I am a student gaffer and have recently been asked to light an amateur bodybuilding competition. There are some unusual constraints...a one camera setup directly in front of the stage (from the judges position), with 12 contestants in a line across the stage. To make matters more interesting the ceiling is only 10 feet high, so space for lighting trees, scaffolds etc is limited. The competition organisers are disappointed with previous-years results as the images have been too flat (the previous gaffer used PAR64's with red gel, which looked very rock 'n' roll but left the competitors looking rather flat and dark). For normal bodybuilding shots I would normally use a strong top light or back light to increase muscle definition, or if taking a shot of individual contestants would also use side light. My question is, with 12 contestants, is there an "economical" way of lighting all 12 to improve muscle definition without having lamps hanging 3 feet about their heads, or pointing into the eyes of the audience/camera? As it is an amateur comp the budget is also very limited, and the organisers want the lighting to be as inconspicuous as possible!
Thanks
