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Harsh sun in eyes for talent


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Hello All,

 

I am gearing up for a TVC and I have sold the director on a model/ stills, Dolce & Gabana style look to part of the commercial. Needing that hard light that I think of playing with reflectors, but at the same time, I found it hard to open my eyes when looking towards the sun, how can I expect them to do so? Besides the process of lighting, should they be keeping their eyes shut prior the take? Any inside tips please.

 

I'll attach a reference pic.

 

How can this to work without the actors squinting?

 

Thanks,

 

 

post-51596-0-67442000-1377781443_thumb.jpg

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Human beings have a hard time looking directly into the sun, there is no way around them being uncomfortable. If this is the look you want, actors in the afternoon or morning looking straight into the sun (not high noon) they and you will have to deal with the squinting and pain however they want to deal with it, just depends, probably they will look out as long as they can before they are forced to look away.

 

You could set up a large scrim to darken the sun slightly but then the background behind them is still in full sun and will be brighter.

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...should they be keeping their eyes shut prior the take?

 

This will only make matters worse, as their irises will open up when they close their eyes. When they open their eyes again, it will feel brighter than if they had just left them open.

 

-j

Edited by jeff woods
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From what i have seen in the

the above image is a still.

 

So models are able to rest their eyes and to pose for couple of shots and again pause...

 

I just saw a reflector for bounce as eyelight.

 

 

In close up while taking a photo i noticed the position of the heads is such that the eyes

are partialy or completly in shadow. The eyes only, not the entire eye sockets.

And reflector is used to give spark and lift some darknes out of it.

Check @ 0:16.

 

 

The parts in the spot where the models 'interact'

is mostly shot in backlight, with burnt white sky.

Some fill as needed.

 

 

Best

 

Igor

 

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This will only make matters worse, as their irises will open up when they close their eyes. When they open their eyes again, it will feel brighter than if they had just left them open.

 

-j

Actually, it's an old soap actor's trick to close your eyes and face the sun, only opening them on action.

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I guess strictly speaking there do exist "ND" contact lenses, but the last thing you want to do in this situation is to make the talent look in any way unusual.

In the AC article From August about "A Lone Ranger" they wrote that Johnny Depp used ND contact lenses because they also shot in the desert in harsh sunlight very often.

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It seems to be an unavoidable problem. I've definitely told the actors the trick of looking at the sun with their eyes closed just before the take and whether it's a placebo or not, it usually helps them deal with it.

 

Otherwise, I think the only option is to reposition or back off the fill away from their eyeline. It usually isn't a problem in DAY EXT. unless they are A) looking directly at the sun or B) you have a strong fill light directly in their eyeline.

 

Or Sunglasses - in which you've now got the whole set in their reflection ;)

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"I've definitely told the actors the trick of looking at the sun with their eyes closed just before the take and whether it's a placebo or not, it usually helps them deal with it."

 

Personally I find this works a treat, it sort of prepares the eyes for the brightness and the face relaxes.... some feel a bit stupid doing it.

 

I remember it worked very well on a little girl we were filming for an ad in india, she had to look up at the camera which was on a building the sun very frontal for a harsh look.

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It seems to be an unavoidable problem. I've definitely told the actors the trick of looking at the sun with their eyes closed just before the take and whether it's a placebo or not, it usually helps them deal with it.

 

This definitely works, I originally grabbed this trick from some photographers I knew. Closing your eyes while looking at the sun essentially "stops down" the theoretical f-stop of your eye. Sounds crazy, yes, but when the eyes are closed, and a harsh source is hitting them, light still gets through, so rather than the normal black seen behind the eyelids, some light squeezes through. As a result, your eye adjusts, and what it used to think as a good "black" is now much brighter, so handling those brights becomes much more manageable.

 

It's the same thing (only opposite) as turning on any light in a pitch black room, the eye was adjusted to complete darkness, and essentially "opened up" in order to get some detail in the shadows. The eye is constantly adjusting to its environment, so if you get it used to the brighter scenario, it will compensate.

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