Good composition in film and video follows a few "rules" that will form the basis of this assignment. There are three areas of composition that this project will allow you to explore: line, rule of thirds, and depth.

This page will introduce you to the first element. Links on the right will bring you to the second and third. Be sure to explore all three before you tackle this project.

Two-dimensional forms of art such as painting, photography or film tries to recreate our three-dimensional world. We live in a world that has width, length and depth. It's that third dimension of depth that film cannot do. To compensate for this when composing a shot, filmmakers will try and include three layers in the image- foreground, midground and background. Combined, these layers help to create the illusion of depth.

Elements of the composition create a sense of depth and help to avoid the picture seeming "flat" and two-dimensional. Often the main subject is situated in the mid-ground. In this case, the kangaroo is in the foreground and different layers of trees form the mid and background. (Mouse-over the image to see this)

Check out some of the following links to see more examples and explanations.

site illustrating depth and layers

another example

one more