Akie Yano

Ok, noted. I think I will try to just use the lights for medium wide to close ups. Thank you!

Thank you for the advice! I didn't mention it in my post but I did include a 20x20 black backing in our equipment list so I can use that to control the green spill. Thank you for the tip!

Thank you for the tip! For the 4x4 mirror board, are you suggesting it to be bounced from the Forza 500 or from the sun?

Hi! I’m shooting a short film with mostly exterior day forest scenes (3 days). My initial plan was just to use 12x12 silk for overhead diffusion, black floppies for negative fill, 4x4 styrofoam to light faces from the sun to minimise the budget but it turns out for the two days we’re shooting I have a choice to use lights as I have to use them for a night for day interior scene so I thought I might as well use these lights too for the day exterior scenes. Here’s the complete list of gear that I can use for those two days: Nanlite Forza 500 (2) w/ parabolic, lantern, fresnel lens Nanlite Forza 300 (1) w/ parabolic, lantern, fresnel lens Nanlite Forza 60 (2) w/ parabolic 20x20 butterfly 12x12 butterfly 4x4 floppy (2) 4x4 styrofoam (2) Survival kit The location looks like this and it will be decorated with around 8 earth-colored tents (for location 1): There will be a maximum of 8 people to light in some scenes and 4-5 people in most scenes. I’m definitely going to use the 12x12 or 202x20 butterfly silk as overhead diffusion if the sunlight is too harsh. For the lights, I’m thinking of using the Forza 500 as backlight then using the styrofoam (bounced back from the backlight or another Forza 500 or another Forza 500 coming from another direction) as key light for the actors. Or if I need to use a light for the key, I can use a Forza 300 with a lighting modifier or 4x4 butterfly silk as diffusion and use the same Forza 500 as backlight. Actually, I'm not too sure if the 500 can cut it as usually strong HMIs are used for day exteriors so I was wondering if 2 Forza 500 combined can make it work. What do you think? And what else should I be looking out for this type of location? Btw, the camera I’m going to use are Ursa Mini 12k pro for the A cam and a BMPCC 6k G2 for the B cam. Lenses are Sigma 18-35mm 1.8 art, Samyang 50mm and 85mm, and a Canon 70-200mm. (I have to use 2 cam setup because it's preferred by the director but personally I prefer a 1 cam setup). We have Schneider filters and I will most likely use 800 iso. The main reference we have for the look of the film are day exterior shots from Cub (2014). Here are some screenshots, sorry if the quality isn’t that great since I just took this from a youtube upload: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1KCIwB0yr4AJgfWxg6QIhspDGjx1yjvZG?usp=sharing Would love to get your thoughts and suggestions on this. Thank you!

I checked other photos of the studio and it seems I underestimated how much light will be bounced from the white backdrop to the whole studio: So should I dim the lights from the white void and just light the opposite side (where the crew are) separately, right?

Hi! We’re shooting a studio shoot scene in a studio with a white void backdrop. The white void backdrop will be high-key and very soft like this (the 2nd photo is the actual location of the shoot): We will also shoot the reverse shot of the white backdrop which will have actors acting as crew, there will be around 8 actors. 2 main actors (director and assistant) in the front and the rest are acting as crew members at the back. While the white void backdrop is high key the director and crew area will be low key and high contrast. The director wants it to look like this: Basically he only wants the front part of this area to be well lit while the back is just dark. I’m thinking that the motivation of the light will be the “bounced” light from the white void backdrop so I’m thinking of putting a 300 watt or 200 watt led light with lantern diffuser situated from the side lighting the actors. (Other than a lantern diffuser, we have an Octabox, 12x12 butterfly diffuser, and a diffusion cloth for our options for our lighting modifier.) I might also put a backlight for the two main actors in the front for their hair light (situated close to them so it looks like it’s coming from the side, not from the very back which is supposed to be dark). I’m worried that if I put a light from the side at the actor’s level, the fall out of the light will still be strong that the back of the studio will still be well-lit or can I solve that by using flags to shape the light? Or I should just make sure the light from the 200 watt or 300 watt led light won’t be too strong so the fallout of the light reaching the back will naturally come out dark? I also have an option of rigging the light from the ceiling, angled towards the actors so the back won’t be lit as much although I’m worried that it will be obvious that it’s a top light, not light “bouncing” from the strongly lit white void area. Or instead of directly lighting the opposite side of the white void area, I'm thinking that I can also just bounce a naked strong light (will a 300watt suffice? apart from the lights that are already rigged in the white void area) onto the wall of the white void area to light the crew area. What do you think?

Ok, thank you! Yup, I think in a white void scene, it's generally understood that the lighting is even.

Ok, understood. Thank you!

Hi! We’re shooting a white void type scene in a studio. An example of a “white void” scene is this. It won’t be completely a “white void” as the scene will reveal that it’s shot in a studio with a white backdrop. The studio looks like this. What is a nice way to light this kind of scene? I’m thinking of lighting the studio backdrop with lights with soft boxes or lanterns from the ceiling directed below and at the back of and sides of the backdrop then 1 light each with a huge soft box situated outside the “white void” on opposite ends (for the actors). For the lights outside the white void, will a strong light with soft box be enough or a strong light with a huge diffusion cloth be better? To achieve a soft almost no contrast lighting in the scene, I know I have to fill as much as shadows as possible but will there be a risk of it looking too flat? Or should I just meter one side of the face of an actor just to make sure that one side of the face is a bit darker than the other? Honestly, I think it wouldn't be that very hard to light this given that the backdrop is already white so all of the shadows are easily filled in. But still, it's my first time to shoot and light this kind of scene and I would just like to know if there are any precautions and tips you can give me. Thank you!

Hi! I just have a question about reflections in a night exterior scene. We will be shooting an action scene in this location and 3 of actors will be wearing this gas mask. The original lighting plan we had in mind before was to put Aputure 600D and Forza 500D on the left side of the street for moonlight lights. The farthest light would be illuminating the street at the back and the bushes on the other side while the closest light near a tree would be backlighting the actors. On the right side would be 2 fake street lights with Aputure bulb B7c attached to them, Forza 300 would be the stand in for the street lights for the tighter shots. I might have to change or adjust the lighting plan as the 3 actors in the scene would be wearing gas masks that might reflect the lights around them. The framing and angle for the widest should would be like this: My friend suggested that I should make one of the moonlight light closest to the actors/scene of action as an overhead light so it will be placed on a maxi stand with balloon + skirt to spread the light instead of Hi-Hi Roller stand on the side. Then I can direct the backlight at the far end of the street to the grass so it can bounce on the actors. As for the street lights which are much closer to the actors and a bit harder to hide, I’m still not sure how to adjust them. I’m thinking if I should just use the Aputure bulbs even for the tighter shots but the light from it might not be enough and I can’t really direct its light more to the actors. There will be an interior car scene in the same location too where the 3 actors with gas masks will also be in, I’m just thinking of primarily using the lights from outside to light them as I don’t think I can use smaller lights inside to supplement the lights from outside. What do you guys think? What other ways can I avoid possible reflections of lights on the gas masks? I will be using BMPCC6k by the way ? desolate road layout-2 copy-smaller.psd desolate road layout-2 copy-smaller.psd

Thank you! I'm also considering using an RGB tube light but I'm a bit worried that it might not pass off as a practical light for this particular scene (depends on where I will put it I guess) so I'm going for the fluorescent lights first ?

Thank you for the detailed explanation! I think I will go for using a fluorescent light with plus green gel wrapped with it (as long as it isn't too obvious).

Hi, I just have a question about the flourescent-type lights used in the underground bunker scene in Parasite. They give off this greenish cast or tint in the shot and I’m wondering if that’s the color of the lamp itself or was it given a greenish cast by adjusting the color temperature in camera or was it given that color through color grading? I plan to incorporate these type of lighting as accents for a small hideout room scene for a short film. The room is going to be lit through a window (a window with a black screen, not glass) and exhaust fan. I plan to haze it with a haze machine to make it look dusty and dingy and to make the light rays from the light outside pop. That’s why I’m hoping I could get the green effect from the light itself so the color temp of the practical light is distinct from the light rays of the “sunset light” outside which is supposed to look warm. Maybe I could get the similar greenish tint effect with a specific tube-type light or a flourescent light that gives off this color. Basically, the shot is supposed to be a combination of the shot above from Parasite with this two shots from Cure:

Thanks for the response! I'm also thinking of asking the production designer to put longer curtains instead but that decision might still be up to the director to approve. As for the shooting time, we will be shooting two different day scenes on one day, the other scene is actually more high key and has a more cheery dream-like feel to it. So I plan to shoot that in the morning or earlier in the day but I still want to avoid the overblown windows in that scene too. (The photo above was shot around 10am in the morning). I plan to shoot the second day scene (the one referring the reference photo above) after lunch time. As for shooting night for day, unfortunately, I don't have that option since we won't be bringing a generator that day so all of my lights (preferably LED) will be using the power from the location so I can't plug that many lights. So I guess it's either longer curtains or ND gels, right? Thank you so much for the suggestions and tips!

I will be shooting some scenes in a living room with frosted windows. When I checked how the living room looks like with my camera, the frosted windows result in overblown highlights. The director wants the scene to look like this: I plan to light the room from lights outside through the windows and to lessen the brightness of the frosted windows I'm thinking of putting ND gels over them but I'm not sure if that will help because I will still be lighting through them. Is there a better solution for this? Should I just lessen the overall exposure of the scene with the camera and compensate with another light inside the room (which I will still be adding anyway). I hope my questions make sense. Thank you in advance ?

Thank you for the advice. I went for putting the key light on top of the subjects. I used a china ball with daylight bulbs. Then I put my two 1x1 led panels with softbox and grid on two opposing sides at the top: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1GNsvb3a16FHPRbZ_TuMv6C5i5QOJJen2

I made a new post with the updated links :) I couldn't figure out how to edit the post again for some reason. http://www.cinematography.com/index.php?showtopic=77889

(Reposting this with new working links of my references and photos of location cos I couldn't edit the first topic. Sorry!) Hi! I am currently doing preproduction for a music video. It’s a horror themed music video set to reggae music. Half of the music video takes place at night. There’s a campsite scene with a bonfire and the rest of the night scenes are at the woods where the band members are exploring a creepy dark forest and eventually chased by a monster. I would like to ask for suggestions on how to light certain scenes and shots :) I did a lot of research on lighting ideas for bonfire set ups and moonlight set ups and there are various ways to do them but I’m not sure which style can work with the limited gear I have. We’re shooting with a Sony A7SII and prime lenses. Here is my lighting gear: 1x1 Led Light Bi color with softbox and grid (2) - can be battery operated 1x1 led light (medium sized) (2) - can be battery operated Led Worklight Portable led light - battery operated 1 small portable led light 85 watt daylight bulb with china ball Aputure 120D with light dome and spacelight attachments 25 W Beam video led light (2) - can be battery operated Par light (Rgbw, 3watts, 50 bulbs per par) (3) Smoke machine CTBs, CTOs, 201s, ND gel 5 in 1 reflector 2 large styrofoam Basically the first part of the night scenes is the campsite with bonfire setup. The 5 member band will be sitting by the bonfire which will be the main key light with moonlight at the side and the back. I might enhance the closeups with a led light with CTO or orange gel with fake flickering in front of them. I’m not to sure how to do the moonlight at their back. The location looks like this: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1tLfMqZSe8XSW8Z-PVwtNZx7RjOoh0npV My reference for the lighting is this: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1bKG5UMzLXQ85qTShpKMYHUJRu68j6UaN The second part of the night scenes is the band exploring the dark creepy woods with their flashlight and emergency lights. So I’m thinking of having them use strong flashlight so I can bounce the flashlight light with a styrofoam back into their faces while the camera is front of them. And when the camera is from their POV, the strong light of the flashlight would be enough to light the trees (with a focused beam of course) or I can use the the portable beam lights to fake the flashlight light. I haven’t decided yet if the light will only be the flashlight cos I’m thinking I want some faint moonlight in the surroundings as well but I don’t know if it will work. The coverage for these scenes would be medium of them. They are huddled together as they walk so the light will be only concentrated on them. Then there will be pov or OTS shot of them of each other when they face one another. The location for these scenes are: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1BKV7fSi3HqX6D6ESecWEY-UfBksDJgUY My reference for the lighting is: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1P8l0ZEVsnEZglSVuGNgC0b5KjPJorWi1 The third part would be the two last remaining characters dropping their flashlights so the key light would be the moonlight now. The monster (a bloodied haggard-looking woman) would slowly appear to them. The moonlight would be more “visible” or stronger at this point. The last remaining person would run down a hill. I would shoot a shot where the camera peeks through the trees as he runs down. It might be also important to note that the person last standing is half-black. I am planning to have our makeup artist put shimmery makeup on him so the light would reflect his skin. My reference for the lighting is: https://drive.google.com/open?id=14h2bA_yWDlCbj_OCRlSvf9F3YJ1RmPz_ I am not just sure how I will execute the moonlight light as key and background. I’m thinking of using the chinaball with the bulb wrapped in 201 and the ball wrapped in black foil attached to a boom pole and follow him as he walks and runs. I apologize if this is such a long post. If you have any suggestions on how to light the particular scenes and shots I’m not sure on, I would really appreciate it!

Oh crap, wait, I'll update the this post when I wake up later. Thanks for the heads up!

Hi! I am currently doing preproduction for a music video. It’s a horror themed music video set to reggae music. Half of the music video takes place at night. There’s a campsite scene with a bonfire and the rest of the night scenes are at the woods where the band members are exploring a creepy dark forest and eventually chased by a monster. I would like to ask for suggestions on how to light certain scenes and shots :) I did a lot of research on lighting ideas for bonfire set ups and moonlight set ups and there are various ways to do them but I’m not sure which style can work with the limited gear I have. We’re shooting with a Sony A7SII and prime lenses. Here is my lighting gear: 1x1 Led Light Bi color with softbox and grid (2) - can be battery operated 1x1 led light (medium sized) (2) - can be battery operated Led Worklight Portable led light - battery operated 1 small portable led light 85 watt daylight bulb with china ball Aputure 120D with light dome and spacelight attachments 25 W Beam video led light (2) - can be battery operated Par light (Rgbw, 3watts, 50 bulbs per par) (3) Smoke machine CTBs, CTOs, 201s, ND gel 5 in 1 reflector 2 large styrofoam Basically the first part of the night scenes is the campsite with bonfire setup. The 5 member band will be sitting by the bonfire which will be the main key light with moonlight at the side and the back. I might enhance the closeups with a led light with CTO or orange gel with fake flickering in front of them. I’m not to sure how to do the moonlight at their back. The location looks like this: https://www.evernote.com/shard/s220/sh/e16f1721-016c-4b60-b861-897d38b96610/df4c80b550b51b84/res/e580c050-7fe8-4689-bed6-941e661c1dc8/IMG_3633.JPG?resizeSmall&width=832 https://www.evernote.com/shard/s220/sh/e16f1721-016c-4b60-b861-897d38b96610/df4c80b550b51b84/res/798ed9ff-3ccb-410b-b3d2-5210c7456409/IMG_3644.JPG?resizeSmall&width=832 My reference for the lighting is this: https://www.evernote.com/shard/s220/sh/41a66133-af8f-4c3e-bc43-791b9e62e158/a876e3da84ed4205/res/fd34993a-240b-4a3a-8dbb-8b4b33986807/Screen%20Shot%202018-08-31%20at%2011.07.12%20PM.png?resizeSmall&width=832 https://www.evernote.com/shard/s220/sh/41a66133-af8f-4c3e-bc43-791b9e62e158/a876e3da84ed4205/res/548aaec8-cd69-494f-a98e-448968cf5bd8/Screen%20Shot%202018-08-31%20at%2011.07.29%20PM.png?resizeSmall&width=832 https://www.evernote.com/shard/s220/sh/41a66133-af8f-4c3e-bc43-791b9e62e158/a876e3da84ed4205/res/a80eaa04-48ba-4bff-b8fa-b287b1826070/39498786-bonfire-wallpapers.png?resizeSmall&width=832 The second part of the night scenes is the band exploring the dark creepy woods with their flashlight and emergency lights. So I’m thinking of having them use strong flashlight so I can bounce the flashlight light with a styrofoam back into their faces while the camera is front of them. And when the camera is from their POV, the strong light of the flashlight would be enough to light the trees (with a focused beam of course) or I can use the the portable beam lights to fake the flashlight light. I haven’t decided yet if the light will only be the flashlight cos I’m thinking I want some faint moonlight in the surroundings as well but I don’t know if it will work. The coverage for these scenes would be medium of them. They are huddled together as they walk so the light will be only concentrated on them. Then there will be pov or OTS shot of them of each other when they face one another. The location for these scenes are: https://www.evernote.com/shard/s220/sh/e16f1721-016c-4b60-b861-897d38b96610/df4c80b550b51b84/res/084ad3b5-5f8c-476f-aa03-cd9934ffde1c/IMG_3668.JPG?resizeSmall&width=832 https://www.evernote.com/shard/s220/sh/e16f1721-016c-4b60-b861-897d38b96610/df4c80b550b51b84/res/349e07d2-a51d-45c0-872d-73bd68d126de/IMG_3684.JPG?resizeSmall&width=832 or this: https://www.evernote.com/shard/s220/sh/e16f1721-016c-4b60-b861-897d38b96610/df4c80b550b51b84/res/b7766052-b010-4099-a16b-da1179e064d8/IMG_3756.JPG?resizeSmall&width=832 My reference for the lighting is: https://www.evernote.com/shard/s220/sh/41a66133-af8f-4c3e-bc43-791b9e62e158/a876e3da84ed4205/res/5f842be8-f57b-4c04-8f28-1a274e5c1907/Screen%20Shot%202018-08-03%20at%209.43.45%20PM.png?resizeSmall&width=832 The Ritual https://www.evernote.com/shard/s220/sh/41a66133-af8f-4c3e-bc43-791b9e62e158/a876e3da84ed4205/res/38e19281-d4ef-4fa8-a1ec-78a46d341da4/Screen%20Shot%202018-08-12%20at%209.12.24%20PM.png?resizeSmall&width=832 https://www.evernote.com/shard/s220/sh/41a66133-af8f-4c3e-bc43-791b9e62e158/a876e3da84ed4205/res/53e363e0-3517-47cf-8c8e-3d663dc50599/Screen%20Shot%202018-08-17%20at%2012.26.26%20AM.png?resizeSmall&width=832 The third part would be the two last remaining characters dropping their flashlights so the key light would be the moonlight now. The monster (a bloodied haggard-looking woman) would slowly appear to them. The moonlight would be more “visible” or stronger at this point. The last remaining person would run down a hill. I would shoot a shot where the camera peeks through the trees as he runs down. It might be also important to note that the person last standing is half-black. I am planning to have our makeup artist put shimmery makeup on him so the light would reflect his skin. My reference for the lighting is: https://www.evernote.com/shard/s220/sh/41a66133-af8f-4c3e-bc43-791b9e62e158/a876e3da84ed4205/res/9abdd734-a6cb-453a-912c-78a92924ebcb/Screen%20Shot%202018-08-31%20at%2011.10.32%20PM.png?resizeSmall&width=832 https://www.evernote.com/shard/s220/sh/41a66133-af8f-4c3e-bc43-791b9e62e158/a876e3da84ed4205/res/dc4f2656-8a11-4aa0-b8f9-dd827ad82dbc/Screen%20Shot%202018-08-31%20at%2011.09.15%20PM.png?resizeSmall&width=832 https://www.evernote.com/shard/s220/sh/41a66133-af8f-4c3e-bc43-791b9e62e158/a876e3da84ed4205/res/7acf2724-e66e-4e12-bf3b-63407a43c4bb/Screen%20Shot%202018-08-25%20at%2012.56.39%20AM.png?resizeSmall&width=832 https://www.evernote.com/shard/s220/sh/41a66133-af8f-4c3e-bc43-791b9e62e158/a876e3da84ed4205/res/2f38e7bc-c0bd-4c51-8d30-481e578cca3a/Screen%20Shot%202018-08-25%20at%2012.57.14%20AM.png?resizeSmall&width=832 https://www.evernote.com/shard/s220/sh/41a66133-af8f-4c3e-bc43-791b9e62e158/a876e3da84ed4205/res/49d790bf-fa59-44fe-8273-53f926f557a3/Screen%20Shot%202018-08-04%20at%202.44.54%20AM.png?resizeSmall&width=832 https://www.evernote.com/shard/s220/sh/41a66133-af8f-4c3e-bc43-791b9e62e158/a876e3da84ed4205/res/3d7ba0be-30d3-4c82-abb2-e28487116ac8/Screen%20Shot%202018-08-17%20at%201.59.29%20AM.png?resizeSmall&width=832 https://www.evernote.com/shard/s220/sh/41a66133-af8f-4c3e-bc43-791b9e62e158/a876e3da84ed4205/res/1a2496be-d3e9-46f8-8b5a-54961d10e8f8/Screen%20Shot%202018-08-17%20at%202.00.43%20AM.png?resizeSmall&width=832 I am not just sure how I will execute the moonlight light as key and background. I’m thinking of using the chinaball with the bulb wrapped in 201 and the ball wrapped in black foil attached to a boom pole and follow him as he walks and runs. I apologize if this is such a long post. If you have any suggestions on how to light the particular scenes and shots I’m not sure on, I would really appreciate it!

Thanks for the response! Yeah we actually shot a few times in the location before and it's really hard to give the place a high-key look. I think I might shoot in the area near the door and the windows so I can fake a sunlight light from one side. That area looks like this: https://www.evernote.com/shard/s220/sh/0c1fe637-1299-455a-9a64-121702eb165d/a1943b126c46678b/res/9fbb2e56-97c2-4816-9625-0b72ae1ff705/42994263532_cb88512ca8_b.jpg?resizeSmall&width=832 It looks dark there cos I think it was taken at night. The coverage I plan to shoot is a wide shot of them against the wall and closeups mostly of their faces and closeups of food.

Hello! I’m shooting a short skit for a restaurant promo video. I’m the cinematographer and someone will direct. It’s a low-budget project. The skit is for Grandparent’s Day. A kid is being spoiled at the restaurant with food as his mother looks on. It’s mostly shown through closeups until it is revealed in the wide shot that the grandmother is the one spoiling her grandkid. It’s a simple setup with the family just sitting on a long table, no standing, no moving around. The mood is light-hearted and comedic. We want a high-key look but our lighting gear is pretty limited. Here is a list: 1x1 Bi-color led light (with softbox and grid) 1x1 Bi-color led light (with softbox and grid) Portable led light 85 watt daylight bulb with chinaball 201s, CTBs, CTOs, orange sodium vapor gel, ND gel 5-sided reflector We’re shooting with a Sony a6500 with Rokinon/Samyang 14mm and 50mm lenses. And a Canon 70-200mm (for food shots). And we might be able to rent an Aputure 120D with a light dome. Here are photos of the location. There is a small part of the restaurant where there are windows but there is also a possibility where we would shoot at the inner part of the restaurant where there are no windows. Here are the complete photos of the location: https://www.evernote.com/l/ANwMH-Y3EplFWppkEhcC6xZdoZQ7EmxGZ4s I would like to ask if you have any lighting ideas with the gear that we have. Thank you!