By Forris Day Jr.
Christopher Kenworthy has written many books on the subject of filmmaking. His series “Master Shots” Includes several books. Three of them; Story, Suspense and Action are now e-books. The paperback books are amazing in their own right but I like these e-books far better.
First I’ll describe what the paperback books are and then I’ll tell you why I think the e-books are more to my liking. The paperback books each cover a different aspect of using your camera in filmmaking. The e-books do the same. The paperback book describes a shot and what you can accomplish with it. It uses a combination of stills from well known movies and computer generated graphics to describe camera placement and actor placement. The books are very detailed in their description and you use the pictures to follow and understand what the shot should look like. To understand the shot best it is good to watch the film clip from the movie if you can find it.
The e-book does the same thing. It describes the shot and uses the still images from well known films but what I like with the e-book and is not possible with a paper book is the inclusion of high def videos. Each section of the e-book has the same exact stills but then Kenworthy created a video for each camera setup so that you can just click on it and see for yourself how it works. The video can be watched on it’s own or with with commentary explaining each step so that you really get a grasp of what is being taught. This is valuable for us folks who learn by seeing things in action.
Kenworthy’s “Master Shots” series is one of the best I’ve seen to help filmmakers create great shots in their movies and the e-books make the information so much easier to understand. Here is one of the problems though. As of this writing they are only available through Apple Books on a Mac computer. This is great if you use a Mac as I do. The book can be synced to your iPhone and iPad to carry with you on set and use as a cheat tool when setting up your brilliant shots. If you only have access to a PC and PC type device you are left out in the cold on this one and that is too bad.
In summary, I love the e-book version of “Master Shots;Story” that I checked out and I know it will be a valuable source for information in my filmmaking. Although I am not a PC guy I do wish it was available for people who do use PCs. They are missing out on a great tool.
It’s also a bit tricky to buy. You have to go to iBooks on your Macbook, then click on iBook store at top left. Now search “Master Shots”. The three books will show up at this point and you can select which ones you would like to buy. I have tried to include a direct link to purchase but I could not figure out how. If you figure it out please post a link in the comment section. Thanks! You will not be sorry for getting one if not all of these e-books.
Rating: 9.5/10 – “Love it!”