fade Gradual diminishing or heightening of visual and/or audio intensity. "Fade out" or "fade to black," "fade in" or "up from black" are common terms.

feed Act or result of transmitting a video signal from one point to another.

feedback [1:video] Infinite loop of visual patterns from signal output being fed back as input; achieved by aiming live camera at receiving monitor. [2:audio] Echo effect at low levels, howl or piercing squeal at extremes, from audio signal being fed back to itself; achieved by aiming live microphone at receiving speaker.

field Half a scanning cycle. Two fields comprise a complete video frame.

field of view Extent of a shot that's visible through a particular lens; its vista.

fill light Supplementary illumination, usually from a floodlight positioned midway between camera and subject, which lightens or eliminates shadows created by key light. [See back light, key light, three-point lighting.]

film-style Out-of-sequence shooting approach, to be edited in appropriate order at post-production stage. Advantageous for concentrating on and completing recording at one location at a time, continuity and convenience assured.

filter Transparent material, typically glass accessory, mounted at front of camcorder lens to regulate light passing through. Manipulates colors and image patterns, often for special effect purposes.

flare Bright flashes and/or extreme contrast reduction evident in picture, caused by excessive light beaming into a camera's lens and reflecting off its internal glass elements.

flat lighting Illumination characterized by even, diffused light without shadows, highlights, or contrast. May impede viewer's sense of depth, dimension, drama.

floodlight Radiates a diffused, scattered blanket of light with soft, indistinct shadows. Best used to spread illumination on broad areas, whereas spotlights focus on individual subjects.

fluid head Tripod mount type containing viscous fluid which lubricates moving parts, dampens friction. Design facilitates smooth camera moves, alleviates jerkiness. [See friction head.]

flying erase head Accessory video head mounted on spinning headwheel, incorporated in newer camcorders and VCRs to eliminate glitches and rainbow noise between scenes recorded or edited. [See head.]

focal length Distance from a camera's lens to a focused image with the lens focused on infinity. Short focal lengths offer a broad field of view (wide-angle); long focal lengths offer a narrow field of view (telephoto). Zoom lenses have a variable focal length.

follow focus Controlling lens focus so that an image maintains sharpness and clarity despite camera and/or subject movement.

format Videotape and video equipment design differences -- physical and technical -- dictating compatibility and quality. In most basic sense, refers to standardized tape widths, videocassette sizes. [See Betamax, D1/D2, , three-quarter-inch, VHS.]

frame The smallest increment of a complete television picture, equal to one- thirtieth of a second.

frame-grabber High-speed digitizer capable of capturing frames at rate necessary to create real-time motion.

framing Act of composing a shot in the camcorder's viewfinder for desired content, angle, and field of view -- overall composition.

freeze frame Single frame paused and displayed for an extended period during video playback suspended motion perceived as still snapshot.

frequency Number of vibrations produced by a signal or sound, usually expressed as cycles per second, or hertz (Hz).

frequency response Measure of the range of frequencies a medium can respond to and reproduce. Good video response maintains picture detail; good audio response accommodates the broadest range, most exacting sound.

friction head Tripod mount type with strong spring that counterbalances camera weight, relying on friction to hold its position. More appropriate for still photography than movement-oriented videomaking. [See fluid head.]

f-stop Numbers corresponding to variable size of camera's iris opening, and thus amount of light passing through lens. The higher the number, the less light enters. [See iris.]

full-motion video A standard for video playback on a computer; refers to smooth-flowing, full-color video, similar to a VCR or television. Also known as full- screen, full- or true-color, or full-motion video.

FX See special effects.

gaffer Production crew technician responsible for placement and rigging of all lighting instruments.

gain Video amplification, signal strength. "Riding gain" means varying controls to achieve desired contrast levels.

gel Colored material placed in front of a light source to alter its hue. Useful for correcting mismatches in lighting, as in scenes lit by both daylight and artificial light.

generation Relationship between a master video recording and a given copy of that master. A copy of a copy of the original master constitutes a second- generation duplication.

general loss Degradation in picture and sound quality resulting from duplication of original master video recording. Copying a copy and all successive duplication compounds generational loss.

genlock (generator locking device) Synchronizes two video sources, allowing part or all of their signals to be displayed together. Necessary for overlaying computer graphics with video, for example.

ghosting Undesirable faint double screen image caused by signal reflection or improperly balanced video circuitry. "Ringing" appears as repeated image edges.

glitch Momentary picture disturbance.

grain Blanketed signal noise viewed as fuzziness, unsmooth images -- attributable to luminance inadequacies.

grip Production crew stagehand responsible for handling equipment, props, and scenery before, during, and after production.

hard disks Common digital storage component in a computer. For video use, hard disks need: 1) an access time of less than 10 milliseconds; 2) a sustained throughput (data transfer rate) of 3 Megabytes per second; and 3) a maximum time for housekeeping of 33 milliseconds (one video frame).

hardware CODEC Compression method that creates compressed digital video sequences. These video sequences need special additional hardware to be recorded/played back and offer a better image quality than data compressed with software CODECs. HDTV Acronym for High-Definition TeleVision. "In the works" television system standard affording greater resolution for sharper pictures and wide-screen viewing via specially-designed TV equipment.

head [1] Electromagnetic components within camcorders and VCRs that record, receive, and erase video and audio signals on magnetic tape. [2] Tripod's camera mount. [See fluid head, friction head.]

headroom Space remaining between the top of a subject's head and a monitor's upper screen edge. Composition consideration.

Hi8 Acronym for High-Band mm) Improved version of videotape format characterized by higher luminance resolution for a sharper picture. Compact "conceptual equivalent" of Super-VHS. [See .]

hi-fi Acronym for High Fidelity. Generalized term defining audio quality approaching the limits of human hearing, pertinent to high-quality sound reproduction systems.

hiss Primary background signal interference in audio recording, result of circuit noise from a playback recorder's amplifiers or from a tape's residual magnetism.

horizontal resolution Specification denoting amount of discernable detail across a screen's width. Measured in lines, the higher the number the better the picture quality. [See resolution.]

huffman coding Part of the JPEG image data compression. Values that occur seldom receive a long code: values that occur often receive a short code.