axela dardan

the location we will replicate with this project is a semi-basement restaurant kitchen. so we have one small window on the upper part of one wall, and a few practical lights, like lightbulbs hanging from the "ceiling", and other seam-like desk lamps (because the kitchen is more or less destroied in the script, and turned into a depositing area) all the film will be shoot in night time, so i have to recreate this light atmosphere, in the given conditions... the most urgent problem i have is how to emulate an electrical blackout, afterwards a candle lit sequence with the passing carlights coming in from the small semi-basement window, which were before hand motivated by a rear projection on that window of passing carlights, filmed in the real location my question is, for a general chiaroscuro low key lighting in sequence before the blackout (so there is light now in the kitchen, enough for people to see their cooking) will a rear projecting of nighttime passing carlights through that window be powerful enough to catch it, in contrast with the room ambiance, on KODAK DOUBLE X 200ASA? and then, how is this usually made... a normal digital projector shooting from behind upon a more transparent paper? what about candle lighting, how would you suggest tricking the viewer into thinking this is real candle light? with the now and then, passing of car lights from the window... which i've yet haven't figured out how to phisically make (i thought moving a projector without fresnel in depth and sideways would make it, like the cars would make a turn) thank you very much for your help, diana

hello, i am dealing with the same issue. i have a bw short coming up, on 35, set up in the school's studio, and i have to recreate the passing lights of the cars outside, through the "basement-windows" of the room. The studio is actually very tight, with not much room outside the walls to move around, so moving 1k, on a dolly track, would considerably demand a lot of time, which i cant afford.... so i considered this option, of a rigged-out light, but, could you be more specific on its shape and size... considering i have to move the lights to a very small distance from the windows, i think they should be quite distinct to leave rays on the wall, you could interpret as carlights thanks, diana

Well, I talked to my teacher about the very little available light in my school, and it appears that there are 2 1.2kW HMIs, and some incandescent 300W, 500W, 1000W. With no generator. The flat where I will be shooting has really old electrical installation, with wires blowing up the walls and horror stuff as such. Nevertheless I have heard that 1.2kW will make it through. Problem is that I have 200T stock, Vision 5274, and I have to create a daylight atmosphere. I will have the windows, lighting the place with only a small quantity, and my lighting gear is as follows: 1 200W HMI on battery 1 single working 1.2kw HMI in the room + I might use a cable extesion to bring another 1.2kW, but I don't know how to fit it inside a 65feet room, and IF I need it 2 300W incandesent fresnels 1 500W incandescent fresnel 1 1kW incadescent fresnel

I may be just plain dumb at this hour of the night, or dont understand push, but... If I have 250 ISO rated stock, and I rate it 320, that is only 1/3 of a stop underexposure, right? If i push this 1 full stop, that actually means 2/3 underexpsure?!? I dont get it... Sorry

Hello and Thanks for your answer! Thing is the room in which I will have to shoot is at the 10th floor, so it is impossible to fill it with light, from outside the window. That is my main issue.

Hello, I am a newbie in lighting techniques. I have whatsoever no experience, except for what I witnessed on the set, while studying, and theoretical classes at my school. At the end of this week, I will shoot a 35mm short, in color, it is actually a color exercise, both interior and exterior. My budget is only readable with a microscope. Nevertheless, I will have to lit (and build) a department store dressing room, while my main character (a 18 year old girl) will look at herself in the mirror. I was thinking a a hanging curtain on a 3.3ft per 3.3ft frame, with a mirror on one side. My other interior is a 65 square ft 1room-flat, that's supposed to be very dark (chiaroscuro),- although the sequence is during daytime-, smoky, gloomy, dirty, with only accents of light on different things, and several other areas of dark. Again, my main character will have to tidy up the room, and discover certain details of her father's promiscuous life. You can find attached the plan of this room, with 2 windows on the lower side of the drawing, west oriented, at the 10th floor, but very poorly lit because of the shadowing blocks of flats nearby, and the snowing weather. Could you help me get an idea of how should I light such a small environment, and what lamps should I use. The film stock is Vision, 250 ASA, Tungsten Balanced. Thanks a lot for your help, Diana

This is very bad news you give me, Ken. It is the redrock m2 adapter Im talking about, and as it was advertised I was expecting only a 2stop loss, but not such horrific results you're telling. Thanks very much.

No kidding. I shot 8 shorts so far, of which 4 were school exams. All shot in natural light. Lighting classes I have attended indeed, but only in theory, pencil and paper, nothing real to set up for my own. I guess, here in Romania, the national film school, has just got a... funny way of taking life seriously. Now you can understand why I through your answers. But then again, nobody has posted nothing on specific products, or firms. American popular firms are not a problem for me, cause somebody can order them for me in the US and then have them shipped here. I just got to know what best on the market (new, not SH), at a relative decent price. Thanks again.

My bad, I didn't realize XTi has EXACTLY the same features as 400d and XT same with 350D. I thought, maybe, with this rebranding, they would add some more techies stuff or smth... As for the adapter, well I simply Froogled the words and I found plenty in stock, for prices like $39. I don't find that neither rare nor expensive. Since I already have good EF mount lenses, and a canon film camera body, which I got used to in 5 years of practice, why would I then switch to nikon, instead of just climbing up the hierarchical line?! Are canon cameras so bad to avoid them, or what? If now I found out that with the 350D's 8 MP you can have huge 8mx9m prints, Im even thinking to buy an XT. Thank you for your comments, Diana.

I have an EOS 3000. Will the lens fit?

What would you recommend between canon 400d, rebel xt and rebel xti? I already have a canon slr film camera with lenses and all, but have no preatical experience on digital, so Im looking for your advice, before I buy anything. Thank you very much.

Well, believe it or not, I yet didn't have one single film-lighting course. However I have access to the school's photo-studio, but I imagine a photography lighting kit is quite different than one for film. And this school photo kit Im talking about consists in 1kW, 1 x 500W and 2 x 300W, which means a whole lot of light from what Ive experienced. And this whole lot of light, with tripods and generator necessary I guess, (not to mention ballasts for HMI) means a lot of money and not very much maneuverability. For this I need advice. This kit I want to buy is mainly to meet my director's plans for setting up a very small studio of his own. He's actually the one with the HVX. Could you recommend some not very expensive firms to search for their products? I want to buy new lamps, both fix and portable for shooting documentary wise. Thanks.

My director recently bought a HVX200 and I am currently acknowledging the camera. We haven't got the P2 card so for a while we will shoot DV on tape, nevertheless it looks really good from what Ive seen. First of all, Ive tried a serious number of combinations of scene files and still after various tests I am quite confused of how to get the best exposure and colour. Are there any tutorials on setting up scene files of smth like that?... And second of all, Im interested in buying a Sekonic L758DR, that has the abbility to load a digital cameras' profile, so you could work at the right parameters. Now since the HVX is a digital camera and its responce to lighting isn't a linear function, unfortunately -I mean its sensistivity to light isn't the same under different colour temperatures or under different lighting conditions-, how could I load the hvx profile into this light meter, or better yet, how could i establish it? Has anyone actually tested these two together? Or have you profiled the camera in sensitivity terms according to different standard lighting conditins?

I have a Panasonic HVX 200 and I would like to buy a basic lighting kit to use for both documentaries and short fiction films. I will also soon upgrade the camera to a 35mm adapter and nikon lenses, which will cut me out 2 stops. I am yet a third year cinematography student and haven't worked under anything but natural lighting conditions so have no practical experience with lights. Everybody suggested dedo lights, but I don't know what powers and what type of lamps will be sufficient for my needs. In this case what lights would you recommend, both tungsten and hmi? Many thanks, Diana.

Then what would be you choice between the KFM-2100 and KFM-1100, these being a little cheaper? Has anyone actually worked with one of these?