Basic terms and concepts

1. Basic terms and concepts • Photography is … • Inverse Square Law • Color Temperature • Mixing light sources • Filters (in camera, light mounted, window mounted) • Needs of camera / mood of shot / invisible • 3 point lighting (background, kicker) • Flat lighting, 2-point?, bounce? • Typical equipment • Spot or flood • Quartz, HSF, HMI, or LED (3200 or 5500) • Grid or light stands – TV news, light stands

2. Reality check • We covered sequencing. You must shoot & edit matched action sequences. • We covered framing and point of view. you must have correct framing and point of view. • We covered close miking and on camera light required for interviews and stand ups. • Overall, grade = you apply what we cover • More about lighting and audio / sound

3. Light: we’re thinking about… • Equipment, what you use ...... And • Aesthetics, how you make it look • Adjust it for the camera’s needs and what impact you want for the audience • NOT, what your eyes see

4. Three point lighting • Key --spotlight -- 35-40° angle • Fill -- flood or spread spot (1/2 the key) • Back --spotlight (1.5-2x the key) (’hair light’) • Subjects and foreground • Compare to background -- also important • Separate subject from background • Kicker --comes from the side over the camera left shoulder of the subject (added to 3-point lighting) • External lights must be eliminated / mixing light sources

5. Basic terms and concepts • Incident light – direct light, from the source to the subject • Reflected Light – bounced, reflected before it reaches the camera’s sensor (or your eyes) • Light meter: incident, spot / reflected • Camera lens projects light to the focal plane, in the case of video cameras, the chip(s) • Single chip / mosaic filter • Three chips / beam splitter (RGB)

6. Lighting issues • 1--Contrast Ratio: brightest to darkest: human eye 100:1, TV 30:1 • Sports Stadium daytime shots (shader) • Monitors and adjusts the iris opening • AGC automatically adjusts • 2--Color Temperature: measure of the frequency of the light wave • 3,200° K / 5,500° K / red / blue • Random room lights

7. Basic terms and concepts • Invisible • Mood fits content • Level of work to make it look ‘natural’ • In cinematography, DP • For videographer, camera settings plus light in scene • There’s always light there • Color temperature • Light levels • Using light in scene plus your light(s) • Cannot open up iris to compensate for bad lighting • Hard or soft • Key, soft box, reflected light / bounced light

8. Key to Effective Lighting:Shadow • Shadow gives images form, weight, texture, mood, depth. Also reveals spatial relationships. • Never point the camera toward the light • BLC in camera menu • How do you compensate for light coming from behind? • Light usually above, not at eye level • Note in upcoming samples

9. News field lighting • Single camera, on camera light • Always on interviews • Flat lighting (see the subject’s face) • Inverse square law, camera / subject distance • Light kit • Dark location shooting, flood • Interviews: 2 point lighting • B-roll, event, scene: Interference with event • camera adjustment • Find something else to shoot

10. News field lighting • “I really want that shot” – • But … “me in front of the lake with the PAC in the background” has me back lit. The light ‘must be in the subject’s face.’ • What do I do? • Move somewhere else—you won’t get the shot you want. • Same issue with noisy environment and an interview or stand up …

11. Key to Effective Lighting:Shadow • Shadow gives images form, weight, texture, mood, depth. Also reveals spatial relationships.

12. 3 considerations before lighting • Key light placement – 180 degrees around subject – normal is 45 degrees to subject’s left • Quality of light – hard or soft • Shadow treatment – low key or high key

13. Separate the subject from the background !

14. 3 results of light hitting object Catch lights in subject’s eyes

15. Typical 3 point lighting diagram

16. 3 Attributes of Key Light • Primary source of illumination • Primary factor of overall exposure • Determines placement and quality of shadow

17. Quality of Light • Refers to hard or soft quality of light • “Pin” or undiffused sources create hard shadows that fall off sharply (fresnel) • Soft light is created by using large sources of diffused light. • Determined by two attributes • Large source • Relatively close to subject • (inverse square law)

18. Floor plan of interview Key Light Possibilities

19. Subject lit from 3:00 Position 90 degree angle to subject

20. Subject lit from 4:00 Position

21. Subject lit from 5:00 Position Between 4:00 and 5:00 is 45 degree angle to subject

22. Subject lit from 6:00 Position Flat lit

23. Diffused Lighting Flat lit

24. Check the eyes • Catch lights show proper placement • Broadlighting: when the key light shines of the side of the face closest to the camera • Short lighting: when the key light is on the side of the face opposite the camera; the camera is on the fill or shadow side

25. Short lighting • Side of face toward camera is shadow

26. Broad lighting – side of face toward camera is lit

27. Functions of Fill Light • Fills shadows created by key light • Does not create new shadow

28. Adding Fill for Portrait Lighting

29. Fill Light Without Fill With Fill Notice no new shadow

30. Backlight Hard backlight Soft Backlight

31. Background With Background Without Background

32. Hard vs. Soft Key Light Hard Soft

33. Relative Distance of Soft Light Source Close Far

34. Lighting Dark Skin with Large Sources of Light Pin Light Source Large Diffused Source

35. One Light Setup Use available Light from existing window What’s wrong with this setup?

36. One-Light Setup Available Light One-Light Setup

37. One-Light Setup Light directly in front Short Side of Face Short lighting

38. Color Balance Color Temps Mixing Key light with color correction

39. Warming the Scene Normal Color Balance Tricking Camera to Produce Warmer Tones

40. Using Backlight as Key

41. Use Large sources for Specular Reflections

42. Backlight as Key Creates Form, Depth, Dynamic Images

43. Lighting effects • Silhouette – back lit

44. Lighting effects • Silhouette – back lit What does this communicate?

45. Lighting effects • Cameo: spot on subject, dark background

46. Lighting effects • Limbo: softly lit (white) background

47. Camera • Indoor, outdoor, automatic • Manual vs. automatic (of anything) • Size of chip • Camera to subject distance • Light to subject distance

48. Lighting Instruments • ‘lamp’ not ‘bulb’ • Quartz lamp • 3,200° K • 500 / 1,000 / 2,000 watts / 10,000 • New High Speed Fluorescent (HSF) • Traditional / HSF at 3,200° K • HMI lamp -- 5,500° K • (hydrogen medium-arc-length iodide lamp) • LED – lower wattage for same illumination

49. Lighting Instruments • Spotlights • Controlled beam / pinned & spread • Fresnel • Other standard spotlights • Ellipsoidal / leko • cutters / blackwrap / flags • cookies / cucalorus • Barn doors / light pole / light stand • C-stand, mafer clamp

50. Lighting Instruments • Floodlights • Pans/broads --rectangular shaped • Scoop -- Bowl shaped • Strip lights for background • Softlight -- bulb points inward • Sometimes covered with scrim or gels • ####