Recreating Daylight in Studio

[Brian Rose]

Hello All,

I'm preparing to shoot a friend's thesis film in a few weeks. It is set almost entirely within a small office. We'll be shooting on digital, XL2 at 24p. We're building a set on a sound stage, so I have a wide array of lights available: 2 and 4K spots, 2 and 4k softies, baby spots, a couple of broad throws...all mole-richardson. I can also get some Arri Fresnel that range from 500 to 650w, and some Lowell lights (DP, tota, softbox etc). I've got bounce boards, flags, scrims, and color correction gels, and all that good stuff.

 

This is exciting for me, but also more challenging. Up to now, when working with ambient daylight, it has been on location. Because of this, as well as limited space and power, I've grown accustomed to a tight light scheme...usually a lowel DP kit, maybe a 2K here and there, and corrected with CTBs. It helped having that ambient light as a way to boost the overall lighting, to serve as it's own fill. While I'm thrilled at getting a chance to work in a space with more power, more equipment, and more control over the quality and quantity of light, it's also more challenging to accurately recreate the kind of light that would be seen in a real office with a window on the world.

 

If it helps: the office will have a single window, and is also going to have a couple of practicals: a floor light, and a fluorescent light overhead. Most of the film is set during the day, when the sun is higher in the sky, though a couple of scenes will be set in the morning with a lower sun...these scenes I'm not as worried about, since there is a little more freedom in terms of coloring the light, and shadows, to suggest a rising sun. It's the day scenes, where the light is cooler and more diffuse, that I'm concerned about. I really want to nail it. Like I said, I'll have CTBs to correct the color, and several ways to diffuse (bounce boards, softies, etc).

 

So my question, then, is a general one: for those who have already gone where I'm about to go, what has worked for you in trying to recreate ambient daylight on a soundstage? Is there a particular combination of lights, or an overall strategy that you found worked well to give the setting a sense of connection to the real world, to sunlight, even as it is stagebound? Are there some problems you encountered that I should watch out for? I'd really appreciate any advice you could give. Thanks!

Best,

Brian R.

[robert duke]

Since you are shooting digital and on a sound stage, dont worry about correcting back to daylight unless you want to use some color diferences in the office. like a desk light that is tungsten, or something like that.

 

look around your house, or apartment. look at the light coming in the windows. direct or indirect, the light you will notice is from a HUGE source. So to duplicate that you want as Big a source as you can get. If you want indirect light like soft even light use a large bounced source. you can use several lights to increase lumens, or several bounces to sculpt direction.

 

If you want the hard shaft light use a Big fresnel. Use the largest Diameter light not the Highest wattage light, although high wattage will help too.

 

Define what you want it to look like and work in that direction.

[David Auner aac]

Hi Brian,

 

don't use CTBs on your lights as you'll loose way too much power. Rather work with warm white balance (shoot trough a CTO gel while setting WB or light a grey card with a light with CTO) and use CTO on lights you want to be warmer still, like a desk lamp.

 

Cheers,

[Brian Rose]

Hi Brian,

 

don't use CTBs on your lights as you'll loose way too much power. Rather work with warm white balance (shoot trough a CTO gel while setting WB or light a grey card with a light with CTO) and use CTO on lights you want to be warmer still, like a desk lamp.

 

Cheers,

 

 

Wow, I never thought of that! I was worried a bit about the CTBs, considering the light loss...I never considered reversing things, and making the tungsten practicals more orange. Brilliant! You've given me a whole new approach!