Jérôme Keller Posted July 24, 2007 Share Posted July 24, 2007 Hi, I'm fairly new to film lighting and was wondering what the more experienced of you consider to be their top ten as far as gels are concerned. In other words, what kind of gels would you take to lighting heaven (and there is such a place, I BELIEVE!) if you could not take more than 10? Feel free to elaborate why you are using them as often as you do and for what kind of set-ups. Any help through gel jungle is highly appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Michael Nash Posted July 25, 2007 Premium Member Share Posted July 25, 2007 There are basic gels that every light kit should have (color correction and diffusion), which can be broken down by density. After that the gel package gets more specific to whatever you're shooting. Color correction would include various densities of CTB, CTO, Plus-green and Minus-green. Basic diffusion typically includes Opal Frost, 250, 251, and 216. There are plenty of others that have become more popular in recent years, especially different densities of gridcloth. ND gels come in handy, but are more often used on windows instead of on lights. So then you're down to whatever specific colors you need for your shoot. For example whatever color pack you prefer to emulate sodium vapor streetlights; Straw for sunlight, or "party" colors for effects or nightclub interiors, etc. There's no end to the colors one could use, but basic daylight/tungtsen color correction is essential, diffusion is essential, and fluorscent green/magenta correction is right up there but dispensable in a pinch. So it's not really a matter of what ones you prefer, it's more a matter of which ones you need! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barry Cheong Posted July 26, 2007 Share Posted July 26, 2007 I've been making up small rectangular boxes out of plasticore that house pre-cut gels, at appropriate sizes, for all my lamps. It's fast and easy when you're on set. In each box I carry Full CTB, 1/2 CTB, 1/4 CTB, Full CTO, 1/2 CTO, 1/4 CTO, ND 9, ND 6, ND 3, 216, 250 and Opal. I also carry a small assortment of pre-cut Full minus green and Hampshire Frost. All the various boxes fit into a milkcrate. Will post some pictures once I'm done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
e gustavo petersen Posted July 26, 2007 Share Posted July 26, 2007 Well only ten is tough. Besides the standards CTB, CTO, and +/1 Green, I use Roscosun and CalColors. I'm a Rosco guy so here's my list: Opal (light diffusion with a bit of sharpness) 216 (it's a standard but wonderful) Tough Rolux (great for combining multiple sources into one) Chocolate (for more stylized look) Gaslight Green (for more stylized look) Cosmetic Peach & Cosmetic Burgundy (use it for some skin tones) Cyan 60 (for more stylized night) Blue Green (same reason as cyan 60) Bastard Amber (sunlight) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Salzmann Posted July 26, 2007 Share Posted July 26, 2007 Quarter Straw which is a tweak less red than 1/4 CTO for HMI's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonathan Bowerbank Posted July 26, 2007 Share Posted July 26, 2007 I'm a Rosco guy so here's my list:... I too am a Rosco guy :) My list is pretty much the same as Barry's, but I'd also like to throw in some of the Storaro collection. Really deeply rich gels that I like to use in bar scenes or for anything that requires really strong and unrealistic colored lighting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Riley Posted July 28, 2007 Share Posted July 28, 2007 Of course I'd take correction gels but could cut the list down by doubling some densities. Hopefully this would allow me to take my favorite standby gel CID to tungsten #237. I do not use it as a correction gel but more for effect. It's a great modern street light look in backlights. Hard to describe in words and looks scary on the swatch but try it in context - I've hooked up many of my customers with this one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barry Cheong Posted July 29, 2007 Share Posted July 29, 2007 Of course I'd take correction gels but could cut the list down by doubling some densities. Hopefully this would allow me to take my favorite standby gel CID to tungsten #237. I do not use it as a correction gel but more for effect. It's a great modern street light look in backlights. Hard to describe in words and looks scary on the swatch but try it in context - I've hooked up many of my customers with this one. I totally know what you mean. I was gaffing a gig and trying to match a street lamp sodium vapour with an HMI Par and trying all these combinations of CTO and whatnot and the DP just happened to have a scrap of the CID and I tried it and it was perfect. I think I might have thrown in a little bit of 1/4 or 1/2 Plus green as well and it was a perfect match. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc Levy Posted July 29, 2007 Share Posted July 29, 2007 Aside from the standard color correction and diffusion gels, I seem to always have a gel cocktail of Golden Amber and Deep Amber on hand. I use that combination for anything from mercury vapor to stylized sunset stuff. I've also used it as a completely unjustified soft backlight for African Amercian skin tones. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Mulder Posted July 29, 2007 Share Posted July 29, 2007 Interesting topic for me as I've been a bit of a camera tech nerd up until now and would like to learn more lighting. If you dont mind can I throw in an extra twist: If one were to be doing a B+W shoot what top ten gels would be in your kit ? I am planning a shoot in 16mm B+W stock soon - It will be mostly low key indoors, think Tarkovsky's 'Stalker' (well... at least I can try!) - if you were shooting color with a mind to desaturate to B+W in transfer would you think differently in lighting than for shooting the real deal ? (Plus-X for instance) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joseph Pytcher Posted July 31, 2007 Share Posted July 31, 2007 dont forget about Hampshire frosts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Ralph Keyser Posted August 1, 2007 Premium Member Share Posted August 1, 2007 I'm thinking that lighting heaven would have every gel ever made that just appears out of nowhere (probably in big racks like that scene from the Matrix), and all the time in the world to tweak the lighting setup :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Sandstrom Posted August 2, 2007 Share Posted August 2, 2007 (edited) nobody mentioned cts yet? [EDIT: ok, one] i almost always prefer it over cto. i've lit two entire features for two different dp's with white diffusion (216?) as my only diffusion so the others can't be *that* necessary, if you can only get a few. as for theater/party gels i carry a small bag with every little piece i've ever found on the floor on the set/theater/party. they are very useful but there's no need to carry rolls or even sheets. /matt Edited August 2, 2007 by Matt Sandstrom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sean Conaty Posted August 2, 2007 Share Posted August 2, 2007 Of course I'd take correction gels but could cut the list down by doubling some densities. Hopefully this would allow me to take my favorite standby gel CID to tungsten #237. I do not use it as a correction gel but more for effect. It's a great modern street light look in backlights. Hard to describe in words and looks scary on the swatch but try it in context - I've hooked up many of my customers with this one. What is CID? Anyone? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barry Cheong Posted August 10, 2007 Share Posted August 10, 2007 Here are the gel boxes that I built (mentioned above) for each on of my lamps. They're built out of plasticore and cut to the respective lamp size. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
isaac_klotz Posted August 15, 2007 Share Posted August 15, 2007 Here are the gel boxes that I built (mentioned above) for each on of my lamps. They're built out of plasticore and cut to the respective lamp size. nicely done. can you come help me organize my record collection? = ) -isaac Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonathan Bowerbank Posted August 15, 2007 Share Posted August 15, 2007 (edited) What is CID? Anyone? CID means a Cool White or Daylight fluorescent lamp. The LEE #237 CID to Tungsten gel is the same as Rosco's #3310 Fluorofilter, they look like CTO's with a hint of minus green to cancel out the green spike. Edited August 15, 2007 by Jonathan Bowerbank Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Michael Nash Posted August 16, 2007 Premium Member Share Posted August 16, 2007 CID means a Cool White or Daylight fluorescent lamp. The LEE #237 CID to Tungsten gel is the same as Rosco's #3310 Fluorofilter, they look like CTO's with a hint of minus green to cancel out the green spike. Cool white is not daylight (4300 vs. 5600), and CID gel won't balance either of them to tungsten. Lee 237 is about the same density as double CTO, with more a little more magenta as you noted. This is also why it helped match an HMI par to sodium vapor; it takes at least full CTO (sometimes more) to bring an HMI to tungsten, and about another 3/4 density to bring tungsten down to sodium's color temp. The extra magenta helps match the pink spike in sodium. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonathan Bowerbank Posted August 16, 2007 Share Posted August 16, 2007 Thanks Michael! I actually questioned the Cool White portion of that description...took that part from Rosco's own description of the gel. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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