MICHAEL TAPP

Thanks for the tip, but this might be a bit much to take on the train.

Hi there, I'm shooting a lot of run and gun doc stuff and I need a 1x1 light on a battery. Can you recommend any solid 1x1 lights besides litepanels? I'm also looking for a cheaper battery solution. Are there any alternatives besides Anton Bauer and Sony v-mount? I've been googling and I haven't come across a consensus on the way to go. Thank you for your time and input!

Thanks for the tip! What level of diff would you recommend? I'd like to kill the hot spots without losing too much light.

Are baffles another word for egg crates? I have a 40 degree egg crate. I'm thinking of trading in the 40 degree egg crate for a 30 degree egg crate. And yes, the Rifa softbox is fully flooded. Because of the construction of the softbox you can't move the bulb.

Yes, I am referring to specular reflections and shine on the skin. Thanks for clearing things up for me.

Hi All, I recently picked an ex88 rifa softbox to shoot talking heads. I recently tested it out and ran into an issue with hot spots on the subject's face. The silk on the rifa is 32x32 inches and I was also using the eggcrate. The source(1k) was about four feet from the subject. I didn't try using powder during the test. Is there anything else I can do with the softbox to avoid hot spots? Thank you for your insight and time!

I know that some portrait photogs will actually pop the lenses out of the frames. I haven't tried it in video. I think it might read in video.

Yea, a lot of portrait photographers WANT catch lights in the eyes. I guess catch lights help show the shape of the eyes and bring your attention to the eyes.

Thank you for the tips! I've heard that some people will use 2 inch gaff tape on a 4x4 to mimic the shadow of a window frame.

^I forgot about that one. Thank you for the reminder sir!

When interviewing spectacled people I am constantly fighting reflections from the key light. Do you have any tips on how to fix the reflection issue? Thank you for your time.

Very clever Adrian! Thank you for the tip. How did you put the fabric on stands? Did you use the grommets to attach the fabric to a frame, and then attach the frame to 2 stands?

Thank you all for the reassurance! We have a collapsable seamless backdrop: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/541110-REG/Impact_BGC_BW_57_Collapsible_Background_5.html I'm not using paper, but that's a great idea Robert. It's a cheap way to get a cool or warm bounce. I have to transport gear around NYC. Part of my reasoning is that it will be much easier to transport a collapsable seamless than a 5x7 piece of foamcore.

Have you used a seamless backdrop as a bounce? I am thinking about using a 5x7 seamless backdrop as a bounce instead of a 4x4 diffusion frame since the seamless is bigger and should yield a softer light than a 4x4. Have any of you tried using a seamless backdrop as a bounce? I'm not sure how reflective a seamless backdrop can be. Just throwing this out there before testing it out on a job. Any input will be greatly appreciated!

Originally I was thinking of the 1200 light as the source/key, and the the 12 x overhead as the fill/ambient. But anyways now I understand the reasoning for the difference in the color temp between the two. Thank for you for your time.

Really, thanks for the replies. This board is a great resource. I've never thought about how a shaft of direct sunlight will be cooler than the ambient light outside. You're the man David Mullen.

Hey Guys- One afternoon this week I am shooting a scene with a couple stuck in traffic. We are going to have the car parked in a parking lot. There's going to be a bus parked behind the car and a car on the passenger's side and the driver side of the talent's car. We are going to shoot the master shot through the windshield and then a cross close up for the passenger and the driver. Our lighting scheme is to fly in a 12 x silk overhead to diffuse the sun. We are going to have a 1200 HMI Par (1200 Arri Sun) off to one side shooting through some sort of diffusion. We are also going to have a flag on stand by for any stray reflections, and there will also be a polarizer in front of the lens. My big question is about a gel for the 1200 HMI. I read that HMI color temperature ranges from 5600 Kelvin - 6500 Kelvin. We're going to be shooting about two hours before sundown and the light is going to be a little bit warm (guestimating around 4400 degrees Kelvin). Since I'm not positive what the exact color temp. of the 1200 HMI(no color temp. meter!), how am I supposed to know the specific gel I need to order? We probably only have enough cash for one gel instead of each level of C.T.O. . Thanks for taking the time out to read this and any input that you have will really be appreciated.