Television

 Film is artful regardless of it's context or subject. In dramatic television shows such as Law and Order, C.S.I Miami, and One Tree Hill, every scene can be dissected to reveal film terms that explain the shot. 

In the photo above, an example of color in film is displayed. There is a strong yellow and brown feel in the scene. These colors are known to symbolize knowledge, wisdom, and reliability and stability. The color of a shot can have a large impact on how the scene is interpreted. In this shot you can tell, because of the color, that the lawyer is calm and feels strong and knowledgeable about his job. 

Decor is a big element of film. It can be used to exemplify ideas and suggest emotion of the characters. In the photo above, a man is being arrested by several police officers. What is interesting in the decor of this scene is the bars in the right corner. They are symbolizing the prisonment of the character and foreshadowing him behind bars. 

In the photo above the contrast is very strong. Contrast is often used to symbolize the difference in the characters. In this photo the lawyers on the right are wearing dark colors and appear to be dark and the man on the left is wearing blue and the light is shining on his face. It is a cliche but common to use contrast to symbolize the difference between good and bad or strong and weak. The lawyers in the dark are stronger and more dominant. 

Three point lighting is a traditional film technique used when the focus is on one character usually in a narrative scene. In this shot, the man's face is lit using the three point lighting style to give him depth and minimize the shadows. This makes the viewers eyes focus solely on the face without distractions.

In this Law and Order episode, the use of extreme long shot is demonstrated. Often used for the establishing shot, extreme long shots don't have one subject as the focus but rather let the viewer see the entire scene. 

In this photo a clear example of shallow focus is shown.  Here the viewer's attention is only focused on this boy. It could be used to amplify the meaning or the emotion of the character.

In this dramatic episode of One Tree Hill, the young man in the photo, Jimmy Edwards, is shown in low-key lighting. In this scene he is holding a gun to a student in his school and then turns the gun on himself. Needless to say it is a very dark scene. Therefore, the director chose to shoot in in low key lighting to enhance the suspense and drama.

Deep focus is a film effect used when both the subject in the foreground and background have significance. The man standing in the foreground is questioning the young man in white about an incident while the woman in the blue in the back is shown and she knows what actually happened but won't tell Horatio because it will threaten her job. A defining characteristic of deep focus is that both subjects don't have to be in focus which they are not here. This leads your eyes from the man to the woman.

Similar to decor, costumes play a large role in the interpretation of a scene. In this photo the viewer is still getting to know the characters but the way they are dressed helps aid the viewers on their personalities. The girl on the left, Peyton, is the more innocent level headed of the two so its no surprise she is dressed in a conservative, blue shirt. Blue is the color or serenity and peace. While on the other hand, Brooke, the girl on the right, is dressed in a low cut, black shirt. Brooke is a wild and promiscuous girl and her costume serves to help her image.

This photo from C.S.I. shows a close up shot. A close up shot is used to focus the viewers attention on just the subject while being somewhat dramatic. This is a dead man who was killed so when the scene automatically goes to a close up of his head lying on the ground with his eyes creepily still open and blood dripping down his nose, it adds the effects of all those details.