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First time working with HMI


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Hi guys,

In a couple of weeks I'll be shooting a music video with a decent budget, so for the first time I'll have access to bigger fixtures than what I'm use to.

We've got a variety of scenes to cover, all taking place in a small private garden that has a barbecue and a skate ramp. The artist we'll only be here for 4 hours so we'll have to move really fast.

We are going for an harsh sunlight/summer look. Hopefully the sun will be with us, but I would like to be ready for an overcast situation.

My plan was to park an m40 or m90 right outside the garden, add a 1/2 CTO on it, bounce it in a mirror, and adjust the angle of the mirror depending on the shot.

I haven’t worked with big fixture so far so I would love to see how you guys would go about it? What would be the minimum output to compete against an overcast day ? And from your experience : would that work on a tight schedule ?

Here is a picture of the look we are going for :

Screen_Shot_2018-07-14_at_12.32.53.png

Any advice on how to achieve that look on a tight schedule would be more than welcome !

Many thanks !

 

PS : We haven't done the location scout yet but if you want I'll be able to post some pictures once it's done.

Edited by Killian Lassabliere
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Hard to compete with overcast mostly because it's flat. So in case you haven't added it to your list, if you have the budget and crew, also consider giant 12x12 frames of black as "negative fill" to help you shape and model the ambient light on location.

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Hard to compete with overcast mostly because it's flat. So in case you haven't added it to your list, if you have the budget and crew, also consider giant 12x12 frames of black as "negative fill" to help you shape and model the ambient light on location.

 

Thanks a lot for your answer Micheal !

 

Neg will definitely be on the list ! At first I actually though about only using those if I had to deal with an overcast day ( and I might still ). But since we should have the budget for HMI's I was wondering how/if I could achieve that harsh sun look regardless of the weather.

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I haven’t worked with big fixture so far so I would love to see how you guys would go about it? What would be the minimum output to compete against an overcast day ? And from your experience : would that work on a tight schedule ? ... Any advice on how to achieve that look on a tight schedule would be more than welcome !

 

I faced a very similar situation when I lit a music video for the 2010 BET Hip Hop Awards “Director of the Year” Nahala Johnson, aka "Mr. Boomtown." The performance was set in a summer outdoor dance party with DJ and dancers on top of a speaker stack.

 

Boomtown_Scene_Comp.jpg

 

The area was under a tree canopy so the light was very flat. I found a 4k Par was enough to get the look the director wanted: a magic hour feel with low angle warm light. We used one of our modified Honda EU6500is generators with our 60A Full Power Transformer/Distro to power the 4K HMI (below far right), as well as Speaker Stack Amplifiers, Set Monitors, Battery Chargers, & a DIT station (below center.)

 

Boomtown_SetUp_Comp_Web.jpg

 

The Transformer/Distro serves two purposes in the case. It compensates for line-loss over the 300’ cable run to set (above left center) to assure 120V line level. The second purpose is to create a single 60A/120V circuit capable of powering such a large load. Outfitted with a 60A Bates receptacle our Transformer/Distro enables you to use standard Bates Splitters, Extensions, and Gang boxes to distribute power from the Transformer/Distro to the loads around the set (above right center.) The best part about this set up is that you don’t have to be an experienced film electric to balance the load on the generator. Whatever load you plug into the secondary of a transformer is split evenly over the two legs of the single-phase 240V output of the generator. You don’t have to balance the load because the Transformer/Distro does it for you. The generator sees a perfectly balanced load and so runs more smoothly – a critical factor with these small generators. Use this link for more details on this set up.

 

Guy Holt, Gaffer, ScreenLight & Grip, Lighting Sales & Rental in Boston

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Guy, do you have any stills or a link to the final project?

 

I would be very hesitant to use an M40 to create direct sun outside unless the ambiance was way down and frames where quiet tight. However I can see it workings as a subtle soft sunset effect.

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Killian.

That is a big frame. Your M90 will be able to do one beam of sunlight. I would think about one ray of sun coming between trees or a narrow alley. That should allow you to cover foreground talent in a medium shot - maybe even a wide if ambiance is way down. but day wide shots are what they are in terms of what lighting is there unless you are working at a huge scale. Like several 20x20's and many 18k's.

 

depending on your background the lighting might look a bit artificial - especially if you see the sky. Could be ok if you like stylized.

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Killian.

That is a big frame. Your M90 will be able to do one beam of sunlight. I would think about one ray of sun coming between trees or a narrow alley. That should allow you to cover foreground talent in a medium shot - maybe even a wide if ambiance is way down. but day wide shots are what they are in terms of what lighting is there unless you are working at a huge scale. Like several 20x20's and many 18k's.

 

depending on your background the lighting might look a bit artificial - especially if you see the sky. Could be ok if you like stylized.

 

Thanks Albion,

 

From all those answers I'm starting to understand what I can get out of the M90 ! I won't be able to get anything more powerfull so if worst come to worst we'll keep the frame as tight as possible.

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.... I'm starting to understand what I can get out of the M90 ! I won't be able to get anything more powerfull ....

 

With our paralleling control box you an run up to a 12kw HMI Par on two Honda EU6500s or EU7000s (see picture below for set up.)

Paralleling_Copy_12k_Paralleling_WS.jpg

 

It will be a different quality of light than the M90 and it is debatable whether it will be any brighter.

 

Guy Holt, Gaffer, ScreenLight & Grip, Lighting Rental & Sales in Boston.

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