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Lighting Exercises


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What sort of lighting exercises can I do in order to know how to light under every situation that could occur on set... Also in what kind of ways do cinematographers use the sun as a light source?...Thanks!

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Bit of a big question.... Try this. Get a friend, light up everything then start turning off lights and take a still after each light you turn off. Then change it and turn off 2 lights, then 3 lights. Then just use 1 light, then make yourself use 5 lights just to light a face. things like this. Rinse, repeat until you die, find a new passion, or are finally happy with a certain "way" in which case you should find a new career.

As for the sun thing we use it as a light, just one that moves.

 

There's no way we can tell you how to cover yourself for anything/everything which'll come up on set. Hell. I've never had one day where everything was the "same," and where all the things I did for film x would go over and work on film y. I just kind of walk into the location, knowing the script, the director, and do what I 'feel" is right for the shot unless otherwise told by the director. It's intuitive sometimes, and often it's something as simple as turning off one light, and other times you'll have more wire and heat and heads and flags than Dr Frankenstein. It's all about finding the right image, how we do it, i think is personal.

Also, remember, you are there to SERVE the director.

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There are certainly an unlimited amount of situations one can be in, and often times, I'm sure that even ASC's get stumped for a few seconds at the least. However, I have to disagree that there are no tricks to keep up your sleeve when it comes to lighting. It does indeed come with practice, so it's good that you're looking for exercises to make improvements. When I was in college, I was unable to take an advanced lighting class because of a dispute with an unfortunate professor, but I found a way to teach myself. I've found it's all about contrast, and textures. Here are some tips:

 

1) Buy this book: "Light Science and Magic" by Fil Hunter, Steven Biver and Paul Fuqua.

 

2) For Outdoor tips check out "The New Manual Of Photography" by John Hedgecoe

 

3) Learn how to light reflective surfaces, glossy surfaces, white on white, and black on black, fog/smoke, water/liquids, wood, and rough textures.

 

4) Learn how to use polarizers, ND filters, and ND grads.

 

5) Learn about the different types of reflectors (flexfills, mirrors, shiny-boards, bounce board, etc...)

 

6) Experiment!

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