Multi Window Attic/Room

[Gabriel Wilson]

On an upcoming narrative film, I am attempting to get a high contrast look in a large white-walled room on the top floor of an old Victorian house. I have no way of rigging outside the windows as they are too high up and there are about five of them. My largest Daylight unit is a D12 and largest tungsten is a unit is a 2k. I have numerous other small units. I still want to be able to see outside the window. Here is a bad location photo. Shooting on f55

 

 

[JB Earl]

what do you mean by "high contrast look"? how wide are the shots?

[Gabriel Wilson]

Wide. Hight contrast meaning a high ratio between key and fill.

[David Mullen ASC]

High contrast is very hard to achieve in a white room in a wide shot, even a single hard key light wants to bounce around and fill in the shadows -- so my first suggestion is to get the room painted. Otherwise aim for a single hard slash of sun cutting through the room like in the reference photo.

[David Mullen ASC]

If you can't really light this room from the outside then I'd use mostly available light like in the photo, perhaps supplemented with a soft lighting unit inside. You could ND gel or net the windows in the background but considering your limitations on lighting from outside, I'd rely on the latitude of the camera as best as it can to hold something because if you darken the windows too much, you kill the light coming though them. But maybe some light ND will be fine.

[Gabriel Wilson]

Thanks David! And Wang do you think about blacking out the windows on the far side and Using ND on the windows in the shot? Could a Leko potentially provide some hard sunlight ?