Lighting a baskektball court

[Rick Shepardson]

Hello,

This is the first time I've tried to tackle a lighting situation this size, I'm obviously a begginer-so please tell me if there's information I have left out that would aid you in answering my questions.

 

 

 

I'm trying to light a very large area on a very small budget. I've posted a picture of that area to give a better idea of the dimensions.

 

I think using the windows as the key light would be asthetically pleasing. However, the large windows run on both sides of the gym and face East/West. Thus, I imagine that I would have to shoot at night and use artificial lights in order to avoid change in directionality and quality of the sunlight.

 

I did try to map out the place with a light meter (4pm, mid summer.) However, because of the aformentioned problems of using sunlight, this would likely be irrelavent.

I want to go back later and do a meter reading with the overheads. However, they are all florescent and the building is rather old. So, I think they would likely be so inconcistant so as to render them useless.

 

 

 

I was thinking something along the lines of a 5k HMI at each window. Of course, this would likely also neccesitate diffusion and all sorts of stuff that I probably haven't even begun to consider.

 

By the way, I'm thinking of shooting on HVX with 320 ISO.

 

thanks for any information you can provide. And again, sorry if I haven't supplied ample info.

-rick

[Chris Keth]

Something like a 6k PAR for each window would be about right, I think. Cover the windows with something soft but not too like opal or 251 to blend all of the lights into one effective source. That would be 90% of a very nice-looking gym.

[Rick Shepardson]

Something like a 6k PAR for each window would be about right, I think. Cover the windows with something soft but not too like opal or 251 to blend all of the lights into one effective source. That would be 90% of a very nice-looking gym.

 

Thanks!

[David Mullen ASC]

I would shoot as many wide shots in natural daylight and just light the tighter shots. I live with some inconsistency just to capture some nice natural light if it's bright enough to shoot by.

[Jonathan Bowerbank]

Check out "Hoosiers" for some inspiration. Lots of natural lighting thru the first half hour of the film. And you can get an idea for how he used any supplemental lighting to spice things up a bit.

[Patrick Lavalley]

maybe dirty up the air just a tad with some fog?

[Rick Shepardson]

I would shoot as many wide shots in natural daylight and just light the tighter shots. I live with some inconsistency just to capture some nice natural light if it's bright enough to shoot by.

 

Wow-I hadn't even thought about that :)

The windows that would likely serve as the key lights face East, so I guess sometime in the morning would be the best time to shoot wide shots.

Is there a particular block of time in the morning hours that would be best to shoot? I mean, of course the sun is always moving, but is there a particular time that due to it's angle that this isn't so noticable? Would the same go for the color temperature as well?

Or would I fare better by spending a morning at the location taking meter readings and pictures every hour or so?

 

Thanks for the help, it is greatly appreciated.

-rick

[Michael Nash]

Your biggest problem is going to be maintaining lighting continuity from early morning to late afternoon. Direct sunlight coming through the windows will be a dramatically different contrast ratio, quality and color (remember the direct sunlight light will bounce off the floor) compared to midday, when the light will be all soft and indirect.

 

You'll have to decide what material you have to shoot, how long you think it will take to shoot it all, and how you want to take advantage of the natural light to get that done. If it's a brief amount of material you might be able to do most of it while the light is ideal, and only have a small degree of change in the quality of light. If you've got a full day's worth of shooting to do, you're probably best off shooting the wide shots when there is direct sunlight, and shoot tighter shots midday when you can control the light better.

 

If it serves the look and the story you could black out all the windows on the West side so that you could have a more consistent quality of light throughout more of the day.

 

Oh, and don't discount the overhead fluorescents. Age and mis-matching tubes may not be as much of a factor as you think. You'll probably still get enough light to shoot by and be able to get a reasonable white balance, although the quality of light will be rather flat.