lighting Lighting

NicklausLouis

NicklausLouis

I am hoping to begin shooting my indie feature I Like Clowns this October. Right now, the only light kit I have at my disposal is a friends starter kit that he got in film school. I have a few scenes planned that would require more lighting than two or three lights can give.

Also, I am currently rereading Robert Rodriguez's "Rebel Without a Crew" (psyching myself up I guess). In it he talks about using "practicals" - 250 watt photoflood lights.

Now, he was shooting on 16mm and I will be shooting on DV. My question is, just how practical are the "practicals" nowadays (he did shoot El Mariachi over ten years ago), and how well would they work for DV? I mean are they too expensive or too difficult? Would it just be better to go and put 1000 watt bulbs in all of the fixtures of the house we will be shooting in, or should I opt for the "practicals"?

Keep in mind this is for wide shots (it's a party scene), all close ups will be lit by the light kit we already have at our disposal.

Thanks for any help.

Poke
 
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Adding orange and subtracting blue are the same thing. In a colorcorrection wheel, you will move the curser away from blue and toward orange (or whatever they call it)

I don't know if you can change the zebras in your camera, but that was a good way to find out where they are.

As far as a makeup artist goes, I love to have one when I'm able. I'm fortunate enough to work with Jim Sacca in Las Vegas, who is one of the best. People take for granted what a makeup artist does sometimes. I've had instances where there was up to a 2 stop differece in actors skin tones with a spot meter. So my lighting would be even over the whole set, but one actor would always be blazing hot (he was pale in comparison). So Jim evened them up for me and saved me some major hassles with lighting. I've also shot a lot without makeup, and you can get away with it, especially if they're supposed to be hot & sweayty. But if you plan on big closeups, there is a huge difference.
 
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Another idea for lighting

I spoke to an aquaintance of mine recently. He's a film major at the University of Texas. He told me about a project he worked on last summer. He basically said that they used 250 watt halogen lamps, and connected to them small umbrellas with the undercarriages spray painted silver to bounce the diffused light onto the scene. He said it worked wonderfully. Has anyone else ever heard of anything like this?

To me it seems kind of dangerous, but it would definitely becloser to actual movie set lighting than rinky dink chrome work lights.

Poke
 
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Re: Another idea for lighting

pokewowplayer1 said:
I spoke to an aquaintance of mine recently. He's a film major at the University of Texas. He told me about a project he worked on last summer. He basically said that they used 250 watt halogen lamps, and connected to them small umbrellas with the undercarriages spray painted silver to bounce the diffused light onto the scene. He said it worked wonderfully. Has anyone else ever heard of anything like this?

To me it seems kind of dangerous, but it would definitely becloser to actual movie set lighting than rinky dink chrome work lights.

Poke
Click to expand...

There's one way to answer your question. Test shoot. It's all about what shows up on the screen, not whats behind the scenes. If you can't find a DP or a Gaffer with lighting equiment, and you must resort to building your own lights, test everyting. When you see what you like on the screen, then you will have answered your question. :wink:
 
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Re: Another idea for lighting

indietalk said:
There's one way to answer your question. Test shoot. It's all about what shows up on the screen, not whats behind the scenes. If you can't find a DP or a Gaffer with lighting equiment, and you must resort to building your own lights, test everyting. When you see what you like on the screen, then you will have answered your question. :wink:
Click to expand...

Awww ... but it would be so much easier if everyone would just tell me what works.

Seriously, though, I plan on testing when I get my camera (still a month away), but I was just throwing the idea out there so someone could let me know how crazy I am for even thinking about it.

Poke
 
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I forgot to ask if anyone doing DV actually uses a light meter???

If so, any tips & recommendations (mfr/model, etc.)???

Thanks!!!
 
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I have a spot light meter I use to see whats going to be under or over, but other than that, with DV it's best to shoot with a NTSC monitor. The monitor will tell you rapidly whats too hot and whats crushed in the blacks.
 
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Lighting on the cheap is always a challenge. The first choice is to try to use natural light whenever possible. One thing you can do is go to a hardware store and buy insultation. The hard foam for houses that has a silver cover which makes a great reflector. You can bounce tons of lights in through windows. I had to do something like this once when the power went out on a three block radius of LA where we shooting. I was using medium sized mirrors to bouce in fill. You just rest the foam board against a tree, chair or something stationary and aim it a window. You'll have to re-aim periodically because of that pesky rotation of the earth thing.

You can pick up 500watt work lights at hardware stores. They are tungsten lights that come on stands. They are great for boucing off ceilings and walls for soft room filling light. I don't recommend pointing the directly at people because the light is too harsh. Another alternative is to find a way to hang a frosted shower curtain in front of this light and it's a bog soft, diffused source. These light usually run around $30. Sometime they come with two heads which I find is over kill.

The silver scoop lights mentioned in other posts are good.

For small accent lights and kickers you can get little focused halogen lights. Screw them into socket on a cord and clamp them to a light stand or something. You have a nice kicker on somebody. Or it can light some background element.

My advice is poke around camera stores that carry used gear. I bought a couple of Mole 1000 watt baby lights for $50 each. You should buy some used light stands so you can clamp lights to them or hang the above mention shower curtain off them. Get some spring clamps for that. I'd get at least one real movie light with barndoors and a stand to use as your main light, then suppliment with hardware store lights. I'd bet you could build a light kit for DV shoots for around $200.

As for when I was poor and starting out me, I saved up and bought a used Smith Victor light kit for $250.

Scott
 
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