curved white wall

[Christina Kim]

i'm a film student in cinematography class this semester....

i would like to shoot a project on 16mm black and white with the background being the curved white wall used in lighting studios usually for still photography.

are there any suggestions on preparing an even amount of lighting that prevents shadows, and also a good aperture to set my camera so that the wall doesn't look "uber" bright, it just looks like my subjects are sort of floating (?)

i'm sorry if this doesn't make sense. as you can see, i need all the suggestions and advice i can get.

[Laurent Andrieux]

As to light and preven shadows, use broad sources : ambient lights or bounced on big boards, like poly boards (if it's not too large).

 

If you have a set to light the wall, you then light your front subject with a second series of sources (that could be only one or 2 sources actually, depending on the subject) so that you can control the 2 (background and foreground) and therefore your contrast.

 

If the wall is white, it should look white... Cyclos like this are designed so that one doesn't notice it, that's why the normal use of them requires a large, uniform lighting. Then, of course, your subject will sort of "float" in front of a white surface, that's true...

[Glenn Hanns]

i'm a film student in cinematography class this semester....

i would like to shoot a project on 16mm black and white with the background being the curved white wall used in lighting studios usually for still photography.

are there any suggestions on preparing an even amount of lighting that prevents shadows, and also a good aperture to set my camera so that the wall doesn't look "uber" bright, it just looks like my subjects are sort of floating (?)

i'm sorry if this doesn't make sense.  as you can see, i need all the suggestions and advice i can get.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

 

Just a thought,-

If the area wasn't too large you could hang and taut a white matte surface like calico in the background. Then you could light from behind and have no shadows what so ever coming onto your foreground subject.

[Dimitrios Koukas]

Just a thought,-

If the area wasn't too large you could hang and taut a white matte surface like calico in the background. Then you could light from behind and have no shadows what so ever coming onto your foreground subject.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

This is a very nice suggestion, that u can also use outside!

U have three hours after the sunrise that the sun itself could ''burn'' your background easily.U just need a good large silk or grid cloth surface with a good rigging, cause u see this thing will ''fly away'' with some light breeze.

By doing this u will only need reflectors for your foreground, I don't know though if three hours are enough for u.

Anyway for a studio application use just one 1x1.40 m soft source 45 degrees for the background.Don't worry if u see shadows, just be sure that u overexpose the background a bit. Go one stop higher than you readings for the shadowed area.

This will make it look even.

Then u can use whatever u like for the foreground, knowing the f/stop set for the background.

 

Please if you need more explanations don't hesitate to ask.

Dimitrios Koukas