I suggest that you go through the rules of photography given in this article. Each rule has a scientific basis behind it, though you need not worry about it at this moment. If you are impatient, you may look at it later in your free time, and continue reading the present post. I will choose one movie scene and explain the various aspects as go along.

For the purpose of this article, I would make special mention of two rules. The most common rule of photography is the so called one-third rule whereby the total image area is divided into three equal vertical and horizontal segments (leading to 9 equal grid boxes). Any shot is arranged in such a way that the most important feature or subject falls on one of these lines, which I call as 1/3 line. Its scientific basis can be found in psychology and brain research, though we need not go into that detail here. This captures and holds the viewer’s attention on the two subjects. Note that it is not necessary that two subjects be present in the shot; the rule would still hold even if there is only one subject in the shot. Secondly, it is not necessary that the subject lies on vertical lines; horizontal lines could also be used for similar effect. Thus, while taking a fashion photograph, the upper 1/3 horizontal line could be made to pass through the model’s eyes and the lower 1/3 line through her lips.

The second rule is to look for leading lines which could be any line or linear structure which leads the viewer into and through the photograph. The leading line could be a staircase, a railing, a road, trees, lamp posts, or simply the horizon. The role of leading lines is similar to that of a guide in tourist places and museums. When you visit such places, there is so much to be seen that you feel overwhelmed. You may try to start at one end and explore everything that the place has to offer. However, without any prior knowledge, you would be losing a lot of time without learning anything worthwhile. In such cases, guides come to your aid. They help you and ‘guide’ you through the museum, showing everything in the order in which they are supposed to be seen. In the same way, leading lines guide your eyesight towards the most important portion of a photograph, where the drama is taking place.

The scene that I have chosen for discussion in this article is from classic Hindi movie Andaz (1949) with Raj Kapoor, Nargis and Dilip Kumar. First watch the scene in full, then we will discuss the various shots one by one, and finally you can watch the full scene all over again. If the video does not play, click on the “Watch on YouTube” link given therein.

This is a very nice scene in the sense that it is self-sufficient. One need not know the full story of the movie up to this moment, which had led to this particular scene. Just by following the various dialogues one can easily form a fairly accurate idea of what had been going on and what is going on. So I leave it on you, dear reader, to make the sense out of these dialogues, and restrict myself to discussion of this scene.

If you play the above video again, you would notice that both the rules that I described above have been religiously followed in nearly every shot. For example, in the photo below, Raj Kapoor and Nargis are positioned in such a way that the two 1/3 lines pass through them. In the next photo, the staircase is serving as the leading line.

OK fine. Let us begin our analysis of this scene. As Nargis calls out, Raj Kapoor who had been climbing up the stairs, turns and asks, “Me?” This must have been frustrating to Nargis as there was no one else around! He climbs down with a feigned smile and with a casual tone and formal words asks,”Yes, Please!” At this instant, Nagis is standing on the 1/3 line whereas Raj Kapoor occupies the middle portion of the screen. This is not important since it is now Nargis’ turn to speak so she has to occupy the prominent position. However, it is important to notice the body languages of the actors — Nargis is still climbing up the stairs, and her head is facing upwards, as if pleading, praying. On the other hand, Raj Kapoor is looking down on her from a higher position, authoritatively.

The despondent look in Nargis’ eyes, sadness in her voice, and every expression of her face is screaming depression. She uses metaphor of the rose to ask whether Raj Kapoor has indeed lost interest in her. Raj Kapoor doesn’t have much to offer in reply; he smells and ignores the metaphor — though fully understanding it — and bypasses the question. He throws the rose away, or rather just firmly and rudely tells once and for all that he would not answer this question. That rose is caught by Dilip Kumar who has just entered the bungalow.

Both of them look at Dilip Kumar, Nargis immediately turns to Raj Kapoor — Oh my! This was an absolutely wrong time for him to have entered the scene. Nothing could be worse than this. Raj Kapoor’s smile and raised right eyebrow ridicule her — “Hello. Here comes your hero!” Nargis gets the message and decides not to continue with the argument — at least not in front of Dilip Kumar. She leaves, climbing up the stairs, with Raj Kapoor calling her to ask about a party they are supposed to attend in the evening. Here you can notice the absolutely brilliant use of the diagonal line from top left to bottom right of the screen. He announces that he won’t be able to attend it, and asks her to go with Dilip Kumar.

Now here you see the absolute genius of the director and the cameraman — Nargis is standing on the top left corner of the diagonal line, Dilip Kumar on the bottom, whereas Raj Kapoor occupies the centre. Pause this video at this moment and let the philosophy of the scene sink in. Nargis is facing left on the left edge of the screen, walking ‘out of the screen’, not interested at all in the developments on the screen at the moment. On the other hand, Dilip Kumar is also facing left, but on the right edge of the screen, thus ‘entering the screen’ or rather entering the scene, and wanting every bit to be a part of the discussion. Raj Kapoor gives out a victorious and derogatory laughter and turns back to face Dilip Kumar now. Now comes the second shot.