lighting

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Three-Point Lighting for 3D Renderings

Back to Main Index.

Adapted & Shortened from

Digital Lighting & RenderingBy Jeremy Birn

Three lights: the Key Light, Fill Light, and Back Light, are adjusted to achiee the classic!oll"#ood lighting scheme called three-point lighting.

This $I% Animation sho#s the role of the lights.

!ere's ho# to set them up in "our ( scenes:

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1. Start in Darkness. Make sure there are no default lights, and there's no glo)al am)ience.*hen "ou add "our first light, there should )e no other light in the scene.

. !dd yo"r Key Light. The Key Light creates the su)ject's main illumination, and defines themost isi)le lighting and shado#s. +our e" -ight represents the dominant light source, suchas the sun, a #indo#, or ceiling light although the e" does not hae to )e positionedexactl" at this source.

/reate a spot light to sere as the e". %rom the top ie#, offset the e" -ight 01 to 21degrees to the side 3to the left or right4 of the camera. %rom a side ie#, raise the e" -ighta)oe the camera, so that it hits "our su)ject from a)out 01 to 21 degrees higher than thecamera angle.

The ke" light is )righter than an" other light illuminating the front of the su)ject, is the mainshado#caster in "our scene, and casts the darkest shado#s. Specular highlights aretriggered )" the e" -ight.

#$T%& Be sure to stop and do testrenders here. +our 5one light5 scene 3#ith just the ke"light4 should hae a nice )alance and contrast )et#een light and dark, and shading that usesall of the gra"s in )et#een. +our 5one light5 should look almost like the final rendering, exceptthat the shado#s are pitch )lack and it has er" harsh contrast see the $I% animation at thetop of this page, #hile it onl" has the e" light isi)le.

3. !dd yo"r Fill Light's(. The Fill Light softens and extends the illumination proided )" theke" light, and makes more of the su)ject isi)le. %ill -ight can simulate light from the sk"3other than the sun4, secondar" light sources such as ta)le lamps, or reflected and )ouncedlight in "our scene. *ith seeral functions for %ill -ights, "ou ma" add seeral of them to a

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scene. Spot lights are the most useful, )ut point lights ma" )e used.

%rom the top ie#, a %ill -ight should come from a generall" opposite angle than the e" ifthe e" is on the left, the %ill should )e on the right )ut don't make all of "our lighting 0667s"mmetrical8 The %ill can )e raised to the su)ject's height, )ut should )e lo#er than the e".

At most, %ill -ights can )e a)out half as )right as "our e" 3a e"to%ill ratio of 9:04. %ormore shado#" enironments, use onl" 0;th the e"'s )rightness 3a e"to%ill ratio of ;:04. Ifmultiple %ills oerlap, their sum still shouldn't compete #ith the e".

Shado#s from a %ill -ight are optional, and often skipped. To simulate reflected light, tint the%ill color to match colors from the enironment. %ill -ights are sometimes set to )e (iffuse

onl" 3set not to cast specular highlights.4). !dd Back Light. The Back Light 3also called Ri* Light( creates a 5defining edge5 to helpisuall" separate the su)ject from the )ackground.

%rom the top ie#, add a spot light, and position it )ehind "our su)ject, opposite from thecamera. %rom the right ie#, position the Back -ight a)oe "our su)ject.

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Adjust the Back -ight until it gies "ou a nice 5rim5 of light, that highlights the top or side edgefor "our su)ject. 3Some people call a light that highlights the side edge a rim light .4 Back-ights can )e as )right as necessar" to achiee the glints "ou #ant around the hair or sides of "our su)ject. <nless "ou can aoid the need for shado#s #ith careful aiming, a )right Back-ight often needs to cast shado#s.

A Back -ight is not a )ackground light all a Back -ight does is create a rim of light aroundthe top or side of "our su)ject, as sho#n )elo#:

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=o Back -ight 3left4, Back -ight added 3right4.

That's it. Three>oint -ighting is a ersatile & popular startingpoint for lighting just a)out an"su)ject, from a prop to a moie star.

The ne# 9nd edition of (igital -ighting & ?endering goes into much more depth a)out (lighting and professional rendering techni@ues.

http://www.3drender.com/light/3point.html

Basic 3 Point Lighting

Before we begin looing at an e!ample let"s consider what the f#nction of lighting is. Lighting can be #sed to add mood and drama to a shot$ b#t it"s o%erriding f#nction is to describe 3D obects onto

a 'D area$ be that a comp#ter monitor$ a print o#t or a cinema screen. (o p#t it another way$ thelight is #sed to )model) the obects so that on a flat s#rface we can tell what shape they are$ and

how one obect relates to another. *hen considering what maes good lighting we need to balance

the aesthetic re+#irements of the shot$ lightness/darness$ colo#r etc. against the need to be able tosee what is going on in order that the narrati%e may be ad%anced.

,-$ so we now we want to model the obects with light$ so their shapes become apparent to #s$

b#t how do we do that (o begin with tae a torch and in a darened room shine a light on different

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obects and see how they tae the light and how m#ch of their shape is re%ealed to #s. or e!ample

if yo# light something front on$ yo# will be able to mae o#t its o#tline b#t shapes within that

o#tline may not be so ob%io#s. 0f yo# place the light abo%e and slightly to one side the shape will probably be better defined. (his main light is (12 most important light as its placement infl#ences

all others. 0t is nown as the -2 L041(. Let"s loo at a specific e!ample.

(12 -2 L041(

By placing the ey light abo%e and to the left we can see the %ol#me of the oranges 5i.e. that tare on the floor by the shadows cast and that they are staced on top of each other. 1owe%er t

regions and is a bit br#tal. 0n order to fi! this we need to add another light to the right of the o

darened areas. (his light is called the 0LL L041(. Let"s loo at what this light contrib#tes t

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(12 0LL L041(

(he ob of the fill light is to ill#minate those areas of the image which are in shadow when the

ob%io#s therefore that the fill light is placed after and in relation to the ey light. 7s the ob odetail it sho#ld not be as intense as the ey light. Loo at this e!ample8 the ey light is abo#t

loo at how the ey and fill light wor together.

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-2 7D 0LL

(he image now loos a lot better than it did with #st a ey light. (he image has more depth a

washed o#t. 1owe%er there is something more we can add. (he right side of the oranges are gorder to co#nteract this we can add a R0; L041(.

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(12 R0; L041(

(he rim light is placed behind the obects being ill#minated and is angled so that the light gla

narrowest angle. (he intensity of this light is often +#ite high$ often brighter than the ey. D#line of bright light aro#nd the obect and in doing so lifts the obect away from the bacgro#n

that a dar obect does not blend in with a dar bacgro#nd. ,- now the lighting is complete

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(12 00<12D R2D2R (he rim light has lifted the oranges away from the bacgro#nd$ the orange at the bottom right

bacgro#nd b#t is m#ch better modelled now. (he image still has contrast and a good range ofloor shadows and the shadowing of one orange onto another are still there showing each obe

detail e%en in the shadow areas on the fr#it. 7ll that"s left to do is a little bit of tweaing in po

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(12 00<12D 0;742

By adding a s#btle glow to the strongest high9lights 5those created by the rim light6 and by

softening the image to limit that s#per9crisp )=4 loo) the image can be impro%ed a little moo# can twea an image indefinitely lie this by adding noise and so on b#t 0"%e decided to le

it lie this.

0n the abo%e e!ample we ha%e taen a loo at the most basic$ yet fle!ible lighting set9#p which$

with tweas to the intensities$ can be #sed to light almost any sit#ation. (his does not mean that yo#sho#ldn"t e!periment with light placement as long as yo# remember to place the ey light first and

let the other lights tae their c#e from it. Loo at the wor of the great painters of light lie >ermeer

or Rembrandt or at photographers lie 0r%ing Penn or 1orst P. 1orst or the great cinematographers

lie 4regg (oland or 4ordon *illis.

,ne boo 0 really recommend is )Painting with Light) by the late$ great John 7lton. (his boo is

o%er ?@ years old now b#t is still the best reference wor on lighting for film. 0 got the idea of #sing

oranges as my )models) for this t#torial from him. 7s yo# can tell we ha%e only co%ered thetonality of light here. 0"ll probably do another t#torial when 0 get the chance co%ering colo#r and

lighting. 0 hope this has pro%ed #sef#l to yo# and gi%en yo# some ideas of yo#r own abo#t the art of lighting.

;atching Real Lighting

;atching lighting which is part of a photographed bacgro#nd is a staple art of (echnical

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Directors and A artists. 0t is an art more than a science and the techni+#es 0 present here will

merely begin to get yo# thining along the right lines when yo# ha%e to tacle s#ch an

assignment. 0t will tae a lot of practice to be able to con%incingly match real world lighting. (histechni+#e #ses no raytracing$ no 4lobal 0ll#mination and no 1DR0. (his is beca#se in real9world

prod#ction it is #s#ally prohibiti%ely time cons#ming to render #sing these techni+#es. (he

maority of A shots yo# see in film are prod#ced #sing nothing more sophisticated than depth9

map shadows and reflection and en%ironment maps.

,-$ so how do we tacle this problem *ell the first thing to do is ha%e a good loo at yo#r

bacgro#nd plate. or this shot 0 had been ased to add an =4 aircraft taing off to a photographed bacplate. 0 had been gi%en no reference images and no tracing data. 0 d#plicated

the shot"s camera mo%e by hand in ;aya and 0 animated the aircraft to the =4 camera mo%e. ,nce

this was done 0t was time to loo at the plate and e!tract the information 0 wo#ld need to light the=4 elements in the shot.

<cene Blac ilm and %ideo seldom represent tr#e blac in their images. 0n this plate the circled area is scelooing at the pi!el %al#es shows that the a%erage shadowed pi!el is ro#ghly R3@$ 4'C$ B

my =4 lighting become darer than that$ as it will stand o#t when it is composited. (o achie%

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(he 7mbient Pass

1ere is a render showing the ambient light"s contrib#tion to the scene. (his is as dar as the =

one ambient light tinted to match the slightly bl#eish cast of the shadows in the bacgro#nd p

-ey Light Direction

7s 0 had been gi%en no reference for this scene it was necessary to estimate the light direction plate. (his water fo#ntain"s shadows ga%e a good indication of the angle and intensity of the

match this angle.

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-ey Light =olo#r (his area of wall which is act#ally only #st off9white indicates that the ey light sho#ld be an

idea to find an obect in direct light in yo#r bacplate which is close to white as this will gi%e be gi%en to the eylight.

(he -eylight Pass

1ere is the render of the ey light"s contrib#tion to the scene. 0ts intensity$ direction and colo# bacgro#nd plate. ow all that"s left to do is add the fill light to the scene.

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(he ill Light Pass

7dding the fill lights is a bit of a blac art. (here is no r#le of th#mb on this other than that th

gro#nd or walls in a scene 5they represent bo#nced light after all6 and that generally they are light. sing the bacplate as reference$ eep adding fill light till the ratio between light and sh

bacdrop.

(he =omplete Render ,nce all ambient$ ey and fill light passes are combined they loo lie this. 7ll that now rem bacgro#nd plate and to add any effects passes$ lie particles for e!ample$ to complete the sh

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(he inished <hot By adding some noise to the =4 elements$ bl#rring their edges and tweaing the %al#es of th

composite can be prod#ced. Rendering all the passes as separate elements gi%es yo#r more comean yo# can increase or decrease the amo#nt of ey or fill by tweaing the indi%id#al layers

se+#ence again from scratch. (his se+#ence also has a particle pass rendered from the e!ha#s

some heat haEe to the bacgro#nd plate.

http://www.andrew9whiteh#rst.net/f!Flight.html

Table of Contents

Chapter One: Fundamentals of Lighting Design

;oti%ation ',ff9<creen <pace '

G#alities of Light 3

Direct and 0ndirect Light ?=heating ?

=heating in Li%e 7ction H

>is#al 4oals of Lighting Design H;aing (hings Read C

;aing (hings Belie%able C

2nhancing <haders and 2ffects I@

;aintaining =ontin#ity I@Directing the >iewers 2ye II

2motional 0mpact II

Lighting =hallenges I'

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o#r *orspace IK

=reati%e =ontrol I?

Chapter Two: Lighting Basics & Good Practices

<tarting Points IH

(ypes of Lights IC

Point Lights IC<potlights '@

Directional Lights '3

7rea Lights 'K;odels <er%ing as Lights '

2n%ironment <pheres 'M

7mbient Light 'M=ontrols and ,ptions 'C

Decay 'C

Diff#se and <pec#lar 33

Light Lining 3?=ooies 3

Lighting in Prod#ction 3H

*hen to Light 3H(he eedbac Loop 3H

aming Lights K@

;anaging >ersions K@2!ercises KI

Chapter Three: hadows & Occlusion

(he >is#al #nctions of <hadows KKDefining <patial Relationships KK

Re%ealing 7lternate 7ngles K?

2nhancing =omposition K7dding =ontrast K

0ndicating ,ff9<creen <pace KM

0ntegrating 2lements KH*hich Lights eed <hadows KC

<hadow =l#tter KC

<econdary <hadows ?@<hadow =olor ?I

(esting <hadows ?'

<hadow <iEe and Perspecti%e ?3

<hadow 7lgorithms ??Depth ;ap <hadows ??

Raytraced <hadows '

1ard and <oft <hadows ?1ard and <oft Light M

<oft <hadows with Depth ;aps H

<oft Raytraced <hadows M@,ccl#sion M3

7mbient ,ccl#sion M3

,ccl#sion in 4lobal 0ll#mination MK

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,ther (ypes of ,ccl#sion M

aing <hadows MM

egati%e Lights MM

<hadows9,nly Lights MH<hadow ,bects H@

Baing Lighting HI

=oncl#sions H32!ercises H3

Chapter Four: Lighting !n"ironments & #rchitecture

Daylight H<#nlight H

<y Light HC

0ndirect Light C' ight <cenes CK

Practical Lights C

Lighting the Light C

<et Lighting from Practical Lights CMLighting *indows CC

<im#lating 0ndirect Light I@I

=orners I@?<o#rcy Lighting I@M

4lobal 0ll#mination I@H

=on%entional Radiosity II'Photon ;apping II3

inal 4athering II?

=a#stics II

7mbient ,ccl#sion I'@2!ercises I'3

Chapter Fi"e: Lighting Creatures$ Characters$ and #nimation

;odeling with Light I'

Directionality I'M

Definition I'H(hree9Point Lighting I3I

>ariations I33

(ools$ ot R#les I3K#nctions of Lights I3K

-ey Lights I3?

ill Lights I3

Bo#nce Lights I3CRim Lights IK@

-icers IKK

<pec#lar Lights IK?0ss#es in Lighting =haracter 7nimation IK

(est rames IKM

Lining Lights to =haracters IKM(echnology =hanges IKH

<#bs#rface <cattering I?@

Lighting 1air I?3

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Lighting 2yes I?K

2!ercises I?M

Chapter i%: Cameras & !%posure

nderstanding 9<tops and Depth of ield I@

;atching Real Lenses I'

(he (wo9(hirds R#le I31yperfocal Distance I3

Boeh 2ffects IK

rame Rates I?Realistic ;otion Bl#r I?

<h#tter <peed and <h#tter 7ngle I?

(he =omet (ail ;yth IHBl#rring Rotations IC

>ideo ields IM@

ilm <peed IM'

Photographic 2!pos#re IM3(he None <ystem IMK

1istograms IM?

;atching Lens 0mperfections IMMLens Distortion IMM

=hromatic 7berration IH@

>ignetting IH@Lens lares and 1alation IHI

2!ercises IH'

Chapter e"en: Composition & taging

(ypes of <hots IH

<hot <iEes IH

N97!is Blocing IHHP,> <hots IHH

(he (wo9<hot IHC

(he ,%er9the9<ho#lder <hot IC@=amera 7ngles ICI

(he Line of 7ction ICI

Perspecti%e IC'1igh97ngle and Low97ngle <hots IC?

=amera ;o%es IC

0mpro%ing o#r =omposition ICH

(he R#le of (hirds ICCPositi%e and egati%e <pace '@@

4raphic *eight '@I

Lines '@'(angencies '@3

raming for ilm and >ideo '@K

ormats and 7spect Ratios '@Kilm ormats '@?

7daptation to (ele%ision '@H

=ropping and ,%erscan '@C

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2!ercises 'I@

Chapter !ight: The #rt & cience of Color

=olor ;i!ing 'IK7dditi%e =olor 'IK

<#btracti%e =olor 'I?

1#e$ <at#ration$ and >al#e 7d#stments 'I*hen Light =olor ;eets <#rface =olor 'IM

=olor <chemes ''@

=olor =ontrast ''I;eanings of =olors ''K

=olor and Depth ''M

(inted Blac9and9*hite 0mages ''H=olor Balance ''C

=olor (emperat#re '3I

Picing =olors from Pict#res '3

nderstanding R4B =olor '3M0mportance of Red$ 4reen$ and Bl#e '3C

Digital =olor 'K@

H9bit =olor 'K@I9bit =olor 'KI

1DR0 'KI

=ompact Data ormats 'K32!ercises 'K?

Chapter ine: haders & 'endering #lgorithms

<hading <#rfaces 'KHDiff#se$ 4lossy$ and <pec#lar Reflection 'KH

<pec#lar 1ighlights '?I

BRD and B<<RD '?H7nti97liasing '?C

,%er9<ampling '?C

nder9<ampling ''iltering '3

Rendering at 1igher Resol#tions '3

Raytracing 'KRaytracing 7cceleration <tr#ct#res '?

Raytraced Reflections '

<hadows 'C

(ransparency and Refraction 'M@Reyes 7lgorithms 'MK

(he Renderman 0nterface <tandard 'M?

Reyes and Raytracing 'MN9B#ffer Rendering 'MM

<canline Rendering 'MM

4P97ccelerated and 1ardware Rendering 'MH1ardware Rendering 'MH

4P 7cceleration 'MH

0nteracti%e Pre%iewing 'MC

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2!ercises 'H@

Chapter Ten: Designing & #ssigning Te%tures

(ypes of (e!t#re ;apping 'HK=olor ;apping 'HK

<pec#lar ;apping 'H

0ncandescence ;apping 'HM(ransparency ;apping 'HH

Displacement ;apping 'C@

B#mp ;apping 'CI ormal ;apping 'C3

Polynomial (e!t#re ;apping 'C?

,ther ;apping (echni+#es 'C?Photographic (e!t#res 'C

<hooting (ips 'C

latbed <cans 'CC

<tyliEed (e!t#res 'CC(e!t#re ;ap Resol#tion 3@'

7lignment <trategies 3@K

(iling ;aps 3@KDecals 3I@

Proections 3I3

> =oordinates 3IM(e!t#ring Poles 3'I

3D Paint Programs 3'3

Proced#ral (e!t#res 3'K

Resol#tion 0ndependence 3'K3D (e!t#res 3'K

7nimation 3'?

7ppearance 3'?Baing Proced#ral (e!t#res into (e!t#re ;aps 3'

Loos De%elopment 3'H

Painting in Layers 3'H=olor irst 3'C

Displacement irst 33@

2!ercises 33'

Chapter !le"en: 'endering Passes & Compositing

Rendering in Layers 33

Bacgro#nd Layers 33M

;atte ,bects 33H2ffects Layers 33C

7lpha =hannel 0ss#es 3K'

=ompositing *ith <traight 7lpha =hannels 3K3=ompositing *ith Prem#ltiplied 7lpha =hannels 3K?

Rendering in Passes 3KM

Diff#se Passes 3KH<pec#lar Passes 3KC

Reflection Passes 3?@

<hadow Passes 3?3

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7mbient Passes 3?H

,ccl#sion Passes 3?C

Bea#ty Passes 3@

4lobal 0ll#mination Passes 3I;as Passes 3'

Depth Passes 33

Pass ;anagement eat#res 3?Rendering ;any Passes at ,nce 3

Lighting in the =omposite 3

Rendering Lights as <eparate Passes 3MRelighting (ools 3H

;atching Li%e97ction Bacgro#nd Plates 3C

Reference Balls and Light Probes 3M@,ther 7pproaches to ;atching Lighting 3M3

2!ercises 3M?

Chapter Twel"e: Production Pipelines & Professional Practices

Prod#ction Pipelines 3MHPlanning an 7nimated eat#re 3MH

<tory 3MH

Layo#t 3MCPreparing for >is#al 2ffects <hots 3H@

Pre%is#aliEation 3H@

;atch ;o%e and >irt#al <ets 3HIRotoscoping 3H3

7rt Department 3H?

;odeling 3H

<et Decorating 3HM(echnical Directors 3HH

=haracter Rigging 3HC

=haracter 7nimation 3C@2ffects 3C@

<hading 3CI

(e!t#re Paint 3C'Lighting 3C3

=ompositing 3CK

ilm 0/, 3C?>is#aliEing Prod#ction Pipelines 3C?

4etting *or 7ppro%ed 3CM

*oring with =lients 3CM

<etting 2!pectations 3CMDealing with =hanges 3CH

<#per%ising Lighters 3CC

(he =hain of =ommand K@@4etting a Job in 3D Lighting K@@

7 Lighting <howreel K@I

=redits K@'G#ality o%er G#antity K@3

<tarting <trong K@3

Do 0 eed to <pecialiEe K@K

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0nternal Promotion K@?

Job <ec#rity K@

7d%ancing in o#r =areer K@M

(nde%

Digital Lighting & Rendering on9line content =opyright O '@@ by Jeremy Birn. <elected fig#res and

te!t on 3dRender.com by permission of P#blisher. <oftware incl#ding 7#todes 3D <t#dio ;a!$ ;aya$ ew(e Lightwa%e 3D$ =inema KD$ <oftimage A<0$ 7pple <hae$ 7dobe Photoshop$ ;ental Ray$ and

Pi!ar Renderman are trademars of their owners.

http://www.3drender.com/light/dlr'(,=.htm

(o most independent film9maers 5incl#ding myself6 lighting is one of the biggest bitches that yo# ha%eto consider. <#re$ none of #s ha%e any money to b#y fancy$ professional stage lighting so why bother at

all$ right

*rong P#t in plain and simply$ #nless yo# are woring o#tdoors on the brightest of days yo# will needsome form of light or else yo#r footage will loo shit. Really shit. ;ost camcorders will b#rst into

grain if there is not eno#gh light. (hose that don"t t#rn grainy will #st be blac. 2ither way$ it"s badnews for yo#.

;any first9time filmmaers don"t realise why they need any e!tra lights. (hey #s#ally thin )0t seems

bright eno#gh to me) 9 a fatal mistae (he h#man eyes can see m#ch$ m#ch better in the dar than a

camcorder so e%en when it loos bright$ yo#r camcorder will probably only see abo#t half of thea%ailable light.

<o yo# need e!tra lights. =heap ones. (his will be co%ered in a f#t#re t#torial beca#se before yo# b#y

some lights$ yo# need to #nderstand the theory of how to light yo#r scenes correctly.

(1R22 P,0( L041(04

*ith a three9point lighting set#p$ yo# #s#ally can"t go wrong. 0t is the %ery basic of lighting set#ps

which will gi%e yo#r images added depth and pre%ent that all dreaded grain from creeping into yo#r mo%ie. 7s the name s#ggests$ yo# will need three so#rces of light:

)e* Light(his is yo#r main light. (he ey light is a hard light so#rce$ which is placed to one side of the camera and #p high. 0t"s lightcan be liened to the light from the s#n on a clear day 9 a bright light with hard9edged shadows. 0t pro%ides e!cellent

Qmodeling in that it highlights the shape and conto#rs of the s#bect.

Fill Light(he fill light is a soft light so#rce$ which is #s#ally placed on the other side of the camera from the ey 5b#t closer to the

camera6$ and at abo#t the camera"s height. 0t"s light can be liened to indirect s#nlight reflected light from the en%ironment.

0t pro%ides the Qfilling in the shadows light in that it lowers the contrast between light and dar in the image$ and it casts

%ery soft indistinct shadows.

Bac+ Light(he bac light is a hard light so#rce lie the ey$ b#t it is #s#ally a smaller light and it is shone from behind the s#bect. 0t"s

light is p#rely for modeling effect$ in that it helps o%ercome the two9dimensional film image and maes the s#bect stando#t from the bacgro#nd. 0t is sometimes referred to as the Qhighlight as it is often #sed to gi%e a sheen or highlight to an

actor"s hair.

<2204 0( 7LL 0 7=(0,:

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-2 L041( ,L

1ere is o#r comp#ter generated apple. *e can

clearly see that the ey light has been placed tothe right of the camera and has created %ery

sharp shadows. Loos oay b#t doesn"t show

any real depth.

0LL L041( ,L

Remember the fill light #s#ally is on the

opposite side of the camera from the ey 5so inthis case it is on the left6. 7s it sho#ld be a soft

light 5created by #se of filters or diff#sers6 the

effect is similar to the ey e!cept the shadowsare less defined. Pl#s the apple loos flat and

crap.

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-2 S 0LL

;erging the ey and fill together instantly gi%es

#s that all important depth maing the imagefeel more three9dimensional.

B7=-L041( ,L

(he baclight$ as seen here$ pro%ides %ery s#btle

highlighting to the main s#bect.

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-2 S 0LL S B7=-

Bea#tif#l *hat a st#nning apple.

0f yo# do yo# lighting correctly$ no one in the a#dience will e%en notice it. Lighting is one of those

thanless b#t essential tass that an a#dience demands b#t they don"t realise it 5they will #st thin in

the bac of their minds that something doesn"t loo +#ite right6. Remember$ yo# are most liely gonna

be shooting on a cons#mer/pros#mer camcorder which by its nat#re loos lie %ideo so yo# ha%e yo#r wor c#t o#t for yo# to decei%e the a#dience into thining its a more e!pensi%e camera.

(12 (12,R ,( (12 *7 B( ,* *17(

*ell that"s #p to yo#. <oon 0 will ha%e #p a g#ide on p#rchasing cheap lighting for yo#r own

prod#ctions which sho#ld help yo# sa%e a few b#cs. ,ther than that$ another essential part of film

lighting is to also #nderstand yo#r own camcorder settings.

(here are n#mero#s controls on a camcorder that can drastically effect the final image 5for the worse if

yo# don"t now what yo#"re doing6 so now is the time to d#st off the man#al and learn abo#t yo#r

cameras optics.

(he main areas yo# want to loo at are: *hite Balance$ 2!pos#re 50ris6 and Depth of ield.

7m 0 going to e!plain any of these now , (his t#torial was #st for basic lighting. -eep checing bac on the website and e%ent#ally 0"ll p#t a g#ide #p on each of them 5when 0 find an intelligent way

of e!plaining them6.

7D D,"( ,R42(...

(his is #st a basic lighting set#p which will create ne#tral res#lts. 0f yo# were shooting a horror mo%ieor some ind of thriller$ yo# definitely want to e!periment more with the lights. or e!ample$ if yo#r

character is looing thro#gh a window$ shining a ey light thro#gh some blinds onto her can create ane!cellent effect. B#t this is #st one e!ample of endless set9#ps. 0t is really down to time and creati%ity.

*hen it all boils down to it$ the a#dience is more concerned abo#t a good story than anything else.

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D2P(1 , 02LD The area within *our image which a sub,ect can mo"e bac+ and forth whilst remaining in

focus 7P2R(R2 The amount of light let into the camcorder$ controlled b* the (ris a-+-a- #perture$ measured in F.

tops ,=7L L24(1 The angle of the lens e-g- a wide angle lens would achie"e a greater Depth Of Field than a

smaller lens

0"m a bit thic when it comes to e!plaining the technical side of Depth ,f ield b#t 0"m going to gi%e it

a go anyway...Depth of ield 5D,6 is an element of photography that amate#r camcorder #sers rarely consider. 0t"s a

shame considering that as setting the D, correctly on a camcorder for each shot can drastically alter the tone and feel of the footage.

D, is the area within yo#r image that a s#bect co#ld freely mo%e abo#t whilst remaining in foc#s. 0f

yo# were to imagine a football game and yo# were standing by the net of one team looing across the pitch at all the players spread aro#nd$ if all the players were in foc#s then this wo#ld be a %ery large

Depth ,f ield. (aing the opposite approach$ if yo# were still standing in the same position b#t only

the players within '@93@ feet of yo# were in foc#s then yo# wo#ld ha%e a smaller/shallower D,.

D, is determined by three factors: (he distance at which the s#bect is in relation to the camera lens$

the lens apert#re/iris and the lens angle.<#bect Distance

*hate%er yo# might be filming$ be it the local wildlife$ yo#r child"s first steps or e%en the neighbo#rs

dog taing a d#mp on the dri%eway$ the distance at which the s#bect is from the camera affects D,. 0f yo#r s#bect is %ery close to the camera then yo# will instantly ha%e a shallow/small depth of field

beca#se yo#r camcorder can"t see anything else. 1owe%er$ the f#rther away the s#bect is the wider the

depth of field will be and the more things that will come into foc#s depending on the stat#s of the two

other elements of D,.

Lens 7pert#re/0ris

ot all camcorders allow yo# to man#ally control the apert#re/iris b#t the better ones do. (he more

light yo# allow into the camera thro#gh the iris$ the shallower the depth of field yo# will ha%e andliewise the opposite is tr#e. (he light reaching the camera thro#gh the iris is meas#red in 9<tops s#ch

as I.K$ '.@$ '.H$ K.@ etc. (he bigger the n#mber$ the less light that is getting thro#gh the iris.

Big$ fast sporting e%ents wo#ld be filmed with a larger 9stop to allow less light in thro#gh the iris

ens#ring m#ch of yo#r shot remains in foc#s 5large D,6. 0t"s get"s a tad conf#sing doesn"t it and 0"m

lea%ing o#t most the technical crap

Lens 7ngle

(he lens angle or focal length is the amo#nt of information yo#r camcorder can see. ;ost people ha%eheard of a wide9angle lens and the effect it will ha%e on an image. (hey are ideal for large$ panoramic

%istas or for small$ confined spaces where yo# need to cram more st#ff into yo#r image witho#t mo%ing

yo#r camcorder bac. Depending on the angle at which yo#r own camcorder lens is set$ this will effectthe D,. (he larger and wider the angle$ the larger the D,. (he narrower yo#r lens angle$ theshallower D,.

<o why not #st ha%e a large D, and be done with the foc#s nob

o# co#ld do this and probably wo#ld do this if yo# were filming a sporting e%ent or s#ch. 1owe%er$

for the tr#e artist D, will be far more important. <etting it correctly will allow yo# to ens#re that yo#r

s#bect is the centre of attention rather than some ghastly bacgro#nd or foregro#nd obect hogging thelimelight. (ae these three pict#res for e!ample 5which 0 stole from this site6

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<hallow D,

otice the wine glass is nicely in foc#s b#t e%erything else

is bl#rry. (he booEe loos mighty tempting.

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<hallow D,

<till a relati%ely shallow Depth of ield b#t the wine bottle

is the foc#s of o#r attention. Both bacgro#nd andforegro#nd are o#t of foc#s.

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Large D,

or this shot$ most obects are in foc#s 5steadily going o#t

of foc#s towards the wall at the bac6. 4lass$ cor and bottle are all in foc#s 5altho#gh not raEor sharp6. (his shot

probably e!plains D, the best as yo# can imagine if yo#

mo%ed any obect aro#nd it wo#ld still be in foc#s whereas

if yo# did it in the abo%e two shots$ yo#r s#bect will+#icly lose foc#s.

Picing 7 <etting

0t really is down to yo#$ the Director$ =inematographer$ Director of Photography or whate%er yo# want

to call yo#rself as to what D, to ha%e for each shot. J#st remember$ yo#r s#bect sho#ld really be the

only thing in foc#s to a%oid it getting lost with e%erything else in shot.

1ollywood mo%ies ha%e that dreamy9loo abo#t them and it is partly down to D,. (ae a loo at any

mainstream mo%ie$ in any scene yo# will find nicely foc#sed s#bects and bl#rry e%erything else. (his

way the a#dience ne%er taes their eyes off what , want them to see. 0f yo# don"t set the D,correctly$ eyes may begin to wander aro#nd.

Please consider this g#ide as only an introd#ction to D, with the basics that yo# need. 0f yo# needmore info$ please see below b#t warning$ these sites may blow yo#r head off with info

7dditional Reading

=hec o#t these sites for additional information on Depth ,f ield

*hat =amcorder

;atthew =ole 1omepage

7/17/2019 Lighting


<nap J#ny

http://www.stormforcepict#res.com/theshoot9depthoffield.php

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