I liked the contrast between the Schrader article, which described the film noir visual style as it appears to the viewer, and this article, which explained how such images are achieved with light and camera equipment.
For instance, the light described by Schrader—high contrast, slanted shapes and patterns, with long shadows and an overall dark feel—was created by using low key three point lighting and no diffusion on the lighting instruments or the camera lens. I found it interesting that before film noir, many night scenes were shot using "day-for-night" techniques to make a scene filmed in daylight appear as though it took place at night on the screen. Also I would not have guessed that "night-for-night" was actually a more expensive technique (due to the lighting) than "day-for-night."
The film noir technique of having a greater depth of field (with everything on the screen in focus) was achieved with a wide angle camera lens, which also created certain visual distortions. These visual distortions, such as objects seeming to bulge as they approach the camera, are also a part of the film noir visual style.
The unsettling, jarring and disorienting feeling often associated with film noir scenes was created in part through unusual framing techniques, such as unbalanced, off-center compositions and claustrophobically placed set pieces and props.
Classic Hollywood cinema techniques such as beginning with an orienting long shot before moving to a close up or interior shot are frequently ignored, leaving the viewer spatially disoriented. Additionally, rather than smooth match-on-action cuts of continuity style editing, film noir often makes jarring juxtapositions between shots.
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