Peter Campbell

Storyboarding is a lot more important than you might think. It allows you to determine the look of your shots beforehand, so you know how to set them up once you arrive on location. It can definitely help save time. Though it might seem easier to keep all of your planned shots in your head, it can often be very difficult to keep track of them all in the field. If you are not very good at drawing, or just don't like the idea of storyboarding, you might want to try writing out a description for each shot you have planned, i. e. "Tracking shot of man's feet as he moves left across the floor, shallow depth of field", etc. Planning out your shots beforehand can help save time on location, and can help you in making sure that you have the right lenses, lights and other equipment for each one. It also helps to communicate your vision to the rest of your crew, and can make their jobs a lot easier by helping them understand exactly what it is you are looking for. That being said, you should always stay open to improvisation should a brilliant idea arrive right in the middle of a shoot.

Judging by the look of the clips you posted, it looks like you are trying to shoot something in a film-noir-type style. Film noir describes a genre of films common in America during the 1950s and early '60s, that often featured stories of conflicts and mystery in modern cities. Here's a link to a basic introduction to film noir: http://www.cindytsutsumi.com/wp-content/downloads/words/Film_Hist_40s_FilmNoir/fn/fn_c.html The cinematographic style of film noir is characterized by a deep contrast between light and dark. In order to shoot this way, you first need to start with a dark setting. The scene you are shooting should ideally take place at night or in a closed off room so that your setup is not invaded by sunlight, which would ruin the effect. When adding lights to the scene, use them to emphasize important aspects of the characters and setting. For instance, you can make a villain look more creepy by lighting him from above, such that his eyes are in complete shadow. This would make him seem more mysterious and less human. You can do the opposite for your hero, by setting a light that accentuates his eyes. When lighting the actors, always make sure that they are at least partly in shadow. In order to help the audience see your actor more clearly, you might want to place a light behind him, so that he is outlined by a sort of glowing edge. By outlining your actors this way, they appear more solid, but don't make it too bright or they will start looking like cardboard cutouts. Another way to outline the actors even when they are in shadow is to gently illuminate the background, such that the shadowy bits of the actor stand out. Never light the actors head-on, and always make sure that your lights are at some kind of angle. Lastly, (though many film noir cinematographers tended to ignore this) be sure to remember that all of the lighting needs to have some kind of logical source in the environment. The audience needs to have some understanding of where the light is coming from, and if none is provided your entire setup will look staged and unnatural. Hopefully, these tips will help you light your scene.