Lighting

[michael]

I am very confused on the lighting deal, is there any good books or websites on this topic? Also, does anyone know of a good package for lighting?

-thanks in advance for any responses

 

[Hutch]

Hi Michael,

Your question is a great one. If you're wanting to start from the basics I would recommend the following site as a good starting ponit.

http://www.techtv.com/callforhelp/howto/story/0,24330,3417095,00.html

Beyond that, I usually go to yahoo and type in a combination of keywords like "film" and "lighting". I have found tons of great articles that way - too many to list here.

By the way, I (and some of my friends) are firm believers in building your own light kits. Unlike other aspects of film, I believe that lighting equipment is the most unreasonably priced part of the entire process. As such, I have had great success with 1000 w halogen lights from Home Depot. You can get two lights on one stand for $39 (last year's price) and you can build your own gels attachments, barn doors, and the like. Heck, the stands are 100 times better than the junk you buy on some of the small but expensive light kits in camera stores.

Invest in something to diffuse your light. I purchased a professional screen, but a friend used a shower curtain.

Best advice: Practice on your on time and not on the set - and practice a lot. That way, you will know what you want and how to achieve it when you get on set - no matter what your location. For our last production I invested a number of hours in researching my configurations before I used them. I had to light two African Americans - one of dark skin and one of lighter skin. I was able to place my light on the outside of the dark-skinned gentleman and get a great balance - capturing every facial expression in their closeups without any glare to speak of.

Don't waste money on a light meter unless you are using film. Light meters have no real technical application to digital (although some would like to persuade you otherwise.)

Good luck,

Hutch

 

[film8ker]

A good starter kit is an Arri 3 light kit. It comes in a travel case, has stands, cords, scrims, barn doors, etc. I saw one on Ebay for $500. Buy some gels and you have a good field light kit. Softboxes, flags, and umbrellas will give you a very good field kit. There are many systems out there, but the Arri is the most versatile and highest quality I’ve worked with as far as portable lights are concerned. They work well as both fill and key.

 

[michael]

thanks alot for all your help! the other question I have is to use the basic three point lighting for my shots, or perhaps the four point lighting? And in terms of wattage, I have decided to buy at least two of the halogens for the key light, and then use an umberella along with another halogen for the kick, or fill. However, should I get a smaller wattage halogen for the backlight? Or another 1000 watt?

-thanks again for your help

 

[Hutch]

It totally depends on the mood you want to project, the size of the set, the amount of light you really need, how much natural light is available, day or night scene, how much set-up time you have, etc. You get the idea.

I look at it this way. Get a picture in your mind of what you want, and then go and create it with the lights. Add, arrange, and take away light until you achieve the desired effect.

I recently saw that one 30 second night-time scene in the movie "Dirty Dancing" took an entire night to light. Makes you appreciate the required effort to do something good...

Regards,

Hutch

 

[michael]

I really am grateful for the responses. Does anyone know of some really good, in depth books explaining night lighting, lighting moving subjects, and other complicated lighting events as well as the basics.

-thanks again for the responses.

 

[film8ker]

Try "Lighting for Film and Electronic Cinematography" by John David Viera, Dave Viera, "Set Lighting Technician's Handbook : Film Lighting Equipment, Practice, and Electrical Distribution" by Harry Box, there’s another I’ve seen. It’s a little green book that DPs use as reference for focal lengths, F-stops and such, but I can’t remember what it is. Anyway, if you want to be a DP, then learn all you can about lighting. That’s 75% of it.

If you can afford it, get a dual incidence/spot light meter. They’re not cheap, but the will give you readings that are exponentially more accurate than the camera. If you can’t afford a dual, get a incidence. If you have to use the camera, use the zebra lines. It should be lit so zebras just start to show on the brightest areas of the frame.

 

[scottspears]

Here are two good books that I recommend. Classics. These listings are from Amazon.com

1. CINEMATOGRAPHY
by Kris Malkiewicz (Author) (Paperback)
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2. Film Lighting
by Kris Malkiewicz (Paperback - December 1992)
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I've taught cinematography and used this book.

There are no rules for lighting.

I wrote an article on Low Budget Lighting that can be found at www.visionengine.com or www.americanmovieworks.com

It's for folks who have little or no money lighting gear and willing to improvise. I recommend that people try to get some pro lights and augment with home made solutions. I love china lanterns for video.

Scott

 

[Tine]

This book is about lighting for photography, but I know a lot of it can be applied. It's called Light, Science, and Magic. I ordered mine from Chapters.