Tracking Shot Analysis

I watched the movie 'The Shining' over the holidays because the one tracking shot of Danny cycling around the  hotel is infamous. I decided to watch the movie to see how it was shot. There are other tracking shots that I actually preferred because it made me think about the speed at which the dolly is tracked because during my test shot which is seen below, the track is moving quicker than the subject and the pace of the scene is not corresponding to the storyline. The pace of the story needs to be slow at the beginning because it is setting a thriller mood so after watching The Shining I am going to shoot the scene with the track dolly much slower because I feel it also subconsciously engages the viewer.
In my video below, the track dolly moves very quickly that it does not give the viewer enough chance to analysis the scene and understand the mood that is being expressed. For the 1minute video to make sense in the short period of time, a slow tracking motion will allow the viewer to understand the set the scene is in.


VFX Test Shot 1 from Munirat Plummer on Vimeo.




The steadicam's pace in the shot with Danny mimics the bicycles pace so this fits in well with scene, so when I shoot my scene I need the track dolly's pace to fit in with the action going on in the scene which I think it does in the video below.

The video above consists of tracking with sharp cuts back and forth which make this my favourite dialog scene. I also like how the characters are central on the screen, the overall composition is done really well considering that the camera is constantly moving.
Though my video does not have a dialogue scene with two subjects as my character is depicted as being lonely in her flat.


Below I have posted a clip from the video shoot where I have adjusted the speed of the track dolly and I really like the results. The subject is relaxing so the tracking needs to be slow and not abrupt because I am not trying to indicate that there is anything bad about to happen, I am allowing the lighting to serve that purpose instead in this scene.


Tracking Shot from Munirat Plummer on Vimeo.