A film plane is the area inside any camera or image taking device with a lens and film or digital sensor. The film plane varies in distance from the lens focal point in each manufacturer. Thus each lens used has to be chosen carefully to assure that the image from the lens is focused on the exact place where the individual frame of film or digital sensor is positioned during exposure, the film plane is the location in which the lens creates the focused image which must be exactly upon the light-sensitive material. It is sometimes marked on a camera body with the 'Φ' symbol where the vertical bar represents the exact location.
Movie cameras often also have small focus hooks where the focus puller can attach one side of a tape measure to quickly gauge the distance to objects that he intends to bring into focus. The measurement is taken from the film plane to the subject.
Due to Petzval field curvature, the film plane upon which a lens focuses may not be a literal plane. Cameras may bend the film stock or even plate stock slightly to compensate, improving the area of critical focus and sharpness. Nevertheless, the general concept of a focal plane is understood to refer to this position in the camera sensor relative to the lens.
Famous quotes containing the words film and/or plane:
“The motion picture is like a picture of a lady in a half- piece bathing suit. If she wore a few more clothes, you might be intrigued. If she wore no clothes at all, you might be shocked. But the way it is, you are occupied with noticing that her knees are too bony and that her toenails are too large. The modern film tries too hard to be real. Its techniques of illusion are so perfect that it requires no contribution from the audience but a mouthful of popcorn.”
—Raymond Chandler (1888–1959)
“We’ve got to figure these things a little bit different than most people. Y’know, there’s something about going out in a plane that beats any other way.... A guy that washes out at the controls of his own ship, well, he goes down doing the thing that he loved the best. It seems to me that that’s a very special way to die.”
—Dalton Trumbo (1905–1976)