brings attention to the camera.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top