Lighting Crash Course

As I was not present for the lighting master class that Jam and Jack went to, I was given a brief lesson on lighting before shooting.


Note: Boom mic – head of mic should follow the speaker. Point the tip towards the actor speaking and slowly move to the other to receive better quality sound.

Health and Safety

• Do not change lights with bare hands – oil on hands will burst into flames as Redheads are made of halogen light bulbs.
• After using Redheads, wait for Bandoliers (the “barn doors”) to cool down before closing.
  Make sure no one is looking at the direction of the light when turning on Redheads.
• Do not plug lots of Redheads into one socket – may blow the fuse.

Lighting

1. Back light – Gives a nice glow, and can define subject/objects in shot with a white line. Adds depth to shots.
2. Key light - Generally faces main subject, lined diagonally to the subject, which at that angle defines the shapes of the subject and adds more depth.
3. Fill light – Illuminates the rest of the set, and can act as a side light.
4. Working with shadows – Don’t overexpose areas with lighting. Create shadows in the right areas (or how you perceive them/want them to be) using an LED “twinkle” light.
5. Change angle (or close) the “Barn doors” Bandoliers of the Redheads. This decreases the intensity of the light and gives shape.