exposure

f/ 1.4

f/4

fi ll

fl22

6.1 . (previous page) The basics of exposure: a source and a light meter. {Photo by author.}

6.2. (above) The aperture at vari+ OUS flstops.

ci nematography 104

LIGHT AS ENERGY Energy from the Sun comes 10 the Earth in \ isible and invisible por­tions of the electromagnetic spectrum. Iluman eyes are scn~iti\e to a small portion or thaI spectrum that includes the \isiblc color~ from the longest v isible wavelengths of light (Red) to the shortt.:sl \\a\ c­lengths (Blue).

Intensity of light is measured in foot-candles (in the United States) or in lux (in most other countri es). A luot-eand le (fc) equals about 10.08 lux (or. for a rough convcrsion . ll1ultiply foot-candles by 10 to get lux). A foot-candle is thc light from a standard eandlc at a di,­tance of one fool. One lux is the illumination produced by one stan­dard ca ndle from a distance of I meter. When a film is e'posed for 1 second to a standard candle I meIer distance. it receives I lux-sec of exposure. What's a swndard candle'! It"s like the standard horse in horse-power. To provide some points of reference:

Sunlight on an average day range, rrom 32.000 to 100.000 lux (3.175 to 10.000 fc) Typical TV stud ios arc lit at about 1.000 lux (99 rc) A bright office ha> about 400 lu\ of illumination (-10 Ie ) Moonlight represel1ls about I lu\ ( a tenth of H fuot-candle)

The f/5top is covered in more detail in the chapter on Opric.\" . but ror Ollr di scliss ion here it is important to kno\\ hO\,\ it fils into the exposure system. Fstop and lighting calculations apply equall) to both f"i lrn and all forms of video as doc~ much of the information in this chaptcr.

F/ STOP Most lenses have a means of con trolling the amount of" light they pass through 10 the film or video receptor; this is ca lled the aperture. The I' SlOp is the mathematica l relationship of overall sile of the lens to the size of the aperture. ··Stop·· is a short term lur f/stop. A SlOP is a lInit of light measure­

ment. An increase in the amount of light by one SlOp mcan~ thl.!fl.! is twice as much light. A decrease of one stop means there is half as much lighl. A lens with an flslOp of 1.0 would theoretically pass all or the light reaching through to the focal plane. The I' SlOp is the ratio or the focal length of a lens to the diameler of the el1lmnce pupil as shown in Figure 6.2. This works ou t to each stop being greatcr than the previous by the square root of 2.

F 'stop is dcri \'ed from the si mple formula: 1'= F'D

r stop = focal length/diameter of kns opening I r the brightest point in the scene has 128 tiJ11 t:s morc luminance

than the darkest poim (se\ en SIOp~). Ihel1 we SHY it ha~ a sc\'en stop scene.! brightness ralio.

EXPOSURE, ISO AND LIGHTING RELATIONSHIPS The units \\ c deal with in exposure arc:

F stops ASA. ISO or EI (dinercn t names luI' the ,ame thing) Foot-candles or lux Ou tput ofsourccs as alTected by distance Reflectance of objects

It turns out that all of" th ese can be arranged in analogou~ \\i.I~ !'o. Tiley all lollow the same basic mathematical pHllern. The data in these tab les was compiled by "Vade Ramsey. Remember thai r .... lOp l1uJ1lbcr!o! arc fractions. the relationship of the aperture c..lial11t'ter III

Ihe focnl Ienglh orthc lens, For exa mple. 1'/8 rea ll y means 1/8: Ihe diameter is I X Ihe foca l length , FI II is 111 1, whi ch is obviously a !-l lllalicr fraction than I 8. Each lime we opclllhc apel1urc Olle whole r slOp lie doubl e Ihe quanlity of lighl reaching Ihe Aim: cach lime we close it one ~t op. we halve the light reaching the film .

The I' stop ,calc (Tab le 6, I) is liered 10 show that the sa me rela lion­ship, Ihal appl y to whole I' numbers. such as f/8 and fil l , apply 10

intcna ls between th em. So the difference between f/9 and f/ 13 is one II hole SlOp. etc , Modern digital meters measure in 1I I0ths ofa , lOp, This is helpful for eaiculalions and compari sons, bUI for mOSI prac lieal purposes. thi s level of accuracy is notnecessaty. One third or a SlOP is the prac tica l limit or precis ion. given the vagaries of optics. lab chemistry and telecinc trans fer. Th is is not to say that accuraLe ex posure is not important. only that the degree of precision in the overa ll process has limits.

LIGHTING SOURCE DISTANCE The rstop sca le applies to Ihe inverse square law of illumination, Ch~lIl!.!.c~ in illumination due to distance with small sources foll ov,1 Ihis scale (Table 6,2), For exam ple. i I' the lamp is II feel from Ihe subj ccl. 1110\ ing it to 8 feet will increase the subject illumination by I stop,just as opening the lens diaphragm from fi ll to f/8 would do. The inverse square 1m\' applies to point sources. strictl y speaking. bUI spotligh ls fo ll ow it l~l irly \\'ell althe di slances usually utilized,

INVERSE SQUARE LAW AND COSINE LAW Simi larly: a gi\cn output at a ccrtain distance: say 1.000 l'c at 10 feel. can be used 10 ca lculate Ihe outpul at other di stances by di, iding by the distancc sq uared. This is the inverse square law in application (Table 6, I).

Figure 6.3 illustratl.!s the in verse square law graphically. A similar principle is the cosine law ( Figure 6.4). As a surface is turned away from the source. less of the surface is "vis ible" to the source and therefore there is less c'<posure. Mathcmatieally, the decrease ill exposure is eq ual to the cos ine orlhe angle of tile surface so th is is ca ll ed the co~inc la\\-.

ISO SPEEDS Since one-third 'ltop is the minimum exposure dirTercnce detectable by Ihe unaided eye (I'or mOSI negati ve stoc ks), film sensi ti vi lY is rated in no finer increments than this. This sca le is tiered to make the relat ionships between intervals more eas il y seen. Just as ISO 200 is I stop rasler Ihan ISO 100, so ISO 320 is I stop faster Ihan ISO 160. (Table 6.3),

A lthough this is ob\ ious. memorizing thi s sca le makes it eas ier to sec Ihc difTerences bel ween odd interval s. such as ISO 80 10 ISO 32 (I- I 3 SlOpS,) The scaic may be ex panded in eit her direcl ion by add ing or subtJ"acling digits (the intcf\ als below 6 arc 5. 4. 3. 2.5 , 1. 1.6. j usl as Ihe inlervals be low 64 are 50, 40. 32, 25.20, and 16.

LIGHTING SOURCE DISTANCE

DISTANCE IN Ft. 64' SO' 40' 32' 2S ' 20' 16' 12' 10' F/Stop 4 4.5 5 S,6 6 7 8 9 10

Light 2048x 1024x SI2x 2S6X 128X 64x 32X 16X

F/Stops

1/3 Stops

1

1.1

1.4

1.31 1.6

2 2.8

2,2 3.2

1.8 25

4 5.6 8 11

45 6 9 13

3,6 5 7 10

/I j\

I \ LJ

,,1\ 11 1 " ,

6.3. (top) The inverse square law. This is important not only to understand· ing expsoure measurement, but to lighting as well.

6.4. (above) The cosine law: how the angle of the subject affects its expo· sure level.

Table 6.1. (left) Lighting source dis­tance and exposure.

Table 6.2. (belowl Ught levels and exposure. "X" represents a given amount of light - each step to the left doubles the amount of light at the subject.

8x 4X

16 22

18 25

14 20

32

29

2X x 45

36

40

exposure 10S

6 12 25

8 16

10 20

5l t lOO + 200 400 800 125 -r-- 250 500 Tl000

80 16or--- 320 640 T 1250

~32=-t-1 __ 64 40

Table 6.3. ISO or ASA in one-third stop increments. The same series can be interpreted as percentage of reflection or shutter speeds.

FOOl-candies: The ISO scalc can also be applied 10 fool-candi es. Doubling Ihe fOOl-candi es doubles Ihe exposure. The Ihird-slOp inter­\ als give the intermediate Ie values. For example. the difTcrl: l1cc belween 32 fc and 160 fe is 2 113 SlOpS.

Percentage of RcReclion: The ISO scale from 100 on do\\ n rclales to percentage of reflection. For example. ISO 100 can represent 100%. pure while. Other reAcclanccs, stich as 64% and 20ou. can Ihen be seen 10 be. respecli ve ly. 2/3 SlOp and 2- 1/3 SlOPS darker Ihan pure while (Table 6.4).

Shuller speeds: Referring 10 Ihe ISO sca le, il can be seen Ihal . for example. 11320 sec. is 1-2 /3 SlOpS fa sler Ihan 1/ 100 sec. This ca n bc helpful when unusual combinati ons of shultcr angle and frame rate produce odd encclive shuller speeds.

LIGHT AND FILM It is the energy in each photon ofl ight that causes a chem ical change 10 Ihe pholOgraphic deleelors Ihal are coaled on Ihe film . The pro­cess whereby electromagnetic energy causes chemical changes to maHer is known as photochemistry. All film is coalCd onlO a base: a Iransparelli plaslic malerial (cellu­

loid) Ihal is 4 10 7 Ihollsandlhs of an inch (0.025 mm) Ihick . OIliO Ihe base. Ihe emulsion is adhered where Ihe pholOchemi slry happens. There may be 20 or more individual layers coaled here Ihal arc col­lect ive ly less than one-thousandth of an inch in thickness. Som~ of the layers coated on the transparent film do not form images. They are th ere to filler light. or to control the chemi ca l reaction s in the pro­cessing steps. The imagi ng layers contain sub-micron si/cd grains of si lver halide crystals that act as the photon detectors. These cryslal s arc Ihe hea r! of pholographic f-i 1m. These cry>!a b

undergo a photochemical rC<lc ti on \vhen they are exposed to vari­OliS forms of electromagnetic rad iat ion - light. In addition to vis­ib le light. the silver halide grains can be sensitized to infrared radia­tion . A halide is a chemica l compound ora ha logen (any or a group of five chemi cally rela led nonmelallic elemellis inc luding flll orine. ch lorine. bromine. iod ine. and astatine) wit ll a more elcc t ropo~ iti \e clement or group. in thi s case sil ver. Sil ver halide grains arc manu­factured by combining silver nitrate and halide salls (chloride. bro­mide. and iodide) in complex ways that result in a rangc of crystal sizes. shapes. and compositions. The unmodified gra in s are on ly sensitive to the bluc part of the

spectrul11, and thus are not VCI)' useful in camera fi lm. Spectral ~en­sitizers are added to the S Urf~I CC of the grains to make til (.;m morc sensiti ve to bille. green and red light. (Remember. "c ·re talk ing

Table 6.4. The relationship of f!stops abou t black-and-white fi 1m here.) These molecules must attach to and refl ectance. the gra in surface and transfer the energy from a red. green. or blue

F/STOPS

REFLECTANCE

Cinematography 106

100%

1-, 13 - 2/3

80%

164%

., _1 1/] -1 2/]

50%

40%

32%

·2 _2 1fl -3 -3 113 1_3 Ul ·4 -4 1/]

25% 12% I 6%

20% 10%

16% 8%

photon to the ,ih er ha lide elysta l a, a photo elec tron. Other chemi ­cals arc added internally to the grain during its gro\\ th proct!ss. or 0 11 the surfm:c of the grai n. These chemicals affect the li ght sensi ti v­i t) of the grain. abo knO\\ 11 as its speed that is. how sCn Si li \(~ to l ight it i ~.

The speed o r an emub ion is quantified by standards set b) the ISO ( In te rnational Standards Organi zation) or ASA (American Stan­dards J\ssociC:lI ion) ra ting. ISO is the technicall y the correct designa­tion. but b) trad ition. mas I people still refer to it as ASA . The hi gher the ASA. the lower the light I ev...: 1 the film is capabl e of res p Oll ding to. For color 11 1m. l1l anuf~cLurcrs l ist the sensiti vi ty of film as EI or b posure Inde\. When you make film faster. the trade o lT is that the increased ligh t sensi tivity comes fro m the lise of larger sil ver halide grai ns. These larger grains can rt::suh in a blotchy or "gra iny" appear­ance to the pict ure. Photograph ic film lllanufacl1Irers arc constantl y ma king impro\·ements that result in fa~t er films with less grain . For Kodak, a majo r adva nce was the int roduction o r "T' gra ins in the 70s. These tabular grai ns arc roughly tri angul ar wh ich all owed them to be packeol.:loser together. thus reduci ng apparent grain.

THE LATENT IMAGE When the shutlcr is open, light aOecb the chemistry of the cmu lsion and a latent image is formed. When " photon of light is absorbed by the spectral sensit izl.! r sitt ing on the surface of a sil\cr halide gra in. the ~nergy of an electron is raised into the conduction band fro111 the \·<l lence bam!. whcre it can be transferred to the conduction band of the sil\ er halide grai n elec tronic struclUre. This atom orsi l\·cr i ~ unstablc. I-Iowc\·cr ifcnough photoelec trons

arc present at the same time in the crystal latticc. they may com­bine with enough pos iti ve holes to fo rm a stable latent image site. A latent image site must contai n a minimum of 2 to -l si l\ cr atoms per grain to rcmain !'Itable. A sil\cr halide grain contains billi ons ofsil\cr halide molecule::.. and it only takes 2 to -l atolll :, o f un com­bi lled :-.il\ er to form thc latcnt image s it ~. In co lor film , thi s process happens separa tely fo r exposure to the red. green . and blue layers or the em ub ion. The reason fo r thi s b si mple there is no way to sen­si tile a grai n to "color: ' YO li ca n onl y sensiti ze it to a spec ifi c band of the spect rum. The image that i::. fa nned is ca lled "laten' " because it remai ns ilwis ible until chemica ll y dc\·cloped. Any photon that reaches the fi lm. but docs not form a latent image.

is lost informa tion. Most co lor fi lms general ly take 10 to 60 pho- 6.5. Black-and-white negative. tOilS pl.! r grai n to produce a dcve lopable latent image. Thi s is ca ll ed the "inertia point" for the fi lm. 8c10\\ the inert ia poi nt. no image is rccOl-oed at al l. Video rccl.!ptors arc sili con based and of course dif­fe rent in operation. but the basic theory is quite simil ar.

CHEMICAL PROCESS ING In order fo r thc latell t image to become \ i!'lible. it mu:-.t be ampli­fied and stab ili 7cd. in order to make a negativc or a posi th c (Figure 6.5). In black-and-\\ hite lilm. the sil ver halide grains have to be sen­si liLed to a ll \\a\elcm!lhs o r visi ble li ght so the sil\·er hulide I! ra ills arc coated in just on~ or two layers. As a result. the deve lopment process is e<Jskr lO understand.

The fi lm is placed in develop ing chemi stry that is actuall y a reducill!! al!cn l. If the j-j lm wcre le n in thc solut ion long enough. the reduc ing agent wou ld cOI1\'e11 all the silver ions into :-.ih·e-f metal resulting in a uniform gray fog \\ ilh 11 0

discernible image. Those grains that hm·c latent image sites wi ll tb clop more rapi dly. I I' the film is left ill the de\'clop-

exposure 107

ing chemi stry for the proper amount of"timc. only grains \\ ilh latent image in formation will become pure siher. Thc lInc\­posed grains remain as sil ver halidc crysta ls. The development process IllllSI be "stopped" at th~ right 1110ment. This is dOJ1~ by rinsi ng the fi lm with \-\,atcL or by using a "stop" bath that brings the development process 10 a halt. After deve lopment, somc of the altered halide and all of the una ltered si lver halide remains ill the em ulsion. It must be removed or the negative will darken and deteriorate O\'cr timc. The remova l of this undeveloped material is accom­plished with fixing agents, usually sodium thiosulfate (hypo)

6.6. Color negative with its distinct- or ammonium th iosulfate. The process is called fixing. The inve orange mask. trick is to fix j ust enough and not too mllch. as excessive con­

tact with fixers can begin to remove some of the desirable si lver material.

Cinematography 108

Finall y. the film is wasl,ed \vi th water to remove all the pro­cessi ng chemi ca ls. Then it is dried. The washing must b~ ex tremely thorough.

When all the steps arc finished. the film has a negative image or the original scene. Other types of chemistry can rcsult in a positive image. but thi s is not commonly used in motion picture applications. It is a negative in the sense that it is darkest (has the I, ighest density of opaque sil ver at0111s) in the area that received the mostlighl expo­sure. In placcs that received no light. the negative is clear.

COLOR NEGATIVE Color ncgati ve is basically three layers of black-and-white film. onc on LOp or the other (Figures 6.6 and 6.7). The difTerenee is that caeh layer is treated with a different spectra l sensitizer so tha t it is recep­tive to a different band of the spectrum. These translate to roughly red. bluc and green.

\Vith color fi lm, the dcvelopment step lIses reducing chemi­cals. and the exposed si lver halide grains develop to pure si lver. Oxidized developer is produced in this reaction. and the oxi di zed developer reacts v.,rith chcm ica ls ca ll ed couplers in each orthe image fonning layers. This reaction CHuses the coupl ers to fo rm a cotor. and th is color varies depending 011

how the si lver halide grains were spectrally sensiti7cd. A dif­ferent color forming coup ler is used in the red. green and blue se nsi ti ve layers. Thc latcnt image in the different layer::, forms a dinerent colored dye when the film is developed. The developmcnt process is stopped eit her by washing. or with a stop bath. The unexposed silver halide gra ins are removcd usi ng a fixing solution. The sil ver that was deve loped in the fi rst step is rell1O\ 'ed b) bleaching chemica ls. (Note: it is possible LO ski p thi s step or reduce it so that somc of the sil vcr rema ins in the ncgati\·c. Thi s is the basis of "'skip bleach" or ENR processing. \\hich is discllsscd elsewhere.) The negative image is then washed to remo\c as much of the chemica ls and rcaction products as possible. The film slrips arc then dried.

Unlike a black-and-white' negative. a color Ilcga ti\e contain~ no sih er \vi th the except ion or SIJec ial processes known as "bleach bypass:' These are covered in the chapter on Image COJ1lrol. The end resu lt is a color negati ve in the sense that the more red

c\ po~un:. the more cyan dye i ~ lonned. Cya n i ~ a mix of blue and green (or \\ hite minu~ red). The grccn scnsiti\"c image laycrs con­tain magenta dye. and the blue :-.ensili u: image layers contain ye llO\\ dye. The colors formed in the color ncgati\ c mm an..' based on the :-;ub­

tracti ve (alar rorm:Jti on system. The subtrac ti ve system uses one color (cyan. magcl1lu or ye llow) to control each primary color. Thc addilin..' co lor :-.ystclll uscs a combination o r red. green and blue to produce a CO IOf. Video is based on 3n additive system. The overa ll or::lI1gc hue i!\ the result of masking dyes that he lp to correct imper­fec tions in the color reproducti on process.

ADDITIVE VS. SUBTRACTIVE COLOR In a pholograph . Ihe co lors arc layered on lOP of each olher. so a subtractive color reproduction system is used . In subtracti ve co lor. eac h primary is afTected b) its opposi tl..' on the co lor wheel.

Red sensi ti ve layers form a cyan colored dye. Green sensiti\ c layers form a magenta colored dye. Blue scn~i ti n! layers fo rm a yello\' co lorc:d dyc.

FILM'S RESPONSE TO LIGHT There arc two steps in thc making or a negati\ c. as represented by the thin sli ce from the negati ve sho\\ n in Figure 0.7.

Ex posure. The lIseful property ofsilvcr halide is that its state is altered \\ hen subjected to light . in direct proponion to th~ amou nt of light encrgy absorbed. Thi s change is not \ is­ible. and if film is exa mined be rare and aftcr cxposure, little change can be seen. Development. Silver hal ide \\ hich has been altered by eon­Wet \\ ith li ght can be reduced to pure sil ver if placed in con­laet v.·ith spec ifi c chemicals referred to as deve loping agents. The activity of" tlte developer and time o f" deve lopment \\ill determine hO\\ much of the sensiti 7ed halidl' will be con· \ crted.

DENSITOMETRY To understand film respons~ we must look at its curvc. This. clas:-,i­ca l approach to densitometry (the sc ien tifi c analysis of exposure) \\a, dev ised by lIurter and Drillield in 1890 and so is ca lled lite II&D curvc or SOllll'til11cS the J) log E curve. It pl ots the alllount of exposure "E" in logarithmic units along the hori zontal ax is and the amount o rdcnsi ty change in the negativc "D" along thc vertical axis. This is sometimes , hortencd to ··Log E·· cune (Figure 6.8).

In theory. it makes sense that \\e \\Qu ld \\a nt the film 10 change in densit) in exact proportion to change in the amount of li ght reflected by different parts of the scene. After all \\e arc trying to make an image \\ hich accura tely ponrays the real scene. right?

Let's look at a theoretical··linear"' film (Figure 6.9). For every addi­lioJ1nl unit of exposure. the densi ty of the negati ve changes exactly 0111: unit. That is. there i:-. an cxact correspondence between the amount or light in the !'Irene and the change in the dcnsi t) or the

Supercoa t

~~~~~~~~~~~~ ___ ~~ Blue-sensitive layer (yellow dye) Yellow filter ~ Green-sensitive layer (magenta dye) ~ Red-sensitive layer (cyan dye)

• _________ ~ Subcoat (adhesive)

• ---------.. B.s. Anti-halation backing 6.7.The layers of color negative fi lm.

exposure 109

6.8. The Hurter and Driffield D Log E curve for negative densit y.

6 .9 . A theoretical "ideal" film - one that exactly reporduces the expo~ sure changes of the subject in a one­to~rat io with negative density.

cinematograph y 110

D·mln

StralQht hne Qlllear) portior1

o'ltIeCUl'le~

Base .. log

ShOUlder""

Exposure

nega tive. Sounds perfect. doesn' t it? Thc slope of the line for tillS Aim would be 45 dcgrees exactly.

The slope of this line is a measure of the eon tras tin"ss of the film. In a film where large changes in ex posure only change the negative density a lilli e (low eOlllrast reproducti on) the slope is very shal­low. Where a film is very cOlllrasty. the slope is very high; in other words small changes ill the amount of light calise the fil m density to change drasticall y. The ex treme is someth ing ca ll ed "li tho" film which is lIsed in the printing industry. Everyth ing to litho film is either black or white - therc arc no shades of gray. In other words if thc light is above a certa in level. the image is completely white. If it is below a certain leve l, it is compl etely bl ack. Thi s is as contrasty as a film can get. The slope for litho fi lm would be a ven ica l li nc.

No film acts in the perfectly linear manner of thi s first example (i.e ., the changes in the film exactl y correspond to thc change in the amount of light). In thi s di agram, we see a film whi ch only changes 112 unit 01' density I'o r each additi onal unit o r light. Thi s is a "10\\­contras t"" fi lm .

Figure 6. I 0 shows the eli fTerence between a high-contrast emul­sion and a low-cont ras t onc. In the high-contrast example. for each

1Ns PIIrt 0 1 1/19 sceoo IS

too dark to I.>e ruooroad on I"m.

The problem with a perfectly linear film

nus pari 01 II>e sctIr.e '5

too bnght to be be feoo<cIed on 111m.

TOlal Drogn1ne5S lange 111e I,nal r>!InI Of v>doo IS l:aPilbl/t 01

fI'pn;Jdur;"'1I

A contrasty fIlm A low contrast fIlm

Exposure

additional unit or ex posure. it changes 2 units of negative densi ty. Looking at the brightness range of the ex posure aga inst the bright­ness range of the negative density. \\le see that it w ill show more cont rast ill the negati\(~ than ac tually exists in the scene. The ~Iopc of this line b ca ll ed the gam ma of the film: it is a measlIre of its conlrast illess.

Contrast refers to the separation of ligh tness and darkness (called "lOnes") in a Aim or print and is broad ly represented by the slope of the characteristic curve. Adjectives slIch as flat or so ft and cOlltras ty or hard are often used to describe contrast. In general. the steeper the slope of the characteristic curve. the higher the contrast. The terms gamma and average gradient refer to numericalmcans for indicating the contrast of the photographic image.

Gamma is measured in several difTcrent ways as defined by scien­tific organi zations or manufac turers. They are all basically a way of calculat ing the slope of the strai ght-line portion of the curve by morc or less ignoring the shou lder and the lac port ions of the curve. Gamma is the slope of the stra ight-line ponion of the character istic cun~ or the tangent of the angle (a) f0l111ed by the stra ight line with the horizontal. The tangem of the angle (a) is obtained by dividing the dcn:-,ity increase by the log exposure change. G3mma does not describe contrast characteris tics of thc toe o r the shou lder. on ly the straight line portion.

But there i~ another wrinkle. In the lowest ra nge of exposure, as well as in the highest range. the emulsion 's response cha nges. In th e lowest range. the film doc~ nOI respond at all as it "sees" the first few units of light. There is no change in photochemistry at all until it reaches the inertia point \\ here the amount of light fi rst begins 10 create a photochemical change in film o r an electrical change on a \ ideo tube. A fter reaching the incrtial point. then il begins 10

rc~pond :,., Iuggir;;hly: ncgathe density changes only slightl y for each additional unit of light. This region is the .. toe" of the curve. In this arCH, Ihe changes in light va lue arc com pressed (Figure 6.11.)

At the upper end of tho.! film' s senS il i\ ilY range is the ··shoulder'" lIere abo. the reproduction is compressed. The emu lsion is becom­ing o\crloaded: it's response to each additional unit of light is less and less. The end result is tha t film docs not record cha nges in li ght \~lIlie in the scene in a linear and proportional way. Both the shad­o\\'s and thc highlights arc somewhat crushed logether. Thi s is, in fact. \\ hLlt gives film the "film look'· thai video has never been able to achieve (Hi gh Oef comes a lot doser than pre\ iOlls systems but still ha~ trouble wit h the highlights). It is a way of compressing very contrasty scenes so that they "fit" on to the Aim.

6.10. Differences between a high contrast and a low contrast film.

exposure 111

6.11 . Gray scale compression in the toe and shoulder.

cinematography 112

Equal increments 01 exposure

THE LOG E AXIS Let's think abollt the log E axis (horizontal) for a moment. It is not j ust an abstract sca le of exposure un its. Remember that it represen ts the var io lls luminances of the scene. All scenes arc different. and thus all scenes have different luminance ratios. What we are really plolting on the hori zontal ax is is the range of luminances in tile scene, rrom the darkest to the li ghtest.

In 1890. the German physiologist E. II. Weber discovered that changes in any physical sensation (sound. brightness. pain . heat) become less noti ceabl e as the stimulus increases. The change in leve l or stimulus that will produce a noti ceab le difference is propor­tional to the overall level: irthree units or light create" perception ofbrightncss that isjust J101iccably brigh ter than two units. then the smallest perceptible increase from 20 units of light will require 30 units. To produce a sca le of steps which appear to be lIllifonn. it is necessary to multiply each step by a constant I',ctol'. In lact. the per­ception of brightness is loga rithmi c.

What is a log' Logarithms arc a s imple way of expressi ng large changes in any numbering system. I f. for example. we waJ1led to make a chart o f something which in creases by multipl yi ng by 10: I. 10. 100. 1000. 10.000. 100.000. we "ery quickl y reach numbers so large as to be unwieldy. It would be extremely dillicult to make a graph which could handle both cnds or the range.

In log base 10, the Illo s t CO lll1110n system, the log of a number rep­resents the number of times I must be multiplied by IOta produce the number. 1 must be multiplied by 10 once to make 10, so the log of lOi s I. To arri ve at 100. you multiply I by 10 twice. so the log or 100 is 2. The log of a nUlllber is the exponent or 10: I 0' ~ 100. the log or 100 is 2. la' is 10.000. so the log or 10,000 is -l (Table 6.5). This means that we ca n chart very large changes in quantity with a fairly sma ll range or numbers. Logs are lIsed throughout lighting. photography and video.

BRIGHTNESS PERCEPTION Qur perception of bri ghtness is logarithmic and wc shall st.!t.! that tlli s has far ran gi ng consequences in a ll aspects of lighting for film and vidco. If wc chart the human perception of brightness in stcps thm appear sl1100th to the eye we can foll ow its logarithmic nanJre. It is appa rent that eac h step lip in a seemingly even scale of gray tones is. in terms of its measured reflectance. spaced logarithmically. A<::. we shall see later. thi s chart is in fact fundamental to the entire process

or lighting and image reproduction (Tablc 6.6). Rcmcmber that these arc not fixed values (the darkest point on the

log E i.u,i~ is not a cena in !lumber or candl es-per-sq-foot for exam­ple), because \\e open or close the apenurc orthe camera 10 adjust ho\\ much liL!.ht renches the lilm nnd we use faster or slower film and so 011. Whnt'-rcally coulltS is Ihe 1'0/;0 between the darkest and light­c:-,t. and thaL is wha t wc arc pl ouing on th e log E uxis. This is ca lled the brightness range ortlle fill11, sometimes abbreviated as BR. Each unit on the log E axis represent:.. one SlOp more light.

CONTRAST The \\ ord conlra!o!L ha~ di ITereIH meani ng::.. depending on \\ hether you an~ lHlking about the colllra~t orlhe subject we are photographing or the negati\c that \\e wi ll use to make the print. In general. COlllmSI refers to thc relati\e diflcrel1ce belwe~11 dark and light areas of the subject or negative. Subject con trast refers to the di flcrence between the amounts or light being rclkcted by the darker. or "shado\\," area~ orthe ~cenc and the lighter. or "highlight." areas (for example a dark door as opposed to a \\hite \\a ll ).

Nega l i\c contrast refer:, to the relat i\'{~ di fTerence between the morc tran::,parent area:, of the ncgativc and those that an .... more opaque. The ncgativc is described in tenns of density. These densities can be measured \\ ith an instrument called a densitomeLer, which I11casure~ hO\\ much lighL passes through the negati ve and how much is held back. The contrnst of photographic subjects can vary i.I great deal from one picture to another. On clear. sunn y days the contrast of an exterior scene can be gn .... a t. while on cloudy days it can be rclati\el) 10\\ in conlrast. The contrast ofa given scene depends on ho\\ light or dark the objects in tht: picture are \\ hen compared to eac h other and 110\,.. mllch light is falling on them. Let's get back to Ollr theoreti­cnll) "idear- film. This film would change the densi ty or the nega­ti\c cxactly one unit for eac h onc unit orchangc in the brightness or the :-,ubjccl. The iJbo\ 'e diagram :-.ho\\ s thc problem with this. No n..:production

mcdium 110\\ knO\\ n is capablc of reproducing anything ncar the brightness rang!;;! exhibited in 1110st real world situations. Nearly all Him cmulsion!'> arc non-linear. This linea rity nlils for two reason~.

It take:, a cennin amount of light energy to initiate the acti\a­Lion of the photoscnsiti\ c c1emcnts in the emu lsion (the iner­tia point). Thus the density rises gradually at first in thi s area c[tlled the toc, finally accelerating int(! the straight line por­tion of the curve'. \Vith increasing cxpo:-,urc to light. more sih er halidc is con­\crted. until it has no more sensit i\e material to actinlte. AI Ihat point. increasing the exposure docs not increase the ultimate density or the developed negat i\ c. This ·'saturation" occur:, gradua ll y and produccs what is known as a shou lder.

The lOe 01' the film is a result or the fact tllat film reacts slowly to small amounls of light. II is only when greater amounts or li ght reach the cmulsion that the change becomes lin ear. This is the straight line portion or the film. The film base itself always has some del1~ity. howc\er slight. On top of this there is always a sli ght amount of fog due to light :'caltering in the ea mera_ the lens, the cmulsion and~nlso chemica l fog in tl;-c processi ng. The cllm ulati ve em!ct or all of these is called base plus fog. Density measurements arc L1~ually described as x dcnsity above base plus fog. (For more on mcasurement of density, see the section on neLitral density filters in the chapter Fillers.) This toe and shoulder bch:nior actunlly resu lts in a compression of

Number Log

1 0.0

2 0.3

4 0.6

8 0.9

10 1.0

16 1.2

32 1.5

64 1.8

100 2.0

Perception % Reflectance

White 100°

70%

50% -

35%

25%

Middteqray I 7.5% -

12.5%

9%

6%

4.5%

Black 3.5%

Table 6.5. (top) Some va lues for log base' O.

Table 6.6. (above) Reflec tance and gray scale values.

exposure 113

6.12. Compression of the rea l world brightness values so that they fi t onto the fil m. This is w hat makes it possible to make usa ble images even from scenes with hig h contrast ranges. The same princip le applies to VIdeo, whether ana log or d ig ita l. A great deal of the progress of VIdeo as a more acceptable imaging medium has been improvements in its abi lity to compress the image brightness in a way that gets closer to what fil m can usefully manage.

cinematography 114

the aCLUul scene. II' the contras t gradient or the Aim is correct and ex posure is correct. Ihi s compress io n behavior w ill a llow the rull brightness range o f the scene to be represented o n the fi nal print. III effect. it is the failure o f film emu lsion and video receptors to accu­ra te ly represent th e real world that allows us to producc photographs and video that nre usable. Each 111m cmulsion reacts to li ght in a spe­cial way. Some react more quickl y to low light than others creating n rather abrupt ini tia l ri se in density or "short toe:' Others renct morc gradua ll y to increases in light and have what is ca ll ed a "long toe," Films with simil ar sensiti vities and ranges can have quite ditlcrclll response curves requiring diss imi lar exposure and development. Another im pot1ant factor is the range of subj ect luminance that can

be use full y recorded (Figure 6. 12). Low contrast 11 1ms can cOlllinlle to build density over a long luminance range. whereas cOlltrasty I1 lms saturate rath er qui ckly and tend to " bl ock" at eith er end. This is how we can match the type of Aim lIsed to th e Iype of sccne bei ng phOlographcd. Cinematographer David Watk in used a low contrast 111m stock ror the movie 0111 Of Africa, where he dea lt with many very contrasty situations in the harsh African S UIl . The results \vere out standing. Both Fuji and Kodak now make emul sions that are more moderate in contrast than normal film stoc ks.

Determini ng the precise fi lm speed. coupl cd \\<ith prec ise exposure. is criti cal when the range o r light in the scene is grealer than the sca le orthe film. In Fi gure 6. 13. we sec three exposures of the same scene represented by the bars at the bottom of the diagram. Not enough exposure places much orthe inrormati on compl ete ly olrtho low end orthe curve. \vhile too mLlch ex posure places il offlhe high end ~ in e ither case. once you are o ff the curve. fu rther c hange~ in c'X posure regi ster no change in the negati ve; the film doesn't "sec" them. The ideal exposure places all of the information where it makes some change all the negati ve.

I r there is 100 mllch exposure, 1\"/0 things happen. First, even thL' <.hlrk est pa ris of the scene are in the middle range of the cur\'e: even the dark esl shadows will reproduce as midd le gray tones. Graph i­ca ll y, overexposure appears as a shift of the subject bri ghtness range (log E) to th L' ri ght. ( In e flcc t we arc making the scene \'a lue:-.

"brighter" by opening up the aperture.) Here wc sec that th is overex­posure places the scene va lues too I11l1ch in the shoulder. Some infor­ma tion is lost in the nat part orthe shoulder: lost because the differ-

~ /

/ /

/ /

/ /

/ -~ /-""""

Total bright ness

,,' eo

range the II print or Vld IS capable 0' reprooucln 9

CO,,", UI>O''''. No' enough Upo.",.

~nees of scene brigh tn l.!ss va lucs result in no change in the densi ty of lhc negati ve.

Fu rther. because c\ erylhing is shifted to the right none of the scene ,a luo, rail in the toc orthe curve: there \\ ill be no decp black ,a lue, at all in the final prin l. c\-cn though they ex isted ill the origi nal ~cen c. U11dcro, posure is , hOW 11 as a shift of the log E va lues to the left. lI erc every subtle nuance of til e high toncs will be recorded because they lilll in the straight li nc porti on of the curve. But atthc dark end or Ihe scale trouble. The dark va lues of the scene arc l11 ushed together in the toe. There is litt k diffe rent ia tion or the med ium gray \ nlues. the da rk gray val ues and the black shado\\s: in the fi nal print they \\ il l all be a black hole. There wi ll be no detail in the shadows.

"CORRECT" EXPOSURE "Correct" e:\posurc. then. is t!sscnlinll y the apert ure sett ing that \\ ill best suit th e scene brightncss range (the hori zontal ax is: log E) to thl.! characteristic cunc of the imagi ng medium. What is needed is to slip th!.! scene \ -a l lle~ comfortab ly in between the toe and the shoul ­der. J\ typical sccnc \\ ith a se\el1 stop range of light \ al ues fi ts nicely on the cun·e if \\c plnce the exposurc exact ly in the middlc. It is im portan t to remember. ho\\c\·cr. that correct exposure is a purely tec hnica l thing: there an: occasions \\ here you will \\an t to dev iate fro m ideal expo~u rc fo r pictori al or techni ca l reasons ( Figurc~ 6. 14 and 6.15). Tht: relation~hir of the ga mma (the angle of th e straig ht lino portion or the ri lm) to tho lac and the shOldclcr is what deter­mines a 111m's ·'Iatitude." It can be viewed as t\\ 0 characteristics: the elll uision\ roOI11 for error in ex posure or the ab il ity or the 111 m to acccpt a certain brigh tness rangc.

HIGHER BRIGHTNESS RANGE IN THE SCENE Thc problem i~ cxacerba ted ir\\(' consider a !-ocene \\ hic h has morc than sc\cn stops of brightness (se\en stops isj ust an Cl\erage. it all dt:pcmb on the pa rt icular fi lm stock). Il ere there is no aperture se t­ting \\ !lich will place all of the va lues on the lIsc rul part o rthe curvc. If \\ C ex pose fo r the shado\\ s (open up the aperture): we get good rendition of the dark gray areas. but the light values arc hopeless ly air the sealc. If we "espose ror highlights" (by closing down to " sl11aller f SlOp) \\e record alilho ,ariations of the li ghtloncs. butlhe dark ,a lues arc pushed completely a ir the bOllom edge.

Il o\\' do \\c deal \\ itll thi s situation? Later we will discuss some rather abstruse solut ions to the problem (fl aShing. Varicon. Pnna fl as hcr. etc.) but there is one soluti on which is really what we arc all about: we change the brightncss range of the scene so that it

6.13. Changing exposure shifts the image up and down the curve; too much exposure pushes it off the shoulder and too little crushes it into the toe.

exposure 115

6.14 Deliberate overexposure of the main subject adds menace and mys· tery in tlils shot from The Lost Boys (Warner Bros .. 1987). photographed by Michael Chapman.

cInematography 116

\\ ill fit the (lin e urthe !ilm. in other \\ords \\l! alter the illuJl11111.1t1on or the scene. This is dOIli: b) lighllllg or b) modil}ing Ihl' e\lstlng lighting. This thell. is olle of the Illost essential Jobs of lighting. and grip \\ ork: to render the ... cene III a scale ofbrightlless value ... that can be aceomlllodated b) the optic ... and cl11ubion ofa film camera or b) the optil:s and dectronic ... of\ idi:o. It's \\ h) \\e get the big buck.... It also is critical in the choice of location .... camera <.11li!ks <lnd time of da~ to shoot. -

\louern IlIllls haH! consistently imprmeu III lallluti(' e\L'1l a ... thc) ha\e 1lll:I"I.:ased in speed and rcdul:ed gralll. The I1C\\ high 'pel.'d clllub.ions in particular arc am,lIing 111 their abilit) to record ... uotle-tic ... cycn in heavily o\l!rl!\posed highlights and in \ cry dark ... had-0\\ ..... J\lthough there has been some improyellleni. the abilil) to handle brii!htness ratio ... I ... still one of the 1110st crucial dilll.'n:nce, het\\ een film and \ idi:o. I.\poslirc meters gencrally pJ"O\idl! data ~Hl tht.: as ... llllljJlion that \\ hate\ cr you an.:: mt.:asuring should ultlmatel) print as "middle gray:' lkfineu in the Zone System as Zont.: \

DETERMINING EXPOSURE So \\ I! hm I! t\\ 0 basic uhk ...

To manipulatl! tht.: brightlh.!s .... ratio of the "'Cl..":l1e ... o that It ~an hI! propl!rJ) n.::produced on film ur \ ideo. To set the apl!rture .... o that the ... cene \ allies fall on thl! appro· pn<lte part of th l! cunl!.

In practicl! the .... 1! olten tum OLit to be t\\O sides or the saml! COIl1

The lir .... t task is essential Iv Ihe \\ork of li!!htinu and Iluhtlll!.! control. the .... econtl task ill\ohf .. < Ille:huring the ...... ecn~ and ll~akin'1! a IUul.!-Illl!l1t about the best "'I!ttlng for thl! l~ns. '"- . ...

hgure 6.1() sho\\s hO\\ film .... peed IS determllled by the manu­I:lcturl!r. Stricti) spl!akil1g. this method applies only 10 black-und­\\ hile film. The speed of color lilm is determined by testing and is i:\prcss('d as ei ther FI (I'\posure Indc\) or ISO number (1Illerna­lional Slandard, Organinlllon) Illr black-and-\\hiIC flll11 and a, I I ([-\po ... un: Inde\) 1'01' color film. J\lthough the) arc not 11\ c0l11l11on1) llsl!d as thev OI1C(' \\ere. YOU \\ ill still hear referellce to "lIuhtlllu ratio." The iighting ratio I~ thl! relationship orthe key lighllO ,he hI! lichl. If\\e cunsider the a\Cnl!!1..": !llCI!. it is the dill"crencc bct\\cen II;e IIghtl.":r side and the darkl!r ":--idt.:.

THE TOOLS The 1\\ 0 1110st b~l ... ic too!.... of thl! cameraman's trad(' arc the IllCllil!nt I1ll!ter and Ihe spot met(T. There IS a thll'd t) pe of metl!r. thc \\ Ilk angle relkclance meier (\\ hat stili photographcr~ \\ould sil11pl~ call a "Iight I11l!tl!r"). hut it has I!\trl!mcl~ limited lISC in film.

THE INCIDENT METER rllc Incident meter mcasures ~eenc i Ilul1l illation onl \. In other \\ ords. thl! amount ofl ight nliling on the ... celll!. To aCCOml)lish this purposl!.

f

I

1110st incident meters lise a hemispherical while plastic dome \\ hich CO\('f:-. the actual scn:-.ing cell.

rhe dill'u'-ling. dome accolllplishc.:s sc\eraJ pUI1"loses. It difTuscs and hCIKT ··a'·crage ..... the light \\ hich IS falling on it. h also 3ppnJ\lmatt::s

the gCOI11CII) oj'a t),picalthrce-dllllcnsional subject. Unshich.kd. the dome \\ ill read all ofthl' fronl lights and c"ell some oflhe side-back ~lIld hack light thai might hI.! lallTng on the subject. Left 10 ilsclL the hcmi'lphcrc \\ ould pro\idc a reasonable u\ eragc or all tht:: :-.ourccs tillling on the subject. In practice. many people liSC their hand 10

..,hidJ the bal.:k light ol1'll1c rcadlllg and usc a combination of hand shll.:lding and turning the meier to read the backlight and sometimes the key. fill. SIlk lights and back I ights separately (Figure 6.17).

('he cbssica\ practice. 110\\C\l.:r. is (0 point the hemisphere t1in.x:ll) at the lens and dilllinatc onlv the backll1!.hh. then takc a rcadllH! c\i.ll:ll) at the \ub.lcct positi0J1. Reading k;y. 1111 and backlight sep;­ralci\' is in lilet ol1h a \\<-1\ ofdch:rminil1!! the ratios Hlllllookllll!. for out t;r balam;e SOUI:CCS. Tile actual rcadll1~ which \\ ill <.ktcnnin~ the aperture selling is the averaging one. Later we \\ill look al applica­tions \\ hich go beyond the simple claSSical approaL:h and arc useful in dcalill!! \\ ilh unusual situations. \10s\ meters \,hieh arc LISCO \\ ith the ditTu~ing dome also come \\ ilh a nat dilTuslIlg plate \\ 11Iell ha ... a

D·mllx

-peon'

o 1 ~ .. ty O¥. WI •• ~ rog D·m

• Base .. log

6.15. Lee Garmes regularly lit Mar lene Dietrich one stop hotter than everyone else, as in this scene from Shanghai Express (Paramount Publix Corp., t 932).

6.16. How speed (ASA or ISO) s determined in black-and-white film.

exposur 11 7

6,17. A reflectance meter with dome receptor, This one also runctions as a flash meter, wide-angle reflectance meter and has a mini-receptor ror macro work.

clnemalography 118

much smaller acceptance angle {about...J.5 to S5°} and ha~ a cO~lI1e response rather than an u\'craging Olle, This means that the angle of the light falling on the plate has an e tfect on the reading. just a~ it does in illuminating a subjecl.

The flat plate makes taking readings for indi\'idual lights simpler and is also useful for measuring illuminntion on nat surfaces. such as in art copy work, animation plates. etc. Incidellt meters are g\!l1cr­ally abo supplied "ilh a leJ1licular glass plale "hich eOll\erllhelll to wide acceptance relkctance meters. These see little usc on mo:..t sets as they ha\e \cry \\ide acceptance angles and it is dilTicuit to exc lude extmneous sources rrom the reading.

For the most part, incident melc r~ afC set for the film speed and shulter speed bcing used (either e lectronica ll y or by w'Iing slide-in plates) and then read out directl y in r numbers. Sume meters ha\ e an alternate mode whi ch reads fOOl-candies directly; the lIser is thcn able to calcu latc exposure separatel y. This is useful if there is 110 slide lor Ihe exposure inde\ (EI) being used.

THE REFLECTANCE METER Rcflcelal1l:e meters read the actua l lum inance of the subJcrl. \\ hirh is itself an integration of t\\ u Iflt.:turs: the light le\cI ralllJll.! on th~ seellL: and the r~f1ccti\ity of th l! subj ect. (Fig~lrc 6.1 X). ~

On Ihe tllCC or il. Ihi s lIould see m 10 be Ihe mosllouicalmelhlld or rc:ading the scene. but there is a catch. Simply put. a~spot meter \\ ill tcllu!'l how much light a subject is reflecting but this Icmcs olle \ CI)

big ul1an s\\ered question: ho\\ much light do you \\all! It to rel1eel') I Jl o thcr \\ ords: incident meters pro\ ide abso lutc rcadouts (I' stops) \\ hile :-.pot meters pro"idt.: rclati\c readouts \\ hich require intcrpreta­tion. \Vhile most ~pot Ill c t e r~ wcre fonne rl ) calibrated in \,.'\posure \ ailic (EV) units. somc of the nc\\ electron ic spot mcters prU\ ide direct readout in r'stop~, but it \\ould probably be beller if thl.!)­didn't as they arc a sourcc of Illuch confusion.

Think or it this \\'ay: you arc llsing slleh a meter and photograph­ing a \cry fair ski nned girl holding a bo\ of delergelll in li'om ora sl1 lbl.! l. You read the girl's fact.:: f 5.6, the bo\ reads f -L the SK\. IS

r ~~. So \\ here an.! YO~I ? 1\ot 0111 ) do \\ e not kllU\\ \\ here to set'thc aperture. we don't e\-en knO\\ if the situation is good or bad. Ll!t's step back a Illoment and think nboul what it is that light meters arc telling liS. To do Ihi ~ \\ e ha\ e to lIlH.krstand the cycle of tOIlC rcpro­duction and lay do\\n a basic system of thinking aboll tlt .

THE ZONE SYSTEM \.ve must reml:mber that the c\po .... urc \ alues of J scene an: not repn:­.... e\lted by one :.. impk number: mast scenes conta in 11 \\ J(.k rang\,.' or light \a lues and n:ncctances. In e\al unting e"poslIn: \\c must look at a subjcct in terms o f it:-. light and dark \a llies: the subjcct range or brightne~:... For purposes of simplicit)- we \\ ill ignore Its color \a lu('s for thl! moment and analY/e th l! subject in terms of its mono­ch romatic \alues.

Let's \ isuali zc a continuolls sca le or gra) nlll1e~ from completel: black to compl etely white (Figun: 6.20). Each point on the gra: scak represents a CCJ1ain \ alue \\ hich is equi\aJcnt to a tonal \alll\! in the scene. In e\eryday language \\"C hm c on ly \aguc adjec­ti "e~ \\ ith \\ hich to describe the toncs: "dark gray:' "mcdium gra~:'

"blinding \\ hitc" and so on. We need morc prec ise descriptions. Us ing Anse l Adan"s c lass ic terminology \\e \\ ill call the most C0111-

pJelCly black seelion Zone () and each lOne" hi ch is one r SlOp

lighter is one 70ne "highcr." For cxample, a subject area \\hich renec ts three stops more li ght thal1 thc darkc:-.t arca in the SC(,I1(,

\\ould hI.! tk~Il!lKlI~d Zonl.! 1\. It I~ crucial to remember that th..:sl..:! an: all rclati\c~ lone 0 i~ Ilot som~ pn:c.ktcrlllincd numhcr of foot-calldlc~ II i"i the darkc~t arca III this scene.

Still photographers might bc acclistomed 10 thinking of tl.!l1 lones III all. but If Ihl.!lT is a ~reat contrast ran!,!c in the scenc. there mi!.!ht \\ell be 101ll>. \11. XIII or morl.!. (Zone ':-YS1CIl1 purists \\ ill no do~bt nbj~ct 10 "illch an c\.lrellle 'Iimplificution of the method. but it is suffi­cicnt for thc prc:-,clll di~clI:-''IlOn since fc\\ cinclllatographer~ do their 0\\11 darkroom \\ork). \\hal \\e arc l11ea~uring is subject brightness (llIml11allc~). \\ Ilich can \ ar) in tWD \\ays: its inherent n:ftct:lance and the amount of light that nllb on it. Rcllectance Is a proper!) of the material lise! r. Black \ I.!l\et reflects about 21) 0 of thc Ii gh! that nilis on 11.:\ \ cr) Shill) ~lIrI~lce C<tll rdlect lip 10 981)0 orthe.: light that r"ll, on it. 1"11i, i, a brighlno" ralio (flR) or I AX. Ho\\~\er. thl' is the n:l1eclallCC ratio if thc same amount of light

",II, 011 bOlh ohjoe". III roalil). dilleronl allloun" oflrghl 1,,11 Oil dif­tcreIH area~ in the ~amc frame.: (indeed. \\c make Ollr li\illg making 6.18 The reflectance or spot meter ... lIre lhc~ do). In naturallighl ,illialiom. the reflectance ratio call be a:-. l1lllch as 3200: I. Picture the most c\.(rCllle c\.3mplc pos ... ib1e: a piece of c.\ln:ll1cly ab~orbl'lll \'l!I\e.:t in deep ,hmiLm in the same ... celle \\ ith a mirror reflecting thl.! SUIl.

The brightness range 01" a t) pit:al outdoor ,ubJect i~ about 1000: I. I'hls is 15 stop~ Hnd hl.!re\ the rub: imaging syst":Jlh cannot rcpro­dw.:c thi~ rang!.: of ~tlbjl'Cl brightne.:ss, ju ... t as the humun l') l' cannot <.Hxol11l1lodatc such a runge.:. Re.:call that thl.!' human C) e re.:ach in t\\ n dilTcrent \\ays. First. Ihl' iri, (the aperture orlhe eye) expands or con­tract:-- to :.lIlm\ 1110n.: or less light 10 pa~s. Se.:cond. the ~yl' ..,hin ... 11\

IInaging rrol11lhe conl'~ 10 the rod!). Thi ... is like s\\ itching to a higher spced film. (It I ... ab.o. in e ... ~cncc. S\\ itching 10 hlack-and-\\ Illte film: ,ce the chapter Oil Color Theon )

ZONES IN A SCENE I· \amine a t) pical SCI.!IlC \\ nh tht' spot Illctl.!r ",ce Figun: 6.21. I r \ ou assil!1l the darkest \ aluc to ZOlle 0 YOU call the.:n find arL'n~ \\ hich ·i.m.~ I. 2~ J. ·t 5. 6. 7 and rerhaps ~ slops brighler lhan the darkest area" Thl· .... e.: are ZOIll:..., I through IX. ThiS i..., all IInportanl e.:\creisc and is \ ital to ltn(kr~tanding I.:\posurc COl1trol. Ignol"ll1g the d"fect of cl)lor contr~"t can be cumbersome. It t:UIl be hl.:lped by \ k\\ ing the ...,celll.' through a \it."'\\ ing glass. \\ hich i~ a nClItral den,ity filter. '0\\ pictun: ~ach ortht:se tonal \ aluc~ arranged In ascending order

""hal )OU ha\c is a gra) "calt.:. and fortunately it i ... a comlllonl) :.1\ nil­ahle.: ill.!l11. Most gray scalc..., arl.! made to re.:asonable ngortlus dcnsito­metric standards and arc lIst."'J"ul calibration tools. Le.:'·s wkc a look al \\ hat it rcall) i .... (rigurl.! (l.~O).

6.19. The secret of a good silhouette shot is to properly expose for the background, as In this frame from Nine Ti2 Weeks, ShOl by Peter Biziou.

exposure 119

6.20. Zones 0 through IX. a stepped gra~ scale and a continuous gray sca e. By convention zones are repre-sented in Roman numerals.

cmematography 120

Film Density

IX 1.33

Pure white

VIII 1.l8

Very light gray

VII 0,97

Textured

light gray

VI 0,76

Lt. middle gray

V 0,62

Middle gray

IV 0.48

Dark middle

gray

III 0.34

Textured dark

gray

II 0,21

Very dark gray

0,11 Nearly black

o 0.Q1

Dmax

Zone Grayscale

IX

VIII

VII

VI

V

IV

III

II

o

THE GRAY SCALE There arc a great many gray sca l c~ but they all h3\"c one thi ng in COl11l11on: they vary frolll black to white. Most arc divided into six to ten steps but they certainly don't ha ve to be : many ure 20 step~ or morc. How white the while is and hmv black the black is varies some\\ hat depending on the printing quali ty and the materials ill\·olved. Some sca les include a piece of black velvet sincc black paper can ne\ cr be trul y black. For our pu rposes, we wi ll consider onl y gray scales where each step represents one fult '·stop" incre­ment over the previolls. Ihal is: where each step is ...)2 times the reneclancc of the pre\ iou, one (Table 6.7).

WHY 18%7 Zone V is the middle zone of a ten-zonc scalc and we would thcre­fcre assume it to be 500;0 refl ectance. It isn't - it is 18% reflectance. The reason for thi s is thai the eye perceives changes in tonc logarith-

Zone X

Zone IX

Zone VI II

Zone VII

Zone VI

ZoneV

Zone IV

Zone III

Zone II

Zone I

ZoneO

100%

70%

50%

35%

25%

17.5%

12.5%

9%

6%

4.5%

3.5%

mically rather than arithmetically. as wc saw above. I f each zone Table 6.7. Percentage of reflectance were. for exam pl e. 10°0 more reflecti ve than the previolls. the eye for zones. \\ ou ld not read it as a smooth spectrum.

Discussion of the zonc system is always in tcrms of grays, but any co lor can be interpreted in tcrms of its gray scale value. The impor­HlI1Ce of va lue can not be stressed too much. The value relationships between colors carry about ninety percent of the informat ion in any picturc. In a bIaek-and-\\ hite photograph the gradicn ts of light and ~hadow on forms contains the information about form. clearly defin­ing all the objects. The black-and-wh ite photo also contains the information about the amount and dircction of light in the scene. Color contributes a small amount of information. but a great amount of the beauty and intercst of the picture. -

In fac t it \\orks out as in Table 6.7. Eacil step is greater than the previous by ~2. a fa miliar number. no? The square root of 2 is also thc dcrivation of the fl stop ser ies. What appears middIc gray (Zone V) to the eye is actually 17- 112% reil ee tance, which is uni ver­sal ly rounded off to 1 8° '0. There's morc: it tUI'llS out that if you take dozens of spot read ings oftypieal sce nes. 1110st wi ll turn out to have an a\ erage reflectance of about 180/0. Simply put: 18% is the aver­age rc-necLance of the normal world. C lea rl y it is not the average refl ectance in a coa l mine or in the Sahara at mid-day, but in the most of the rest of the world il is a reasonable work.ing average. Thi s gi\'cs us a solid ground on \\ hich to build. In facl. it is the standard on \\ hich incidcntl11eters arc built . As you reca ll. in the introduction to inc idem meters we noted that most incident meters, when set for fi lm speed and shuller speed, read out directly in t/ stops.

ZONE DENSITY DESCRIPTION

0 0.02 Dmax.

0.11 1 5t perceptible value lighter than black. II 0.21 Very, very dark gray III 0.34 Ful ly textured dark gray IV 0.48 Dark middle gray

V 0.62 Middle gray - 18% reflectance VI 0.76 Light middle gray

VII 0.97 Ful ly textured light gray VIII 1.18 Very light gray IX 1.33 First perceptible gray darker than pure white X 1.44 Pure white Table 6.8. Zones. negative density

and description.

exposure 121

ZONE IX

ZONE IIX

ZONE VIII

ZONE VII

ZONE VI

ZONEV

ZONE IV

ZONE III

ZONE II

ZONE I

ZONED

6.21. Zones in a black-and-white 1-10\\ do Ihey do this"! 1-10\\ can the) 1..110\\ ,f\\e arc photographing prinl. (Photo by author.) diamonds on a \\hitt.' ba<:kgwulld or a chilllllcy-...,\\cep ill the ba...,~­

mCIl!? They don't kllo\\. they just aSSllllle that \\c arc photographing a scene ur;:ncragc reflectance:-- and the ditfusing dome i.l\erngcs the light <Ind the 111('I\::r calculates the fstop needed to photograph the ~ccnc for good e:\po~urt' based on these a~sllll1plion~. More sllllply; ir \\c arc photographing a I..'ard thai is L'\uctl: lXon rclkctancc (a photographic gray card) <lnt! \\c reud the light \\ ith an incidcIllIlH:tCr. then sct the aperture to the :-,IOP the meter indicmc:-.. the print \\ ill 111

ItH;t come oul to be Zone V.

Cinematography 122

Tr~ thi, c'(pcrimcnt. Sct a photographic gn.l) card ill C\ en, UIlI­

form light. Rl..:ad il \\ illl a spot 1111.:1t.:r and note thi.! f'stop Ih~ me\l..'r indicates, Then read the light \\ ilh an incident meter. The rcadin!.!s ... hould be c\actl) the sa1l1e~ lflhey 'rc not. ha\ c j"our rneter~ check~d. '10\\ U') n rl'\L'rsl' i.!xperimcllt. Rl.:aci a uniformly lit scenc \\ illl all

incidcnt meter and Iloticl: the indicated stop. Nm\ take the "'[1\)1 meter and read \arious paris of the scene until you find somcthing that the spot mcler indicates as the same fSlop. You ha\t.: .iLl:--t [()lllld

a Zone V subjt.:ct brightncss. NtH\ photograph the "cent:' \\ilh a black-and-\\hltc Polaroid or

\\ illl black-and-\\ hile Jilm. Compare the Zonc V subject \\ lIh thl.' gray card: thc) should be roughl) thc same, Thi s i ... the ... unplc kc~ \\ hieh unlock ... the \\ orld of e\posure control:

nn incident reading. an ,1\ crage 1 go (J ["i.!lkctancc. i.l SpOi meter reading ora gray card and

Zone \ ' nrc all the same th ing looked at from diOcrcnt perspecti ve. The result of this is that there arc many dincrcnt ways to read the

exposure ofa scene and arri,"c at the sa llle result . You can read it with an incident meter. YOLI can place a g ray card in the scene and read it wi th a spot meter. YOll can find something in the scene that is '''Zone V" and read it \\ ith the spot meter.

Let"s think about that last one. because it rea lly points us in a whole new direction. It depends on you making a certain judgment: you ha\'e to look at a scene in the real world of color and decide that it is abollt Zone V or middle gray. (It takes some practi ce to do thi s. but it is an incred ibl y important exercise: I urge you 10 do it often.) \Vhat about the next logical step: what if there isn't anything in the scene that is middle gray? What do \\le do then '? Let's remember that each step on the gray sca le is one SlOp diITerent from its neighbor (remember. th b is a simplified version of the zone system ). So if Zone V equals rt4 (given a particular Aim and shuner speed) then Zone VI must be 115.6 and Zone IV must be m.8. right"

So if there is nothing in the scene that equals Zone V, but there is something in the scene that equals Zone VI. we're still in business. If we read it and it equals f5 .6 then we know that Zone V would be r -I. We also know that Zone V (r/4 in thi s example) is thc sa me as an incident or average reading and is therefore the correct f/stop to set on the lens.

So what is therc that \I e can eoulll onto be roughly Zone VI under Illost conditions? Easy one: Caucasian skin . Average Caucas ian sk in is around Zone VI. it is in fact one of the few constants we can coun t 011. Get alit your light meter and check it out. If yoll are C\-e!" stuck wi thout an incident meter. or worse. even without a spot meter you ca n alway~ lise the old "palm lrick'" Use your spot meter or any reRecting meter to read the palm or your hand. This eq ual s Zone VI. Then open up one stop to get Zone V and you ha ve your reading. There is a greater \ariu tion in non-caucasian skin and so there is no one standa~d. howeve r many DP's take Zone V as a starting point for African-America ns.

J lhink you can see where Ihi ~ leads LI S. \Ve donlt have to conr-ine ourse l ve~ to j ust read ing things that equal Zone V and Zone VI: in ract we can do it wi th any zone . It all depends on your judgment of what gray tone a subject brightness should be. In rea l life. it takes years of practice and mental di sc ipline to accurately determine sub­ject br ig htll e~ses in terms of gray sca le va lues. but in the long rUIl it is a lIseful sk ill. If you can pre-v isuali7e \\hat gray-sca le value you want a parti cu lar subject to be in the fin al print. you then have the power to "place" it where you want it in the ex posure range. Thi s turns out to be a powerful ana lytical and design tool.

PLACE AND FALL What do \\ e mean b) ··placement?"· \Ve just sa\\ its simplest form. We "p laced" the skin-tone value of the hand on Zone VI. We can. if we wanl. place any val ue in the scene. Say we have a gray back­ground in the scene which the director wants to be "light gray." We decide that by light gray. she means Zone VI I (two stops above middle gray). We then read tile background wi th a spot meter and it indicates f 4. We then coun t dOI\ n two SlOpS and get 112. I f we set the lens at ['2. that gray backgrollnd will photograph a~ "light gray" or ZOl1e VII.

exposure 123

cinematography 124

Let's try the reverse as a thought ex periment. Say \\ c had tht.: same background under exactly the samc lighting condlllOn~, but the director decided she wa nted it to be dark gray. "hich \\ e take to mean Zone III. \Vc read it with the spot meter and of course noth1l1g has changcd, the spot meter still indicales f/4, only nO\\ we \vant the gray background to appear much darker, so we "placc" it 011 Zone III . which we do by couilling "up" two SLOPS to get fiX, Common sense tell s liS that if we photograph the same sccile at f8 instead of f/2. it is going to comc out much darker in the final print : the gray background "ill not be Zone III (dark gray) instead of Zono VII ( light gray).

Nothing has changed in the actual set: we have changed the value of the final print by "placing" the va lue of thc background di ITer· clltly, But what's the flaw in this ointment? There is more 111 the scene than just a gray background, and whatever else is thl.!rc is go ing to be photographing lighter or darker at the same lime. This bri ngs us to the second half ofthe process: ··rall."

If you place a certain value in a scene on a certain /on~. other values in that scene are goi ng to fall on the gray sca le accordlllg to how much diITercnt they are in illumi nation and reflectance. For our example. let's assume we are usi ng a Pcntax Spotmcter \\ hi ch has a zone dial attached to it. TIle Pen la;>.. reads in EVs. Typical \\ hite skin lone is a Zone VI. You read an 3(.;tor's face and find that it reads EV 10. Turn tho dial so that 10 aligns with Zone VI. Now read the ex posure indicated opposite Zone V: thi s is the exposure to ~ct the lens aperture. adding adjustments ror filter {',olOrs. etc.

Let's try an cxample. We arc li ghting a SC I with a windO\\. \\c set a 10K to simulate sunlight streaming in through the wi ndo\\·. \Ve then read thc curtains and thc spot meter indicates r I I. We have decided that we wan t the curtains to bc \ cry "hot" but 110t burned out. On the film stock we are usi ng today, \·\e kno\\ that whi te "burns out" at about thrce stops hotter than Zone V. So we want to "place" the curtains on Zone VIII (three stops hotter than the average exposure). By placing the curtains on Zonc VIII. we have determined the r stop of the camera: it will be f/4. right '?

'We thelltake an inc ident reading in the room where the people \\ ill bc standing. The incident reading is f2.8. This means that people standing in that posi tion \\ ill photograph one zone too dark . Maybe for thi s scene that 's OK, but let's assu me we want to actors to have normal exposure \\ hi ch \\ ill result in 110rmal skin tone valucs. In other words Zone VI "fa ll s" at 114 (one stop abovc the incident read­ing, whi ch equals Zone V). Their skin tonc will cOllle out as Zone V instead or Zone VI. To correct the si tuation we have to change the ba lance. If\\cju"l

Opl.!l1 lip the Icn ~ , \\e arc shifting the placement of the curtains and they will bum out. We must change the ra tio of the illumination. not just shift the aperture of the camera. We ctl n either tone dO\\-1l the 10K hitting the vl indo\\' with a double scrim (reducing it one ~top) or we ca n raisc the expo~urc of the subject arca by inc rca~il1g the light level there onc stop. Either way are man ipulating the subject \al ues of the foreground to "fall" where wc want them, based on our "p lacemen t" of the curtains on Zone VIII. We could hm e just as easi ly approached it from anot her direc tion, of coursc. We could

"p lacc" the forcground va lues where we want them and then see where the cu rtains " 1~1I1 :' It "s the sa mc thi ng. By reading the scene in different ways you can "place" the valucs of the ncgati \-e \vhen: you " ant thcm to 1,,11 .

Placcment is important in detcrmining subject brightness rangc~ and con trast ra tios and in reading subject s which you ctln't gCllO ror

an incident reading. I n order to expose by placement YOll mllst pn:­visualize which zone you want a subject va lue to reproduce as. For Ansel Adams. the godfather of ex posure, pre-visuali7a tiol1 was what it was all about. and remember. he dealt most ly with landscapes \\ here he had no control over lighting. Since we usua lly control the ligh ting we can take pre-visual ization one step furth er.

READING EXPOSURE WITH ULTRAVIOLET Ultrm iolet lights present a special problem. Several companies make ultrm iolet light sources. They include Wildfire and Noctul'll . When combined with props or clothing pa inted \\ ith UV sensiti ve fluorescent paints or dyes or \\ ith objects that naturally fluoresce such as your old Jimi Hendrix poster. an incident reading is mean­ingless. The only \ alid means of assessing exposure is a reflected reading. A wide angle reflec tance meter will work if' you ha ve one, or ha\ e an adapter for your incident meter. If that is not ava ilable, a spot read ing will work. Here. it is important to consider the Zone va lues and use judgment and calculate the exposure accordingly.

EXPOSURE AND THE CAMERA Nearly all film cameras have rotating reflex shutters. \\ hich control exposure by altcmatcly rotating closed and open sections pa!:.t the film plane: while the closed section is in from or the film gate. lhe film moves. while the open section is in fro nt or the gate. the film is exposed (Figures 6.12 and 6.13). Some video cameras also ha ve variable exposure times.

The exposure time or the camera is determined by t\\O factors: the speed at which the shutter is operating and the size of' the op~n sec­tion. The speed is determined by the rrame rate al which the camera is operating. The U.S. standard is 24 frames per second for sync sound filming and the European ~tandard is 25 frames per :;ccolld (based on the 50 cycles per second power supply). This carries over to High Der~hooting as well in 24P or 25P mode. The open section of the rotating shutter assclllbl) i~ referred to a~ the "shutter angle" and is measured in ck grees. Sensibly. most shutters arc hal r opcn and half closed, \\ hich makes the shutter angle I SO . Some shutter, are 165 0 and many arc adjustable (Table 6.11).

\Vith the camera operating at 1-1 Ij)S and a 1800 shutter. the c"po­sure time is I 48th of a second ( I 50th at European 25 Ips). Thi, is commonly rounded o lT to 1/50th of a second and is considered the standmd Illolion picture exposure time.

Light metcrs that u:-,e diOcrent slidc~ rur \at-iolls ASAs (such as the \enerab le Spectra or Studio Sekonic). just assume a I 50th of a second ex posure. Exposun: time can then \ary in 1\"0 ways: by changin g the frame rate (which i:-, C01ll1110n) and by \"arying the ~ hllt ­ter angle (which is kss COl11l11on). Exposure is determined by thi:-. formula:

Shutter speed lor I HO shutter

Expo~ure in second:.. 2 \ fps

sh ut ter (1)(:I~gldcgrecs) 360 x fr:1m es per :-.ccond

MORE INFORMATION For morc on cxpo~urc, including detailed tables for c\posurc \\ ith filt ers. macro. miniatures. shutter changes. shutter angle. ramping. \arious film stocks. high and low speed shooling. special effects and ot her data. sec Tht! Fi/1I1fJllI/...er \ Pocket ReFerence.

exposure 125

FPS

Stops

-Table 6.9. (top) Exposure changes for high speed shooting.

Table 6.10. (above, right) Exposure changes for low speed shooting. Both this chart and table 6.9 appfy equally to film and video.

6.22. (above middle) Butterfly rotat­ing shutter from a reflex film camera.

6.23. (above) Adjustable rotating shutter. Shutter angle adjustment in video or High Def cameras is done electronicalfy.

Table 6.11 .(right) Exposure cha nges with various shutter angles. These shutter angles are typical for various makes of film cameras.

cinematography 126

FPS 8 12 16 24 25 I 32 48 96 120 240

1/16 1/24 1/32 1150 1/50 11/60 1/100 11200 1/250 1/500

EXPOSURE 120° 180 0 SHUTIER (in stops) 165° 5HUTIER SHUTIER

180 No chanqe 165 120

140 - 1/3 130 100

11 0 2/3 100 80

90 1 80 60

70 1 1/ 3 65 50

55 1 2/ 3 50 40

45 2 40 30

35 21/3 30

30 22/3 25

22 3 20

18 3 1/3 15

For a more detailed discuss ion of ex posure in regard to lighting with scene lighting examples. see Motion Picture (md Vic/eo Lighting. both publi shed by Focal Press.

color theory

7.' . (previous page) Color theory played a key role in the selection of wardrode and props, graphic impact and harmony In tlii5 shot staged in front of a New York City firehouse. (Photo by author.) 7.2. (right)The naturally occuring color spectrum and respective wavelengths in nanometers.

cinematography 128

THE NATURE OF LIGHT As we recall frolll the chapter 011 ex posure. light i~ composed of photons. which havc thc properties of both matter and light. Even Newton recognized that individual photons don't have "co lor". but they do have dinerent properties or energy which cau!)C thelll to interact in different ways with physical matter. which. \\ hen reflected is perceived by the eyelbraill combination as "color."

Every single photon of light ilHS a characteristic color \\ hich can vary i f the observer is moving toward or away fromlhc light source. Visible light is a small part 01" thc continuous spectrum of electro­magnetic radiat ion most of which is not directly obscnablc. and was unknown until the last ccntury. At the 10\\ frequcncy (long \\O\C­

length) end of the spectrum we find radio. television. micro\\3\ c. and infra-red radiation. (Figure 7.2).

Then we encounter a tiny slice of the speclrum which we can sec with our eyes: this extends from red to violet - the colors of the rainbow. Thcy were origina lly classified as Red. Orange. Yello\\. Green. Bluc. Ind igo and Vio let. (R-O-Y-G-B-I-V). Abo'e ,iolet the high frcquency arc ultra-violet. x-rays. and gamma ray' .

Indigo is no longcr recognizcd as a color of the spectrum so the I is no longer used. Where formcrl y it could bc memoriLed a, Roy G. Biv, Roy no long has a vowel in his last name and it is 110\\

Roy G. Bv. Visible light is on ly produced when an electron falls into the second shell of an atom. Differcllt colors happen bccause atoms have difTerent sizes, different nuclear charges. and influences on each other when they arc close together. For our purposes. it is conventiona l to consider \ isible light as a wave, as it cxhibits all properties of a wave and follows the S:1I11C rules as all electromag­netic waves.

\Vaves have four major properties: Ampli tude Frequcncy Wavelength Specd

Amplitude is the height of thc wavc. (Figure 7.3). It >ho\\, the energy of the evcnt thaI started the wave. In the prc\'iolls pond example. if we had hoi sted a large boulder and (with the help of a friend) launched it into the pond. \\ e would have seen much higher waves come crashing toward us. For example. in audio. loud soul1(j~ have high amplitude.

Frequency is a measure of the number of". aves that pas~ a point 111

a given amount of time. It is usually measured in Il ert/ ( li z>. One hei'lz means one wave (peak to peak) passes every ~econd. \Vhcn \\c count waves. we have to divide the whole W3\ cform into pal1'-1. The easiest v .. ay to do this is to go from one cre~t to another. Thi .... bone \vcn-e. We can no\\ count the number of crests passing in a second to find our frequcnc y. Again. to lise an audio analogy. A !-ihort frequency wave is a very high pitched sOllnd - like a dog \\ hbtlc. A long frequency wave is a low pitched sound, like a bass note on a guitar. Wavelength is just that: the length of tile wave. It is meihufcd in units of distance. \\ hich can be anything from l11eter!-i to nanomc-

380nm ."""" S60nm 590Iun 6301m ''''''"' r ,--

tel's. 1\ nanometer is one t hou~and - millionth or a meier. (A meter. j ust for refercnce, is one milli onth of the di stance from the equi.1lor to the North Pole.)

COLOR PERCEPTION The percept ion or color is a com piex phenomenon which il1\ oh es the physic, or light. the nature of physical matter, the phys iology of the eye and it 's interaction wi th the brain and even social and cul­tural factors. We can break it down to fi ve aspects:

• Abstract relationships: purely abstract manipulation of color for it's 0\\ n sa ke.

o Representation: e.g .. a sky is blue. an apple is red. • Ma terial concerns: texture: chalky, shiny, re fl ecti ve. dul l. etc. • Con notation and sym bolism: Associati ve meanings. memory,

cultural signili c3llce, mythical reference. The red, white and blue of the fl ag.

o Emot ional ex press ion: the fiery red of passion. the cold blue of night. etc.

MOM peop le can tell YO ll th at the three primaries arc red, green and blue. but few ca n say \\'hy Ihese. of all colors arc the primaries. The reason IS 111 our eyc~.

THE TRISTI MULUS THEORY The human retina is fi ll ed \\ ith two kinds of light rt!ceptors \\t'hieh arc ca ll cd rods and cones. (Fi gure 7.4). The rods arc primarily responsible 1'01' the perception of light and dark : va lue or graysca le. The cones primaril y perceive color. The rctina has 3 kinds of cones. The response of each type of cone as a functi on of the \\ ave length of the incident light is shown bel ow. The peaks for each curve are nt 4-10nl11 (b luc). 545 nl11 (grecn) and 580nl11 (rcd). Note that the last t\\O ac tually peak in the ycll o\\ part of the spectrum.

FUNCTIONS OF THE EYE There are many theories to exp lain the phenomenon of color \is ion. The most eas il y understood i ~ the three-component theory wh ieh a~sumes th re~ k ind~ of li ght sen~ iti\ e clemcnt s (concs) each recepti ve to one or the primary co lors of light - an extrcmc spec­trum red. (Figure 7.5), an c'.:trclllc spectrum violet and an imaginary green. There arc about seven milli on cone in cach eyc. They arc located primari ly in the cent ra l ponian of the retina call ed the fovea. and arc highl y sensiti \ c to color. People can resolve fi ne detai ls \\ ith these cOl1e!\ largely beca use each one is connected to its own nerve cnd. Muscles controlling the cye always rotate the eyeball until the imagc of the object of our interest fall s on the fovea. Cone vision is kno\\ 11 a!\ photopic or dayti me \' i!-. ion.

Other light receptors. cal led rods. arc also present in the eye but they are 110t invoh ed in color " ision. Rods sen e to gi\e a general. overall picture of the fi eld of vie\\ , and arc recepti ve onl y to the

Wavelength

Amplitude

1 second

Frequency (hz) 7.3. Components of a wave.

color theory 129

/

----,., ~humor

• ,~

.."" RN,n .. .pm

fa""') .'1

" , ,

COPIIES ;oos \

\ ~

I \ P ... Ii fi

\( ~ \

V )

~ ,1 \Ii " 1< Jr II I' I \ \ ;... .,. A ~

" ~ V' " ) ~

[,

7.4. (topl Physiology of the eye.

7.5. (above) Rods and cones in the retina.

7.6. Spectral response of the human eye.

cinematog raphy 130

quantity of light \\ a\ t!s entering the C) c. Sc\'eral rod~ an,:: c.:onn~l'led to a si ng le nerve end; thus they cannot resoh c fine ,kLail. Rod~ arc SClls it i\c 10 low Ic\cls o f i llulllimtlioll and enable the cve to sec at night or under \.!xtrc ll1dy 10\\ light ing condi ti on~. Thcrcl~)I"('. objects which appear brightly colored in daylight \\ hen ~een by the color­sCnSili\c cones appear only as colorless ronns by moonlight bccau~c on ly the rods arc sti mulated. This i~ knO\\ n as ~colOric \ j"illll .

THE PURKINJE EFFECT AND MOVIE MOONLIGHT As the adjaccl1l spectral sen ~i ti \ ity CUlyeS sho\\ . the eye i .... nuL equnlly scn~ iti\ c to all \\ avc lcngth. In dim ligh t parti cu larl :. there is a definite shift in the apparent brightness ordilTcrL'nt eo l nr~. This \\as disco\cred by Johannes \on Purki njc. While \\ ~Ii~ ing ~II <.I[l\\n one day. \ on Purkinje obscned that blue fl O\\ crs appeared brighter than red. \"hik in full daylight the r(:d fl o\\cr!-> \\cr(: brighter than the blue. Thi s is now ca lled the Purkinj(: effect Clnd is particu larl y importi.lnt in photometry the mcasuremcnt of light. The Purkinjc clTcct fools thc brain itllo pcrcei\ ing moonligllt as !-> Iightl y blueish. even though as reflected sunlight. it is the same color as daylight. Thi :-; is the rca..,on it is a COI1\ cnt ion to light night scenes blue.

LIGHT AND COLOR Color is light. bUI the color ofobjccb is a combi nation of the color of the li ght and the nature of the material it is l ~l l1il1 g on and being reflected by. Essenti all y. the color of an object i.., the w;l\cknghts of light which it docs nol absorb. Sunlight appears \\ hite it con­tain s all colors. Light is an additi\e system of co lor. Red . Gn::cll and Blue arl..! the prima ric:,. \¥hen mixcd in pairs they prouuee i\ lagenta. Cyan and Yello\\ (a hOl rl.:d . a blue green. a bright yc llo\\). Thc mi\­ture orall co lors in light creates \\ hitc. The human eye hns receptor" (cone,) Red Green. Blue Ycllo\\ \\ hieh 1f00"latc li Qht '\(1\e, or dir­fc rin g length to the optic !len'c. The eye i ~ not equall] "clhit\e to all colors. (Figure 7.6) thi s has I ~lr ranging i lllp licatioJl~ in color thcor). c,'\posli rc and c\ en light meter:...

Pain t is a "i ubtrac ti ve system or co lor. The prilllaric~ arc Red. Blue and Yello\". The mix ing of' pailll rcmO\ es subtracts light. All color ... mixed" ould produce a Illuddy gnt) bro\\·n. or thl.:oreticaii) blad .. For our purposes \\c will be discussing the subtracli\c sy"tcm of color. hut painters need to under~tand both. Since the \\ orld they tf) to capturl..! in paint and thei r actual paintings an.' aflccted b~ light and the additive system of eo lor. Color has rour basic qualitic,: Iluc. Va lue. Chroma and Tem perature. The first three arc phy, iea l propcr­tics and are otten ea lkd thl..! dimen~ioJ1s or color. The la ... t l'\ i1 p~:. cho logical aspect of a co lor.

The Fi rst Dimcnsion: Ilu L' 1\ hue i~ a \\an'kn!.!th of IIi.du. It is that quality by \\ hich \\e give 1lL1IllCS to color (i.e .. red. yello\\. bluc. etc.) The a\ crage per~on can dis tinguish around 150 di ~tinct hllc~. The hue ora color b simply a udinition ofit'~ \\avekllgth : it"" place on thc natural co lor spcct rum .

Ilue. along \\ ith Chroma (saturation) and Va lue (I ight Il CS~ uarkne~;,) make up the three di stinct attributes of color. The terms "red" ,mel "bluc" arc primarily desc rib ing hue - hue is re lated to W:.J\ t.:length for spectral co lors. It is convcnient to arrange Ihe saturated hul.'~ around a Ne\\ ton Color Ci rck . Slaning from red and proceeding c1ockwi~c around th l..! ci rcle belo\\ to blue proceed~ rrom long to shaner \\i:\\elcngths. HO\\c\cr it shO\\s that not all hul.' ''' can be rep­resented by spectra l colors sinc!.! [here is no si ngle \\;'1\ elength or light \\ hic h has the magenta hue - it may be produced by an equal mi xture of red and blue. Newton created the color he calkd purple by mixing red <.Ind blue pigments. thus creating a \\ heel of co l or~.

The S~cond Dimension is Valli!.! Relativc lightness of darkness or I.:olor.\ iighteJl!.!d color is calkd a Tint; created by adding white 10 i.l color :\ darkened color is called a Shade. created b," adding etth~r black or a complemcnt to a color. Dark colors arc often called 1 0\\ Key Colur .... pale colors arc II igh Key Colors.

VALUE \·alll~. along \\ 1Ih Chroma (saturation) and Iluc Illak~ LIp thl..: three disllllct attribllt~s of color. (hgure 7.X). Thl..: rclati\ ~ lightnes .... of a colored .... url~lCC lkpel1(h upon the itllllllinalH.:e and upon lis renec-11\ il~. Since the pCl'l..:ci\'cU lightnes!'. is not linearly proportional to th~ rclkcti\it). a scale from 0 to 10 i .... lIscd to rcprc .... cnt perceived lightnes .... III 1..:0101' lllea .... urcll1ent systcm .... like the Munsell S) .... tCI11. It i:-. fOllnd that l:ljllal sllrn1c~s \\itll differing .... p~ctral characteristics hut \\ 11Ich cmll th~ sam~ llul11lll:r of lumens \\ III be percci\ed to be equall) light. If Olll! sllrfm:c el111ts or reflects 1110rc 11I1l11..:ns. it \\ ill be pl!reci\ ed to be lighter in a logarithmic relationship \\ hich yields a constanl lIlcrt:<lse in liuhtl1ess or aboul 1.5 unit.... \\ ilh each doublirH! of lightlh.!s:-,. -- ...

1.\1,.(1) J1ur~ hu~ h~h its 0\\11 \alue before ml\ing. 1\0 color IS a ... dark as black or as light as \\ hit~. but ]1mc \ iokt iC') darker than pure orange: y\.'llo\\ is lighter than green. By arranging Ihe color wheel as a I..:olor-\ aille \\ heel. according 10 the \allie or each hue. we dcn:lop a .... impk cune. \\ 1111 \ iolct as the dar~cs{ hue and )cllO\\ a ... Ih~ lightest. Th~ average person can distinguish abollt200 distinct \alue changes. \'alue 1 ... 110t equal for all hue .... Th~ Third Dimension: Chroma. (also calico InlCnSJlY ano Satura­

tion) rh~ .... tl'!.!nglh orlhe coloI'. or relati\~ purity o(a color its hrilllancc or dullness (gra) ne ... :-.}. Any huc i ... mo!'.t bright 111 lis pure ,laic \I hen no black or "hile ha, been added 10 il. Adding black or \\ 11IIe or hl)lh (gray). or adding Ihc color\ complemcnl (the color opposite it on the color \\ heel) Ilmcr ... the intensit). making a color duller. :\ color at it.s low~st po ... :-.ibk· intcnsity i:-. said to be neutral. Ilere Ihe a\·crage J1cr ... on can sec only about 20 le\'els of chroma rhange

fcmpcnllUl'e: Anothcr asp,,-'cl of a color i~ temperature. The lem­p~rall1re is the n:lati\e \\~1I1111h or coolness or a hue. This derives from the psychological reactIOn 10 color red or rco or,~ngc thc \\armcsl <Ind blue or blue grccllthe coolest. It has been proven Ihat peopk I.:oming 111 Ihun Ihe cold to a room panted in cool colors

7.7. Color is a crucial component of this frame from Days of Heaven. The primary red and the orange tones function not only as pure color but also have strong associations with mood and time of day - both of which are important in the story of this film. The shooting schedule of the film was built around times of day when shots like this could be captured - there is no way you can fake a shot like this with a special filter or "fix it up in post."

7.8. Value is the relative lightness or darkness of a particular hue as shown here.

, :; ;"'A aJJ..§:tIe~ry

131

" ,~

YrAA .. I ) " /

/ ,

7 .9 . (above) Warm and cool colors.

7.10. (right) The derivation of the color wneel from the spectrum, as devised by Newton.

7.11 . Primary, secondary and tertiary diVIsions on the color wheel.

Clnemalography 132.

RED

Magenta

take longer to kcl \\ ann than those coming il1lo a 1'00111 painted ill

\\tlnll color:-" L,cn body temperature has been round to difli:r by a fe\\ degree ::. in roOIll~ painted warm to Lho:-.c painted cool. Color lcmpcratun; is dcri\ 'cd from physicaltcmJ1cralurc a nelltral bod~ \\hen heated \\ill fir:.,! glO\\ red. then orange and eventually \\hite.

THE COLOR WHEEL Arti:-.b hu\c found it helpful to bend the linear spectrulll around in a cin.:k called the color \\ heel. The British !'!ciCJ11ist Sir Isaac Nc\\ LOn. \\ 110 disco\crcd the spectrum in thl! !,!l!vcntccnth century. abo turned illnlO a color \\hccl. (Figure 7.10) Onlhc color \\hcel. inslea" of bClI1g at opposite e'(lrel1le~. red and \iolct lie nc\\ LO 0111.: another. \ circular spectrum bdtcr desc ribes Ollr perception of the l;onlIIlUOll!'! 110\\ or hue!'!. and it establbhcs oppositl!s across the diamctcr .... Thc co lor \\ he!;.'1 is created by \\ rapping the \. isiblc spectrum into a circle and JOI ning thl:: nil- red end (Ioing \\ tI\ eh.:ngths) to thl! I~lr \ inlet I::nd (.~ .. hort \\u\-elcngtlb).

Primary Color ... ;.Ire hUl::s \\ !lich cannot be mhcd and frum \\ hich all olhl.:r"-colors can be Illi\ed . III light the) an.' red. green and blue Secondary Color ... arc IHICS madl! by mi\ing \\\0 prim~rie ....

RED+BLUI- "'Iagenta BLUE + CiRH:1\ Cyan RLD +- GRr:EN )'ello\\

TCrli~lI) Color ... are cOlllblllalion~ orlhc ~ccoJ1dary color .... Tilc Pri­mary, sl.'condi.ll) and tertiary colors together make up the I\\chl.: colors of thl! basic color \\ heel. (Figure 7. I I )

BEYOND THE COLOR WHEEL The color \\ hcc?l i~ vcry lIseful bu t it dea ls onl y wi th hue. the spectral color. It tells us nothing aboul how bright the co lor is or how li gh t or dark it j~ in Icrl11~ of the gray scale.

THE MUNSELL SYSTEM One of the most in fluent ia l co lor-modeling systems wa~ devised by Albert Henry M unse ll. an American art ist. M unsell desired to create a "rational \\ay to descri be color" that would lise clear dec imal nota­tion instead of arbi tra ry co lor names. The Munsell system describes color in three dimensional forl11 . T he hues arc arranged in a circle. Vnriations in chroma are away fr0111 or towards the central axis and \ 'ariatiolls in va lue arc lip and down the centra l ax is. I lis system. \\ hich he began in 1 X98 \\ ilh the creat ion or his co lor sphere. or trec. saw ih rull expression wi th his publi cation, A C%r No/a/ioN, in 1905. This work has been repri nted several ti mes and is still a stan­dard lor colorimet ry (the measuri ng of color).

Munse ll modeled his system a~ a globe around whose equator runs a band of' colors. (Fig ures 7. 12 and 7.13). The ax is of the orb is a sca le or nelltral gray va lucs with white as the north pole and black as the soutb pole. Extending horiLonLally rrom the axis at each gray \H lue is a gradation of color progressing from ncutral gray to fu ll sat uration .

HUE, CHROMA AND VALUE MUI1!'!c11 named these aspecb, or qua li ties. I1 1Ic. Value. "Ild Chroma. They are similar to thc trad itional uses or thesc terms. blll slightly di fTercnt in some ways.

HUE Munse ll defined hue as "the quali ty by \\ hich \\e distinguish aile co lor from another." I lue is the spectral color: it can be defi ned by its wavelength on the electromagneti c spectrum. It is whut. in cveryday bl1guage. wc ca ll '\ :0101'. "

Munsell selected five princip le colors (this is s li ghtly d ilTcrent rrom the "primary" co lors): red. ye llow. grccn. bluc, and purpl c~ and fi ve intermediate co lors: yellow-red. grecn-yellow. blllc-green, pur­ple-b lue. and red-purple: and he alTanged these in a whee lmcasured 01T in 100 compass points:

The colors were si mply identified as R for red, YR for red-yello". Y for ye llow, etc. Each primary and intermediate color was a llo ttcd len degrees around the compass and then further identified by its place in the segment. For example. primary red wou ld be ident ified as 5R since it stands at the mid-po int of the red seg ment. 2.5 R would be a red lending more toward red-purple, while 7.S R is a red tending more toward yellow-red.

VALUE Va lue was den ned by Munsell as "the quality by wh ich we distin­guish a light color from a cbrk one. " In common language it might be rererrcd to as "dark red" or "light red." Value is a neutral ax is that refers to the gray Icvel or the co lor which ranges rrom whilC to black. As notations such as lOR. 5YR, 7.5 I'B, etc. denote particular hues, the notation N is used to dcnote the gray value at any point on the axis. Thus a va luc of SN would denote a middle gray, 2N a dark gray. and 7N a light gray. In Munse ll 's original system, va lues I Nand 9N are, respecti vely, b lack and white. though this lVas la ter expanded to va lues o f 0 (black) through 10 (white). We can, of course, sec precise paralle ls to the Zone System. Remember the :lone system is a way or considcring all visible things in terms or

color theory 133

7.12. (top, right) and 7.13 (bottom, right) Advancing and retreating color in Barry Lyndon. Viewed as invidual sements within the film. the color just becomes part of the scene. When look at them in direct opposition we can more clearly see how they playa role in the storytelling of each moment in the film,

cinematography 134

their lieh! and dark \allll~ withollt n:uard to thl.!ir cnlor I il:n.' '\1..' arc just adding the clements or co lor. ~

The 'HILIC of a particular hue would be noteu with the \ allll.' alia the hue designation. I"or c\umpJc. SPB 6 imliciltc ... i.l middk purph:­blue at the \ alue 10\ el or 6. It ,hould be noted. too. that \Iu'bdl\ scale of \allic i\ \ i~lIal. or pcrct.!pllIal. That i .... it's ba ... ed llil Illl\\ \\ C see dill,-:rcnces in n.:lati\ c light. not 011 a strict ..,el of mathemati­cal ,allies from a Iiglll source .... or illuillinam. This I" he\..'au~\..' th\..' eye brain combination docs not pcrcei\c all hues ano \aluc~ e4lJall~ (The ('IE syC')lel11 dcscribed belo\\ is a more l11athCm<lIlCalmcthoo of describing color: a mcthod which can be more closeh i.hslh.:iated \\ ith color e~llllsion or electronic represl:J1tations of col~)r)

CHROMA Chroma is the quality that distinguishes the dilYcrcm':l: from a pur\..' hue to a gray shade. The chroma axis exh.!nds from the \ allll.' u\i ... at a right angle and thc amount of chroma is noted alter the \ alw: designation. Wc can. of course. sec preciC')t..! parallels to tht..! Ion\..' systcm. Remcmber thc lonc system is a \\ ay of considering all \ IS­

ible thin~s III terms of their licht and dark \allll~s. Ilm\ c\ er. chroma is not uniform for cvcry huc ~~ CVCI'} \'alue. Munsell n..'cogni/\..'d that full chroma for indi\ idual hucs might be achieH~d at \ef) diffen..'nt places in thc co lor ~phcrc. For e:\ample. the fullest chroma for hut.: 5RP (rcd-purple) "achic\ed at 5 26: Another color ",eh as IOYR (yello\\ ish ycllo\\-red) has a much shorter chroma 3\is and readle~ fullc,t chroma at 710 and (, 10:

HUE Ct,I, ,,01 ~anous _ are '-"',lied ill" " ," nt al'QlvS 001.

, .... ar::JUl"d" 1'18' "",,,,j'o'lC ~, It'Ie letO POI ~I

CHROMA Cnroma oroeasetl >utward Irom !tie r>eU11,,1 ;U ,,,,,,,.'0 ~lIonger COIOf'1'

[

VALUE Vatue oncreases .naease5 upwafd ,,,

0IadI 81 ltle bonorn 10 "'Me a the lOp BIocI< ... M e ana !/fays who:;n have no huO ~ , ... Iocaled 0f1 D v(lt1ocallona call&d 1M "l'I8u!talll>C""

In the Munsell System. reds. blues. and purples tend to be stronger hu~s that m'cragc higher chroma va lues at full saturation , while yel­lows and greens arc weaker hues that average fulle st chroma satu­ration relatively close to the nell tral axis. Reds, blues. and purples reach fullest satu ration at mid-leve ls on the value sca le, while yel-10\\ s and greens reach it at higher va lues. The result of these dif­ferences is that what Munsell originall y cn" isioncu as a sphere is radically asymmetrical. A three-d imensional so lid representation of Munsell's syste m is sho\\n in Figures 7.14 and 7. 15.

COLOR MIXING

COMPLEMENTARY Hues direetl) oppos ite one another on the color whee l arc ca ll ed complements. They arc ca ll ed complements because Lhey contain or complete the (riad of primary co lors - for example. the primary red is opposi te the secondary green. which contains the primaries yellow and blue.

ADVANCING AND RETREATING COLOR Another psyc hological response: hottest. darkest co lors mo,·e for­ward aggressively as do black. brown. dark blue and dark green. Pale tones retreat. Pale green and blue th e furth est. Pa le reds. oranges and ye ll ows recede but not as rar as cools. Yello\\ though light. advances when intense. (Figures 7. 12 and 7. 13).

Weight and Balance - The way we sec co lor depends not only on the color themselves, but also on the size of each color area, on the shapes that contain the co lor, and on thc interac tion bet\\cen neigh­boring co lors. Darker hues, like darker values. tend to be heavier looking than li ghter ones. yet. warm intense colors like yell ,,\\, and orange and can overpower a darker color.

FILM AND VIDEO COLORS PACE The medium, whether it is paint. television. fi lm. fabric or printed matter. also affects the possible range of co lors. i.e .. a ll the possible variations in hue, value and chroma that can be achieved in a medium. is referred (0 as its color gamut. In monitors and video sys­tems, it is often referred to as co lorspace.

7.14. (above) The Munsell system is formed as a tree structure; the varia ­tions in horizontal size are due to the fact that some hues reach full satura­tion sooner than others.

7.' s. {left)The Munsell system repre­sents hue, chroma and value as three axes of a tree structure.

7.16. Relative colorspace of film and video.

co lor theory

135

7.17. Triadic harmonies.

7.18. (below) Complimentaries.

7.1 9. (bottom) Split complimenta­ries.

RED ted.tnagElflla orange

... genla * Velo.

violel yelOWlgeoo

BLUE GREEN

cyan.t)~e geenJcyan Cyan

HED

'.~' 0"'9' Magenla Yellow

~"e""9001. / \ ' ••• ~'"'' BLUE GREEN

cyan blue groonlcyan ey,n

Cinematography 136

nUl · .... ·n .. ,,· ""~CB"N

TRANSPARENCY AND REF LEGION These lend to lighten color. Transparcncy is the ability to ~cc through the co lor to another under it. Reflection on a farm as \vell us trans­parency will lighted it. In pa il1lthe transparcncy and rcflecti\-c qual­ity of the paint will alTect the va lue and intensity of the color as \\clL th is principle is lIsed in set painting. prop and wardrobe :md can affect lighting choices.

COLOR HARMONIES & THE INTERACTION OF COLOR Co lor Harmony - Like music. co lor ca n be strongly cmoti\c and expressive. CCl1a in combinat ions of color. as of sound, hm.: ~ccmed to have special beauty or bc intrinsically pleasing in ways mo~t people recogn ize intuitively. The notions of balance and resolution arc impli ed in color harmony. Il armony refers to clear rclationship~ based on di vis ions of the color wheel. sec Figures 7.17. 7. 1 X and 7. 19. Some examples of color harmony 1'0110\\:

Monochrome Co lor Harmony refers to a harmony orlOnc~ of all the sa me hue but at difTerent values and intensity (i .e. tin ts and shades of Blue). Ana logous Co lor Il armony - is a harmony of hues close to o r touching one another 011 the color wheel, although of different val ues and intens ities. (i.e. ye llow-green. green and blue-green or ye ll ow. green and blue). Tri adic Harmoni cs - arc based on groups of three colors marc o r less eq uidistant from onc another on the color wheel. The Ihree primary or Ihe three secondary co lo rs form triadic harmonies, but any group of three will serve. if they an.:: c\'enl y spaced arollnd the color whee l. Complementary Ilal'monies - invo lve the pairing orany two colors that s it oppos ite one another on the color ,\-heel. (i.e. red with green, yellow with violel) Split Complementa ry Harmonics - group a color not with ils complement. but with the pair of colors adjacent to its complement. (i.e. ye llow with red-vio let and blue-violet. blue with ye llow orange and red orange. red wi lh yellow-green and blue-green). Di scord and Di scordant Colors - Colors can be mismatched or out of hanna ny, often referred 10 c lashing colors . This hap­pen s when a groupi ng of' harmoni ous co lors are placed next to a co lor outside the hamlOny.

INTERAGION OF COLOR AND VISUAL PHENOMENA 1\11 perception of color is based on an interaction of color. One color ca nnot be seen unless it has o thers around it. Scicn tists have put ind ividuals in a room pa inted in one co lo r. The subj ect could nOl d ist ingu ish what color the rOOI11 was, instead they saw white. Only when another color was introduced to the environment were they ab le to see color. More ill1po l1ant is the understanding of how color changes when surrounded by or touching other colors. The efTecl of si multaneous contrast is greatest at (he edges between colors or on patterns o f sma ll sca le.

Degradation of Colors: On~ color adjacent to another color \-vill give a ting~ of its complcmcnt to thc other color. Therefore. two adjaccnt complemcntary colors brightcn each other. Thcreforc non­complementary colors will have the opposite efTect. A yellow next to (I grecn will gh c the green a violet tinge, making thc latter appear muddy. This is known as the degradation of color.

AFTERIMAGES Eyc fatigue by staring at a color or a bright light can occur: this causes liS to sec an image in opposition of what we were looking at as relaxation from the stress of one color. A red dot will give a green afterimage. One canlrain their eyes LO look into the shadow of a color and you can find its complement.

THE LAWS OF SIMULTANEOUS CONTRAST Devised by the French chemist Michel-Eugene ehevrcul, the law of simultaneous contrast "as first described in his book "The La" of Simultaneous Contrast" writtcn in 1839. When one object is ncxt 10 another it is useful if any color difference between them is empha­sized. Think of a man in <I bro\\J1 jacket standing in front of a brick wall. lie is easier to distinguish if the cye/brain combination empha­sizes \vhatevcr color di/Terence exists between the jacket and the wall. To do this. the visual system modifies our perception or the red in both the jacket and the wall. but the adjustment is larger in the jacket since it is smaller and surrounded by the wall. The result of this adjustment is called simultaneous contrast. Put more simply: our perception of a color is changed by a color that surrounds and touches it. Both colors arc actually changed by being next to each other. When two dilTerelll colors come into direct contact. the con­trast intensifies the difTerence between them. (Figure 7.20).

A light color ncxtto a dark color will appear lighter and the dark will appear darker. The same is true for hue (i.e. yellow/greener). temperature (hotter/cooler) and chroma (brighter/duller).

Colors arc modified in appearance by their proximity to olher colors. All light colors seem most striking against black. Dark colors seem most striking against white. Dark colors upon light colors look darker than on dark colors. Light colors lIpon dark colors look lighter than light colors. Colors are influenced in hue by adjacent colors. each tinting its neighbors with its OWll complement. Ir two complementary colors lie side by side. each seems marc intense than by itself. Dark Ilues on a dark ground which is not complementary \\ ill appear weaker than on a complementary ground. Light colors on a light ground which is not complcmcntaty will seem weaker than on a complementary ground. A bright color against a dull color orthe same hue will further deaden the color. When a bright color is lIsed against a dull color. thc contrast \\ ill be strongest \\ hen the latter is complementary. Light colors on light grounds (not complemcntary) can be greatly strengthened if bounded by narrow bands of black or complementary colors. Dark colors on dark grounds (not complemeIllary) can be strengthened if similarly bounded by white or light colors.

7.20. Simultaneous contrast in prac­tice.

color theory 137

7.21. Additive color.

7.22. Subtractive color.

cinematography 138

METAMERISM 1\11 this is closely relatl.:d to metamerism. Tvvo colors that match under one light ~ource. but do not mateh under a dilTen:nt IIglll source are called 111etamers. They arc said to be a metameric match. Metamerism occurs bccausc the appearance of a color depends on the wavelengths it reflects \\ hich. in tum. dcpcnd on thl..: wa\c­lengths of the light source.

This can ha\e an important influence of the selection or color" for sets or props. especially in the case of green ")creen or bluc "icn:cn work. Always take the light source into consideration when pre­vie\\ ing paint chips. "ardrobe. makeup. etc. Obviously. tillS IS the reason that the makeup rOOI11 and wardrobe trailer should have a

light source \\ hich approximates \\ hat will be used on the set

COLOR MODElS In addition to the pioneering Munsell system. sc\cral diflercnl color models arc used to classify colors and to qualify them according to slich attributes as hue. saturation. chroma. lightness. or brightness. Thcre arc a number of models which :.Ire relcnll1t to film and \ ideo:

THE RGB (CMY) COLOR MODEL The red. green. blue (RGB) and cyan. magenta. yello\\ (C~IY) mode ls arc closely related; one is based on the additive primaries and the other on the additive secondaries. These arc also the most representative Illodcl~ for additive and subtracti\e color~. respec­tively. RGB is also the basic color model for video and computer monitors.

CMY is most commonly referred to as CMYK. The K stands for black (since B is already used for Bluc). In subtractive colors (inb and paints) adding all three primaries together theoreticall} pro­duces black. In additive color. mixing the three primaries together produces \\ hite light. So black has to be considered as a separate color.

ADDITIVE COLORS J\dditi\c colors ar~ those relevant to light and mixing colors Illl1ght. (Figure 7.21). The 1110st common examples of this arc telcyision screens and computer monitors. \\ hieh produce colored pi\cls b) firing red. green. and blue clectron guns at phosphors on thc tclc\i­sion or monitor screen. Additive color can be produced by mi\ing 1\\ 0 beams of colored light. or by laycring 1\\0 or marc colored gels or by showing thc t\\ 0 colors in rapid slIccssiol1.

This call be illustrated by a technique used in the earliest e\pl:ri-111(:nls \\ ilh additi\ c colors: color \\ heels. These arc disk~ whose sur­face is di\ idcd into arcas of solid color. \\' hen attached to a motor and spun at high speed. the human cye canl10t distingUIsh bct\\ccn the separate color.., and secs them instead as a composite of the colors on the disk. Color can also bo mixed by showing small bits of color c1osel) spaced together Stich as pi\cls all a ,ideo screen.

SUBTRACTIVE COLORS SubtraCli\ C color:-. arc lIsed to describe \\ hell pigments in an object absorb certain \\ avelcngths of white light \\ hile reflecting the rest. (Figure 7.22). Any colorcd object. "hether natural or man-made. absorbs sOllle \\,a\'clcngths of liglll and reflects or transmits othcr:o.: the \\a\'ckllgths len in the reflected transmitted light make lip the color wc sec. This is the nature of print color and cyan. magcJ1w. and yello\\. as lIsed in four-color process printing. arc considered to be the subtracLi\'e pnmaries. The subtracti\'e color Illodd III printing operates not only \\ ith CMY(K). but also \\ ith printing inks.

RGB Red. green. and blue arc the primary sti muli 1'01' human color percep­tion and are the primary additive colors. The importance of RGB as a color model is Ihal il relales very closely 10 Ihe \I ay we percei\e color with the conI.? receptors in ollr retinas. RGB is the color model used in \ ideo or any olhcr medium thai projecls Ihe color. II i, Ihe basic color model on COlllplltcr~ and is llsed for web graphics.

CMY(K) C) an. magenla. and yc llo\l correspond roughly 10 Ihe primary colors in aft production: r~d. blue. and yel lo\\ - they arc the secondary colors oflhe addilive syslem.

BOlh models Ii,II shari of reproducing all Ihe colors we can see. Furthermore. they differ to stich an extent that there arc many RGB colors Ihal can not be produced using CMY(K). and similarly. Ihere arc some CMY colors Ihal can not be produced using RGB. The e,aCI RGB or CMY gamut depends on other factors '" well. Every RGB de\ icc. \I hether it be color negati"e. transparenc) film. video ca mera. display monitor. color pri nter, co lor scanner. etc .. has it's O\\llllniqllc gam ut it's 0\\ 11 coiorspacc. there will always be some \ariation as <In image mO\CS from system to sy"ih.!m.

THE HSB/HLS MODEL Hue. saturation. and briglllncss and hue. lightlll..!ss. and saturation arc t\\O \"C:lria tions of a si milar model that is a standard for computer grclphics and some \ ideo applications. It closely approximates the qualities 1110St apparent to human perception of co lor.

IISH IlLS are 1\1'0 \ariation, or a \cry basic co lor model for dcfin-1I1g colors in cksktop graphic~ programs that closely matches th~ \vay \\c percci\-c color. This model is somewhat analogolls to Mun­scll's :-.vstCIll of hue, \"('lluc. and chroma in that it uscs three similar Cl:\CS to define 3 color. In IISB. these arc hue. saturation . and bright­ness: in IlLS. they arc defined by hue. lightl1ess. and saturation.

HUE The \ alues for the hue u\is run from 0-360° beginning and ending \\ ith red and rUllning through green. blue and all intermediary color~ like greenish-blue. orange. purple. etc. In this respecl. IlLS is very similar 10 I\lulU,ell's color \I hcel. Although Munsell used a ditTerent method for indicating hue. both arrange the colors in a circu lar pat­tern and progress them through compass points. Saturation indicates thl..! degree to \\ hich th~ hue difrers from a neutral gray. The \alucs run Ihun 0°0. \\hich is 110 color sat uration. to 100°0. \\!lich is the fullest saturation of a gi\ cn hue at a given percentage of illumina­tiol1. This is similar to Munsell's concept of chroma.

Lightness (\Hluc) inc.iiCaLc!'I th~ le"cI or illumination. The valuc.!s run as perccntag~s: 0(10 appears black (no light) while 100°'0 is full iliu111111ation, which \\a~hcs out the color (it appears \\ hite). In thi" respect. the lightnes .... ,,\b i~ similar to Munsell's \ aluc '.I\is. Color ... at pcrcentngc~ less than 50u

,0 appear dnrkcr \\ hilc colors at greater than 5011

0 appear lighter.

THE ClE COLOR SYSTEM The.! ('I E color models arc highly influential system" for mcasllJ"lng color and di .... tinguishing bct\\ccn colors. The C.I.E. color system \\H!-> dc\ Iscd by the C.I.E. (Commission International de 1'l:c1airagc

the Intcrnationa l Commission on Illumination) in 1931 and has since bl!coll1c an international standard for m~asuring, dcsignating. and matching color:-.. (Figure 7.23). In the C.I.E. system. thc relati\ c perccntages of cach of the thcon:tical primary colors (red. grecn.

7.23. A diagram of the ( tE color system.

color theory 139

CInematography 140

blue) of a color to be identified arc mathematically deri\ed. then ploned on a Chromaticity Diagram as one chromaticity point. the dominant wavelength and purity can be determined. i\ll possible co lors may be designated on the Chromatici ty Diagram, whi.!thcr they arc em itted, transmitted. or rellec ted. Thus. the C. I.E. system may be coordi nated with all other color designation systems. Any co lor on the C IE chromatici ty diagram can be considered to be a mixture orlhe three C IE primaries. X.V and Z. That mixture may be spec ified by three numbers X.Y and Z, ca lled tristimulus "alues

The light from a co lored object is measured to obtain its Spec trul Power Density (S PD ) and the va lue for the SPD at each wa,elength is multiplied times the three co lor matching function!) and summed to obtain X. Y. and Z. These va lues arc then used to calculate the CI F chromaticity coordinates.

STANDARD LIGHT SOURCES IN ClE The following CI E standard sources \I ere defined in 1931:

Source A - A tungsten-A lament lamp with a color tcmpcrn­tlIre of 2S5-lK Source B - A model of 110011 sunlight with a tcmpl.!ralUfC or

4ROOK Source C A model of average daylight with a temperature of6500K.

This is slightly dilTerent from the standard 5500K daylight a, defined by the U.S. go, efll men!. The 5500K standard is st ill \I idel) u~ed for lighting instruments, globes and corrccti on ge ls.

DIGITAL AND ElECTRONIC COLOR Elect ronic color is disp laycd on lCIc\ ision and computer scrccn~ through the use of a cat hode-ray tube (C RT) . A CRT II orks b) 1110\ ing back and forth behind the screen to illuminate or act i\atc the phosphor dots on the inside of the glass tube. Co lor monitor> use threc different types of phosphors that appear red . green. und bluc \\ hcn acti vated. Thcse pho~phors are placed close togdilcr. and when combined 111 differing intens ities can produce lllallY dif­ferent colors. The primaries of clectronic color arc therefore red. green. and blue. and other colors can be made by combining diOcr­ent intcnsities of these three colors. There are difTerences in the mea­surcment systcm or analog and digital video. The intensi ty of each color is measured on a sca le from 0 to 255 (in the digital system). and a color is specified by tell ing the monitor the RGB lalue,. For instance. yello\l is spec ifi ed by telling the computer to add 255 red. 255 green. and 0 bluc. Video color is analyscd all the \'cctorscopc. which is discussed in detail in the chapter on 17deo alld lIigh De(

the tools of lighting

8.1. (previous page) Lighting can be a character in ttle story as well as merely illumination for the subject and the sets: Bladerunner (Warner Bros. 19821.

8.2. Below, a 12K HMI with desert wheels. (Photo courtesy of Back­stage Equipment Inc.)

Cinematography 142

THE SEVEN TYPES OF LIGHTING EQUIPMENT DP's and directors do not need to know all the delHils of 110\\ each piece of lighting equipment works but it is essential that the) kllO\\ the capab ilities and possibilities of each unit as \\ell as Its limita­tions. A great deal oi'limc can be wasted by lIsing a light or picel.! of grip equipmenl which is inapproprime for Ihe job. One of Ihe Dr\ most important functions is ordering the right lighting cquipmclll for Ihe job and usi ng il approprimely. MOlion piclure lighh fall 11110 sc,'en general categories: IIM ls. tungsten fresnels. tungsten open face lights. fluorescent. \ellons. practicals and sUllguns.

HMI IIMls generate three to rour times the light of tungsten halogen. but consume up to 75°'0 less energy for the same output. ""hen a tungslen bulb is color correclcd 10 match daylight. Ihe ad\ anlUge increases to seven times as a great deal or the spectrum is absorbed by Ihc blue gel (color lemperalure blue or CTB. Sec Ihe chapler on co lor balance). Because IIMls are more emcienl in cOl1\erling power to ligh t. they generate less heat than a tungsten lamp \\ ith the same OUlPUI (Figure K.1).

11M I Slands l'or Ihe basic componenls: H is from Ihe Lalln symbol for mercury (1Ig) \\ hich is used primarily 10 creale Ihc lamp \ohage. M is for the many rare earth metals such as sysporsium. thulium and homium which cOll trol the co lor temperanlre of the output. I swnds for iodine and bromine which are halogen compounds. The halogen serves much the sa mt.! function as in a tungsten halogen lamp in pro­longing Ihe useful life of Ihe bulb and ensures thai the rare earlh metals remain concentrated in the hot lone of the arc.

HMI lamps ha\"e two ekctrodes made from tungsten \\ IHcll proj­eel inlo a cy lindrical or ellipsoidal discharge chamber. Unlike IUng­stell bulbs which have H continuous filament oftungstcll \\ ire. II\1b creatc an electrical arc \\ hich jumps from one electrode to another and generate light and heal in the process. Color temperature as it is measured for tung~tcn bulbs or sunlight does not technically aprl) 10 11M Is (or to other types of discharge lighting sllch a~ Iluorescents) because the} producc a quasi-continllous spectrum. In actual prac­lice though. tht.! same mcasurements and color tcmpefalun:: Jl1l.!h:r ... arc uscd for all types of video and motion picture lighting sources,

In an IIM I lamp tht.! basic mercury discharge spectrum is \cr:- dIS­

continuous and conCl'ntratcd in a fe\\ 11arrO\\ bands. The output of the rare earths fills out the spectrum and produces a spectrum \l'l}

close to daylight. Sourct.!s. especiall} those \\ ith other than contlllu­ous '"nat ural'" spectrums. can \ary in hO\\ well the} "shO\\" the color of an object. Recall our discussion or mctamerism in the chapter on color theory. Metamcrism is whae an object appears to he i.l Cl.!rtalll color under one light sourcc but looks quite ditrercnt under another. The farthl.!r a source is from a true spectrum. the greater this mi...,­match \\ ill be.

COLOR RENDERING INDEX Lights arc classiAed according 10 Color Rcndering Indes leRII. This is a method of quantifying ho\\ accu rately a lightlllg ... ource displays the color of an object (sec the discussion of metamerism in Ihe chaplcr C%/' T"('o/'r). i\ CR I or 90 or abmc (on a scak of 010 100) is considered neccssary l'or (ill11 and \ ideo \\ork. The CRI is especially important \\ hen judgll1g fluorescelll and other gas di ... -charge sources. J-'or most IIMl s the color renderin!! inde\ i ... l!rcater than .... 90. and thus abo\e the 11111limlllll for film and ~ ideo. \\ h~n lirst developed. II tvl b \\ ere nOI dimmable b,u unils ha\ e become 'l\ all­ab le \\ hich can be dimllled to -tOo 0 of their rated output \\ hicll cor-

n:::~J1ond ... to 30°0 of their IIglll outpUl. Therc is somc ... Iight shin of color tempenllure under these conditions. Under nOnllai conditions a decrease in \oltage to the ballast will make the light ~hift slightly cooler. This is the opposite ora tungstcn bulb \\ hich gets warmer as the \oltage drop ....

BALLASTS AlIllMb rcqlllrc a ballasl. A'S \\ ith a carbon me or an arc \\ cider. thc ballast includes a choke \\ hich acts as a current limiter. The reason for this is sImple: an arc i~ basically a dcad shorl; if the current v .. 'ere allowed to flo\\ freely. the circuit would O\erload and either blo\\ the fuse or burn lip. Early ballasts for HMIs were extremely hea\) and bulky (200 pounds or marc) as they contained currcnt limiters \\ hich consisted of hem y copper wire wound in a coil like a trans­former. This coil ballast v.orks on thc principle ofrcactal1ce (Figurc 1' .3).

The ilH'clltion of the smallcr and liglllcr elcctronic ballast \\as a major impro\·cmenl. Electronic ballasts also allo\\ the unit to operate 011 il square-wave, \\ hich solvcs thc flickcr problem as \\e \\ ill sec in the chnpter on technical issues. The squan.:-\\a\ e also increases light cfTiciency by about R%. Voltages as high a' 12.000 vile or 1110re arc needed to start the arc.

\\ hich is prO\ ided by il separate ignitor circuit in the: ballast. This (re­ates the PO\\ er needed for the electric current to jump across the gap bel\\eCn the two electrodes. The typical opcrating voltage is around :WOv. When a lamp is already hot. much higher \ oltages arc needed in order to ioni/e the pressurized gap between the electrodes. Thi~ ean be from 20kV to 1110rc than 65 kV. For this reason. sOl11e IIMls cannot b~ restruck \\ hile hal. Ilot restrikc. which genenttes il higher voltage to 0\ ereolllc th is resistance is a feature on Illost IlC\\ er 11~1 b . The l~aSOI1 fur this is that once all HMI is hot. the gases inside the bulb arc pressurized and ionized: they provide grealc ..... r resistance and therefore il high \'oltage is necessary to jump the gilp.

Due to de\ itrilkation (deterioration orthe glass of the bulb). \\ hich IIlCreilSes as the lamp ages. the color temperature falls by about 0.5 to I K pcr hour burned. depending on the \\attage. HMI bulbs should not be opeJ'iJtcd more than 25°'0 past their rated life as there is a danger of c:\plosion.

18K'S AND 12K'S The IRK and the 12K HMls arc the mast po\\erful fresnci lights currently a-ailablc. Like all 11Mb the) are extremely ellicient in luminous output per wall ofinpul power. They produce a very sharp, clean light \\hich is the result of having a vcry small source (the gas arc) \\ hich i~ rocu~ed through a \ cry largc lens (usually a 24" lens I,)r both types) (Figure 8.-1). These large lights arc ill\aluable \\here \CI)' large an:as arc being

co\ered or there is a need for high light le\els for high-specd shoot­ing. They ilI\: also a natural for sunlight effects sllch as sun beams through a \\'indo\\ or any other situation \\ here a strong well defined beam i~ nceded. They arc also among the fc\\ sources (along wilh I-IM I PARs) \\ h,ch w ill balance da}light and fill in the shadows suf­ficiently to permit shooting in the bare sun \\ ithout silks or reflectors. The 1~'Ct that they bum approximately "daylight blue" (5500 degrees keh in) is a tremendous advantage in these situations: no light is lost to tilters. Orten \\ hen a 12K or 18K is used to fill in sunlight it is the only unit operating on a gencrator. Ifit \\as drawing on one leg only. the load would be c\tremcJv difficult to balance and might damage the generator. · ........

8.3. The ballast acts as a transformer to provide operating voltage and also starting voltage which can be as high as 20,OOOV. It is also a current limiter.

the tool< of lighting 143

8.4. A 12K/18K HMI, currently the most powerful fresnel light available. (Photo courtesy of Arri Group.)

Cinematography 144

Most 12 and 18Ks arc 220 volt lighh but sOl11e arc 110 \olt unlh which can make load balancing diflicult. As \\ ilh any large light. coordinate with the gcnnic operalOr before firing it up or ~hul1ing It down. Be sure to clarify with the rental house \\-hat lype or pm\cr connectors arc used on the lights VI hen you arc placing your lightlllg and grip order ror the job.

The most significant new development in IIMls is the llC\\ "tlickcr­rree" ballasts which usc square-wave technology to prO\ide flickcr­less shooting at any rrame rate. With sOl11e units there IS a penalty paid for fli cker-free shooting at frame rates other than sync sound speed - when the high speed flicker-rree button is selected on these units they operate at a significantly higher noise level. I rthe ballasts can be placed outside or shooting is MOS. this IS not a problem. I leader cab les arc Ihe power connection rromthe ballast 10 the light head itselr. Many larger HMl s can only lake Iwo header cables: a third header will usually result in a voltage loss too great to get the lamp to fire up.

Square-wave refers to the shape of the sine wave of the altemutll1g current arter it has been reshaped by the eleetrunics or the ballast. Flicker is discussed in more detail in the chapter on Tee/mica//ssue, but sufTice it to say here that the nonnal sine wave or IIC curren I leaves too many "gaps" which become visible if the camera shutter is not synchroni7ed to its rhythm. By squaring the wave. Ihese gaps arc minimized and there is less chance or flicker. This is especially important ir you are shOaling at anything other than nonnal speed: high speed photography in particular will ereale problems. II is imponanl to noLc that Aicker can be a problem in video also. jll~t us with film cameras.

6K&8K 6K and 8K IIMIs can handle many or the same jobs as the bigger lighls. particularly where the area covered is sma ller. Although they generally have a smaller lens they still produce a sharp. clean beam with good spread. In many applications they perform admirabl) as the main light: serving as key, window light, sun balance. etc. Some 6Ks and 8K's are 110 vo lts and some arc 220. depending on the manuracturer and the rental house. They may require a \ancl} of connectors or a set of Siamese splitters.

When ordering any large lamp, it is crucial to ask these questions and be sure the rental house will provide the appropriate dlStribulton equipment or adapters. Failure to do so may result in Ihe lighl not being functional. Some makes or II M Is provide ror head balanclI1g. This is accomplished by s li ding the yoke support backwards or for­wards on the head. This is a userul reature when adding or subtract­ing barndoors. rrames or other items \\ hieh radically alter the bal­ance or Ihe light.

4K & 2.5K The smaller IIMIs. the 4K and 2.5K arc general purpose Irghts. doing much or Ihe work thai used to be assigned 10 5K and 10K tungsten lights. S li ghtly smaller than the bigger HMIs. they can be easily fl own and rigged and wi ll fit in some rairly light SpOlS.

1.2K AND SMALLER UNITS The smallest lamps. the 1.2K and 575 11M I. arc versatile unlh. Light­weight and rairly compact, they can be used in a variety orstluations. The electronics ballasts ror the small units have become portable enough to be hidden in places where larger unils might be visible.

RULES FOR USING HMI UNITS Always ground the light and the ballast with appropriate grounding equipment. Check the stand and ballast with a YOM meter Icr leakage by measuring the vo ltage between the stand and any ground. There \\i ll usually be a lew vo lts, but anything above 10 or 15 ,olts indicates a potent ial problem. Keep the ballast dry. On wet ground, usc boxes or rubber mats. Avoid gell ing dirt or finger marks on the lamps: oil from the skin \\ ill degrade the glass and create a potential failure point. Many lamps come provided with a special cleaning cloth. Ensure that there is good contact between the lamp base and the holder. Contamination will increase resistance and impair proper cool i ng. The fi lling tip (nipple) should always be above the discharge. o therwise there is a risk of a cold spot developing ins ide the discharge chamber where the fi ll er substances may condense and change the photometric properties. Prolonged running m above fated voilage may resull in pre­mature fail ure. Extended cable runs may reduce the voltage to a point which aITeets the OLitpul and may result in the lamp not firing. Ex.cessive cooling or direct airflow on the lamp may cool the lamp belo\\ its operat ing temperature which can result in n light wi th a high co lor temperature and inferior CRI. All bulbs are rated for certain burning posi tions which ,ory from plus or minus 15 degrees to plus or lTIinus 45 degrees. III gencra l. bulbs -1K and above have a 15 degree tolcrance \\ hilc !')maJlcr bulbs ha ve a greater range.

POTENTIAL PROBLEMS 11M Is may ,ometi mes failta function properly. Be sure to hme a fc\\ C\ lra header cables on hand: they arc the most coml11on cause or malfunctions. Th~ sa fety swi tch on the lens can also causc trou­ble. Never try to bypass it. however; it serves an important function. 11M Is should never be operated withollt the glass lens. The glass fil­ters out harmful ultraviolet radiati on which can damage someonc's eyes and gi\-c thcm a sunburn. When they do fail to fh:C:

Check that the breakers ore on. Most 11M Is ha, e more than one breaker. After killi ng the power, open the lens and check the miero­s\\ itch which contacts thc lens hOllsing. Make surc it is oper­ating properly and making contact. 'Niggle it. but don't be violent the light v.on·t operate without it. If that fails. try another header cable. If you are run ning morc lhan one header to a light. disconnect and try each one indi­vidually. Look fo r broken pi ns, garbage in the receptac le. etc. Check the power. HM ls won't fire if the voltage is low. Gen­erally they need at least 108 volts to fire. Some have a volt­age switch (1 10, 120. 220); be sure it 's in the right pos ition. T,y the head with a differen t ba ll ast and vice-versa . Let the light cool. Many li ghts won' t do a hot res trike.

XENONS XCl10ns arc similar to HMl s as they arc a gas discharge arc with a ba lla, t. They feature a polished parabo lic renee tor which gives them

the tool s of lighting 145

8.5 Xenons produce an incredibly powerful and focused beam - they will break most ordinary windows and mirrors if placed too close. Mat thews makes this mirror specifically for Xenons. It is not designed to be used for other applications. (Photo courtesy of Manhews Studio Equip­ment, Inc.)

8.6. Bladerunner (1982) was the first use of xenons in a feature film. Jordan Cronenweth used them very effectively as powerful and evocative story and design elements.

CInematography 146

ama71ng thro\\ and :.Ill11o:-.t la~er-like beam collimatIOn \1 full ~pot they can project a tight beam ~evcral blocks with a rdati\el~ small mount ofspn:ad (Figures R.5 and X.6). Xcnons arc \cry cfficicnt \\ ith the highcst lumens per \\all output

of any light. Xenons curn.:ntly come in fivc ~i/e~: a I K. ::!K. 4K. 7K and 10K. There is also a 75 \\all sun-gun unll. The I I-.. and 21-.. units comc in 110 and 220 volt Illodels. some or \\ hlch can h~ \\<.111-plugged. This produces a high output light \\ hich can be rluggeu into a wall outlet or a small portable generator. The larger xcnons are e:\tn:mcl) powcrful. and Illllst be lIsed C:lullousl): at full spot they can quickly crack a \\indo\\. Just one c,ampk of their PO\\ er; \\;th ASA 320 film stock and the light set at full SpOI. a -IK deli\ers f 64 at -10 feet from the lighl. The current supplied by the ballast to the hulb is pulsed DC '"

a result flicker is not a probll!11l for \cnons and thcy can he lIseo I(Jr high speed filming up to 10,000 Ii". Xenons do, ho\\o\er, ha\e somc disadvantages: all xCllons arc expensivc to rent anti h • .l\ e i.l

cooling fan which makes thcm vCI) difficult to usc in sound filming. Also. becausc of the bulb placcment imd refh.:ctor design. there i ... always a holl! in the middle of the round beam. \\ hich can be mini­mlled but never I.:ntircly eliminated.

Due to the parabolic reflectors. flagging and l:lIlting arc dlllicult close to the light: nags cast bizarre symmctrical shadows. Also. the extrcmely high and concentrated output means that they burn through gel \ery quickly. Many people try to compensate by plaelllg the gel as !ill· as possible from the light. This is a mistake: the safest place to gel is actually right on the face of the light

Sc\enty-fhc watt xcnon sungull~ ""ere developed for the a\y. They arc e,cdlcllt for flashlight effects. They come in both .\C (II I) \olt) and DC cOl1figllratiol1~. Most ha"c motorized Hood :-.pot COI1-

trois which can be operated during the shot. As with larger xcnons. thore is a hoic or a hot spot m the center of the beam (depending on the !Ol:us) which cannot be climinated. Xenon bulbs do not shin 111

h.:mperatun: as they age or as voltage shifts.

CARBON ARCS For many years. the Brute Arc \\as the most powerful light mail­able. It was the standard for lill to balance sunlight. night extenors and "111 efTects through \\ indows. Dating back to I MO I, the arc was the first high intensity electric light. It was used in theaters and then adopted by the film industry as the only source bright enough to

usc \\ ith thc c\trcmcly slO\\ cmulsions ,I\ailnbk thcll. It \\a:-, the only anificial aiternali, e \0 Ihc all glass or all 'ky-lighl sludios Ihal \\ ere then Ill!ccssary.

Thl!) producc light by crcating an actual an.: betwcen two carbon ekctrodcs. Sincc thcy arc not enclosed in glas~ and surrounded by spccial gases. a~ the an.: burns the negative and positive elec­trode arl! consumed and so hm"l! to be continuously adju~lcd to keep thcm 111 thl! correct position. This is done \\ ith small electric motors. Even \\ ith feed molors and complex geared mechanisms. arcs requirc an operator to monitor them constantly and adjuM the speed of thc 1110tor .... to m<.I\imi7c output and prevent the arc from

"flaming au!." Arcs require a huge amount of power (215 amps for Ihe standard BrUle) "hich calls lor a #00 cable run for cach lighl) and Ihe facllhal ilmusl be DC. "hich dielales cilhcr a sludio \\ ilh DC power or a large DC generator (Figure 8.7).

The Brute Arc has a lighting quality which is distinctive and quite beautiful. Because the plasma arc which creates the light OLitput is quilc small. the arc is almost a point source. The \cl) small source of Ihe plasma arc. combincd "ilh Ihe very large lens. produces a sharp. specular lighl \\ hich has a very clean. "wrapping" qualily. This combined wilh abililY 10 change Ihe color of Ihe arc makes it unfortunate thaI they are 110 longer economically feasibk. Arcs can be either daylight or tungsten balnl1cc \'vithout gels, something that no other light can do. Thb is accomplished by using either

·",hile-name" carbons (daylighl balance) or "yello\\-name" car­bons (tungsten balance). For daylight balance usc, the \\ hite-name carbons rlln high in ultraviolet and a Y-I filter is lIsually added 10

counteract this. MT-2 converts the white-flame carbons 10 tungsten color balancc.

All arc~ ha\e their po\\cr supplied through a ballast. \\ hich is also called a grill. Thl! grid serves two purposes: it is a giant resistor \vhich limits ClIlTcnt flow across the arc ~lI1d reduces the \'oltage to the optimum 73 \olts \\ ilhollt reducing the amperagc. Voltage that is too high or too 10\'-' can calise the electrodes to burn improp­erly and inefficlenlly. While Ihe 225 amp Lile\\ale BrUle is by far Ihe most common Iype of DC arc. olher si7es arc available. These include Ihe 150 (150 amps). Ihe Baby BrUle (225 amps) and Ihe Tilan (350 amps). Only a few Tilans ever e\iSled. Arcs creale a good deal of ultra\ iolet To correct this. \\ arming gcb arc Llsed: a V-I for daylighl balance carbons and a VF-IOI or an MT-2 plus a V-I lor tungsten balance (yello\\ l1ame carbons).

Arcs are unfortunately expensive to operate as they require not only a very large generator but also each one needs its 0\\ n opera­lor 10 feed and trim the carbons. In addilion. Ihe supplied po\\er must be DC (direcl current) and so il must eilher be a dedicated gCllnie or aile \\ hich can supply AC and DC at the same time called a ··conclII"ent"' genllie.

TUNGSTEN FRESNELS Tungslen lamps arc just bigger versions or ordinary household bulbs; Ihey all hm e a filamenl of lungslen "ire jusl as invented by Thomas Edison. There arc IwO Iypes of lungsten fresnels: studio and baby. The "sludio" lighl is Ihe full size unil, Ihe "baby" is a smaller hOllsing and lens, making it more compact for location use (Figure 8.8). As a rule Ihe baby version is Ihe housing of Ihe nexl smaller size (for example Ihe 5K is simi lar 10 a studio 2K). The baby lighls are much favored for localion work.

8.7. The carbon arc was for decades the only really big light in motion picture production. For a history of film lighting, see Morion Picture and Video lightmg, by the same author, also publishea by Focal Press.

the tools of lighting 147

8.8, A head cart with a standard assortment of tungsten fresnels. (Photo courtesy of Backstage Equip~ ment.)

8.9 A 20K fresnel tungsten. (Photo courtesy of Cinemills.)

cinematography 148

TWENTY The biggc:,t tung:-,lcn light no\\ III usc I:, the 20K. It 1:-. a largL" llllll \\ ith tremendous OlitpUt. Many jobs that \\ ere (anneri) done 0) the 10K arc no\\ done \\ ith this light. Most run at 110 \olts and sC\ cral model ... com(' with a built-in dimmer (Figure X.9).

TENNERS The 10K rn:snel comcs in threl! basic \ ersions:

The bab) 10K prm ides high intensity output II IIh " "url~ compact. casil) transportable unit \\ilh a I .. f' fre ... ncl il:ns. The basic 10K. knOll n as a "tenner" or swdlo 10"-. h,,, a }O"fresnel. The largesl light or this group IS the ··Big Eye·' tenner \\ 11Ich has a 2~" lens, The Big Eye is a very special light II IIh qual­ity all its Oil n. The DTY (10K) bulb 1'1'0\ ides a (Cllrly srnall source, \\ hile the extrcmely tnrgc frcsnd is a large radiator. The result is a sharp hard light II ith real bite but II ith a II rap nround quality which gi\cs it a soli. light quality on subjects close to the light. This is a characteristic orall \ery big lights \\ hich gi\\.~s them a unique quality.

It i:-. important to ne\·er usc a 20K. 10K or a 5K pointing ~traight up (this applies to large IIMIs and xenon, as \\ell). The len, blocks proper \ 'cntilation and the unit will overheat. /\Iso. the filament \\ ill not be properly ~upported and \\ ill sag and possibly touch the glas~. hther condition \\ ill enust: the bulb to fail and overheating ma~ crack the len,. The failure II ill clN somebody hundred, uf dollars anti put the light out ofcolllmission.

FIVE K /\lthou!.!.h it is mailable in both \crsions. the babv 5K i~ far more popu!J; than the larger unit. It can work as a general purpose '·blg light" and a f111 used against a 10K. The 5K is also ca lled a SCIl IOr.

JUNIORS The 2K fresnel is also known as a dellce or a junior. It has cnough po\\cr to bring a single subject or :.H.:lOr lip to a reasonahle c\posurc. c\'cn \\ ilh difTusion in rront of the lens. Deuces arc also useful as backlighb. rims and kickers. Baby juniors (called BJ~) arc the more compact and an extraordinarily versatile unit.

BABIES Thousand wall units (I Ks) are also kno\\ n babit!s. m.:es or 75(Js. The I K i, u,ed as an accent light. a spla'h on the \\all. a small back light. a hard fill and for dOLen, of other uses, The baby can u,e enher a 750 lIalt bulb (EGR) or a 1000 "alt bulb (I:.GT) the IIldeh used name of 750 comes from the days before quartz halogen II lien the 750 tungsten bulb was the most common. Most arc no\\ used \\ ith the I K quartz bulb. but arc still called 750s, The Baby I K, al,o called a Baby Baby. is the small size version. Because of its sma ller lens and box. it ha, a wide:- spread than the studio 750 and tillS can be a lIsd"u1 n:aturc \\ hen hiding small units in nooks and crannies.

TWEENIE I PEPPER The twc~nie is "between"' the I K and the inkie. With the nc\\ hl1!h speed films, the tweellie is oftell just the right light for the small jobs a baby used to do. It is \ery useful for a number of , mall jobs. easily hidden and can function as a quick accent, a slate light or an eyesighl. There is also a 400w Pepper which is similar to all inkie (Figure X.I 0),

INKIE / PEPPER At ~o() or 250 wa lls (depending on the bulb). thc inkie or Pcpper is nul a po\\'crrulunit. but lip clo~c it can de li ver a surprising amount of light. The inki c is great for a tiny ~ prit7 of light on the set. as an eye li gh t. a sma ll fill, or for an emergency last minute light lO jllst raise thl! c\posu rl! a bit 011 a sma ll area.

OPEN FACE Some ~K. I K and 650 units arc a\ uilabic as "open rucc" lights. that is. thl!Y ha\ c no lenses but they do have some SpOI flood focusin g. They arc rm\ bu t the) uo have it tremendous output for their si/c. They arlo! good for boullce or shooting through difTusion (Figure 6.1 I).

PARS PA R Slands lo r parabol ie - the shape or the reflcctor. A parabola is the on ly sha pe \\ hieh col lects all o rthe light rays and projects them Oll l in the same direction . In conjunction \\ illt thi s. all PAR units ha\"c a lens. \\ hich functions primaril y 10 concentrate or spread the beam. Tungsten parts generally cOl11e with a fixed lens \\ hich is pan orthc unil: the) are prelly much the same as a car headlight. IIMI PAR~ alway!'i come \\ ith a set or interchangeable lenses: these go from a \cry \\ itk beam to a very 11(11'1'0\\ beam. The di sadvan tage of PARs is that the beam generally CQ\·ers only a very small area and is not a \ er) comrlil11entary light nor is it easi ly controllable but it is userul for many purposes" hich ca ll for just raw light power. PJ\R~ come in two basic \arictics: 111m versions come in a so lid

rotatab le hOllsing ~uc h as Mole Richardson's MolcPar (F igure 8. 12) or Ci IlcQucen (Colorlran), \\ hich feature bamdoors and sc rim hold­ers: and in a Ililllsicr thc'lIrical version ca ll1!d a PAR call. Theatrical lighh an: not gencrally as sturdil ) built because they are generall y hung in a theater and then left alolle. They don '1 gel the rough treat­ment and athersc conditions lhat film and video lights do. PARs (especially NS Ps) can quickly burn through evcn the toughest gels, l11e lt bead board and set l11usl in dill'usion on fire. PAR~ \\ itll a dichroic coatin g have an output whieh is very close to

daylight (blue) ba lance. Small PAR 48s and 36s arc also ava ilable at 10l\cr \oItagcs", \\ell as 110\. Nea rl y all types o r bulbs are also ma ilable in no \oIts. \\ hich is the standard in Europe and much or the rest of the \\or le\.

PAR GROUPS PAR~ an: also mack in groUJh . lll e best knowil bei ng the Max i I3rut e, a PO\\ crfu lunil "ith trcmendous punch and Ihra" , They arc used in large night c'{ teriors and in large sca le interior applicmions: aircraft hangars, arena!'!. ctc. They can also be used directl y or through gel, muslin. etc., \\ hen very high light leve ls arc needl!d to get through hea\ y diITusion .

Ma\i Brutes and Dinos arc si milar in design but difTerent in si/c. Ma'\i'~ come in configuration s of 6,9 or 12 :x PAR 64 lamps; the most C0 l11111011 being the 9 lump head . A Dino is 36 x PAR 64 lamps. Other \arialions of this design exist as "ell (Figure 8. 14),

Fay lights arc clusters or 650 IVall PAR 36s and come in si ngle lamps up to 9 (or 12) lamp configurations. The Wendy lights come in panels \\ ith the same PAR 36 lamps (usuaily OWE) and are 49 l amp~ in the largest configuration. They can be ordered with noml (FL). medium Aood (MF). spot (SP) or very narrow spot (VNS) lamps. Same goes with the MolcPar or Pilrcan which lise the same PAR 64 as the Dinos and Maxi Brutes but are single laillp fixtures. The bulbs are hOllsed in banks which arc individually oricl1tablc

. ,.

ffi· 8.10. (top) The Pepper, a compact and versatile small light. (Photo cour­tesy of LTM.)

8." . (above) The Mole Richardson open face 2K, usually called a Mighty Mole. (Photo courtesy of Mo le Rich­ardson.)

8.12. Mole's 1 K MolePar. (Photo (our tesy of Mole Richardson.)

the tools of light ing 149

8.13. A Ruby Seven working along side some 24K multi-Par units. (Photo courtesy of Luminaria.)

8.14. The Dino, or in this illustration, Mole Richardson's Moleeno, consists of 36 1 K PAR bulbs. (Photo courtesy of Mole Richardson.)

Cinematography 150

lor S0l110 control. All the bulbs arc individually switchabk. \I hich makes for very simple intensity control. All PAR group lighh allo\\ for spot. medium and flood bulbs to bl! interchanged for dilTcrclll co\crages. Also called 5-lights, 9-lights or I ::!- lights. depending 011

ho\\ many bulbs arC' incorporated. FAY light s lise PAR 36 hulbs (650 watts). Thc FAY bulbs arc dichroic daylight bulbs: tungsten bulbs can also be used . They can be used a, daylight fill in eOl11bll1a­tion with or in place of 11M Is. They arc not esaclly daylight balance but arc very close and can b~ corrected with gels.

Most people refer to any PA R 36 dichroic bulb as a FAY. but In fact there arc several types. FAY is the ANSI codo lora 650 \latt PAR-36 dichroic daylight bulb with ferrule contacts. If the bulb has screw terminals it is an FBEI FGK. With heavy difTlIsiolllhcsc lIllIh C31l he used as a large-source soft light (Figure X.16).

THE RUBY Multi-PAR units arc an outstanding source orrav.. "firepo\\cr:' The} pro\ide a lot of' output per walt that can he conceillratcd inlo a small area or flooded with some degree of prcl:ision. They ha\·c l1o\\h~rl! the degree of control of a fresnel. hmve\ l!r.

In particular, it is dillicult if nOI ill1po~sib l e to "spot" thel11. The individual banks can be panned left and right and the \\ hole unil can be tilled up and dowl1. but there is no \nlY to foe liS all Orllll: h~ad..., or flood thel11 in 0 truly unilorm way. Tho Ruby So,en sohes this problem with an ingenious mechanism that tilts the allIer ring in or out. moving on the axis of the cenler bulb (Figur~ 8.13 and X.IS).

HMI PARS

I IMI PARs arc a,ailablc as 2.5K. 1.2K and 575s. These orc ex tremely popular as bounce units. to create shafts and for ra\\ power. The smaller ones can be mo\ed easily. where mOVIng a scaf­fold and heavy light is a major operation. IIM I PARs arc dliTeront li·olll tungsten units in lhat they have changeable lenses which can be added to make a narrow spot. a medium flood , \\ ide Aood and an ext ra wide Aood. As with tungsten PARs, the beam is 0\ al and the lmit call be rotated withi n its housing to orient the pallcrn. [very IIM I PAR will corne with its own set oflcnses.

SOFT LIGHTS Studio soft lights co,,,ist or olle or more 1000 \\ att or 1500 \\ a11 bulb ... din:cted into a ·'clam ... hdl" \\hite painted rc.;ncctor \\hich bounces light in a random pattern. making a light \\ hich is appar­l'IlII) as large as the I"ront opening. The) \ary from the I K studio soli (the I3aby soli. also kllo\\ II as a 7S0 soli) up to the po\\errul XK Studio Soft. \\ hich has eight indi\ iduall) switchahle bulbs (Figure X.17).

\11 ... oft lights lul\'c certain basic problems: they arc extremely incf'­ficiclll in light OlitpUt: th!.:y arc bulky and hard to transport: like all ... oft li1lhh the\ arc dilTicuh to control. \\ hill: the i:u!.!e rdkctor docs make "'1 hI.: Jigl;! "soft," the nllH.iolll bounce J1attcrT1~l1akcs the light .... till :-.0111('\\ hat r~1\\ and unpleasant.

:\.., a n:sult of thi:-. ra\\ ness. sOI11(, people put some diiTuslon 0\ c..!r the soft light for an} close-up wurk. Big studio sons through a large fralllt: or 1. I 6 i .... probabl) the t:asiest and quickest way to create a lan.!t: son source in tht: "iLUdio. Onen u..,ed \\ ith the studio IS the Cl!.1.!.­

cn.~c. \\ hich minimi/es side spill and docs make the heam a bit mOI:e controllable. Soft lidlls see most of their usc in telc\ ision studios \\ here they pro\ ide ~l son source \\ ithout additional rigging. SilH.:e thc) arc more or less permanently 110\\11. their bulkiness is not a problem. Small compact ,"('rsions of the 2K and I K soft 1ighb. an: called lip lights. Thoy haw the same \\ idth but hal I' the height or a sort light of similar wallagc. Because of their compactncs..,. zips arc great for slipping into tight ..,paces.

COLOR CORRECTED FLUORESCENTS Color corrected Huon.:..,cel1l tubes hme gained enormou.., populant) in recent years. Pioneered by the Kino Flo company. they are extreme]y Iight\\ eight. compact and portable sources. Acilie\ing a truly son light can be dilTicult and time consuming. If it's done b) bOLIllclIlg alTa large \\ hite surface or by punching big lights through he'l\ y diffusion - either way takes up a lot of room and calls 1'01' a lot or flagging to control it.

Kino Flos had their origin in 1987. While \\orklllg on the film Bar/"·. Dr Robby Mueller was shooting in " cramped interior that didn't leave much room for a cOll\entional bounce or diffusion solt source. His gall'cr Frieder Ilochheim and best boy Gary S\\ ink came up \\ ith an answer: for fill and accent lighting, they constructed high-frequency fluorescent lights. By using remote ballasts. the fix­nlCes were maneuverable enough to be taped to walls, hidden behind drapes and mounted behind the bar. Kino Flos \\ere born (Figures R.I X. X.19 and R.21).

8.1 S. (above, leh) The Ruby Seven. a PAR based unit that offers addi tional controllability. (Photo courtesy of Luminaria.)

8.16. (toplTwo Mole FAY lights boxed in with some 4x8 floppies for con tral.

the tools of lighting 151

8.17. The 8K soft light - useful, but strictly for studio use. Big soft lights are very popular in television 1ight~ in9·

8.18. (belowl The Wall-a-Light from Kino Flo. Kinos can be rebulbed for tungsten. day light, bluescreen, greenscreen and otner color condi­tions.

8.19. (below, right) Photometries for a 2 ft .. 4 bank Kino Flo.

cinematography 152

Un li ke cOI1\~nlional ftuorc~ccnl ballasts \\ !lich can be 4uite noi:-,y especia lly a~ they age. thei r ba llasts \\cre dead quiet and their light was flicker free due to the higher than normal frequenc} . There arc nov~ SC\ era l companies that make these types of lights. Their secret is two-fold: nr~t. the ballasts arc hi gh-frequency, whic h e li minates the pOiential problem orAicker which is always present \\ ith fluores­cent type sources. Second. the bulbs arc trul y color correct. They precise ly match dayligh t Cl nd tungsten. Colored bu lbs arc also a\ail­able for \"(triOlls efTects as wc ll as for grccnscrccn. b lll ~scn:cl1 or red screen. Kino makes a variety of cx tr~me ly largt.: rigs which can either front light or backlight an efTccts screen.

An added bonus of color correct. high-frequenc) fluorc sct.:l1 t:.. IS

thm they gent.:mtc con~ i (krably less ht.:at than either tungsten or HMI. For thi s reason they ha\ c become very popular l'or lighting te lev ision set s. for news and other types of programming. Portable fluorescent arrays arc a\a ilable li'om several sourCl:S. The Lo\\dl unit. for exa mpl e. uses 6 120 volt. -ll'oot. l-pin tubes. and the flicker free ba llast serves as a counter-balance for the head. The unit unl\\ S

on ly 3 amps and f'olds do\\ n to a compact. hi ghly portable pac'agc. Fluorescent rigs arc often lIsed as a front fill when shooting in a fluorescent- lit industrial si tuation.

CYCS, STRIPS, NOOKS AND BROADS \Vhen just plain outpu t is needed. broad li ghb arc :o.tril: tly no-frill s. utilitarian lights. They art.: just a box \\ ith a double-ended bulb. As si mpl e as it is. the broad li ght has an important place in film hi s­tory. In classica l Il ol1 ywood hardlighting. the fill ncar the camera \\as genera ll y a broad light \\ ith a din'user. Thc distincth'c Icature of the broad light is its rcctangul ar beam pattern. wh ich makes blend­ing them on a nat \\'all or eyc much c~lsie r : imaginl' ho\\ ditlinllt if \\Quld to bc smoothl y combi ne the round. spotty beams orm ighties or fi·csnel lights. The small est \ crsion of tlte broad is thc nook. \\ hi clt. as ib name

implies. is designed for fitting intu nooks and crannies (Figure X.20). The nook li gh t is a compacl. rav.-light unit. llsuall y fitted \\ ith an FeM or FilM 1000 \\ att bulb. The nook is j ust a bulb holder \\ ith it rellector. Although barndoor~ art.: lI s uall~ a\ai lablc. nook s aren't generally ca lkd on for much subtlety. but the) arC::ln efliciellt and versatile source for box light rig~. large silk 0\ erhcad lighh and for large arrays to punch through n·i.lmcs. A number of units arc specifically designed for illuminating c)c~

and large backdrops. For the most part they arc opcn Illct.: I K and 1.5K units in small boxes: these are call cycs, cye strips or Far eyes (\\ hich create a more c\'en distribution lip and do\\ n the background. Their primary characteristic is the asymmetrical thro\\ \\ hieh PUh

PHOTOMETRIeS (wIREFLECJQRh 2ft eAt« fjxtur •

DISTANCI IN n , 2ft tNMUlU .6m

'OOTCANDlU: 325 lUX: 3510

... 1.2m

90 972

6ft I.Im

.os - II t94

t. t40

mnr~ ou tput at the lOp or bottom, depending on the orientation orlhl! unit. The rcason for thi ... is that cyc lights must bl.' either placed at the top or bottom of the eyc but the CO\ crage Il1U~t be.: l.'\en. Placing ryc lighb must be.: donc cnrdtilly to achic\e.: this cO\cragc.

Strip light;., arc gangs of PARs or broad lights. originally used as thl!<llrieal footlights and eye lighb. They arc alien circuited in groups oftI1l"l':c. ~lith each circuit gdkd a different color and on a dimmcr. a \\ide range ol'colors ean bc obtained by mixing. This can bc a quick \\ay to alte.:r background colors ami intensities.

The LO\\cll Tala Lite dcsCI"\l.'S ~pccialmcntioll. Small. cheap and fundamcntal. its no-nonsense rctlcctor design and 1000 \\ att doublc­end bulb prO\id~ trcmcndous bang for the buck. Practically a back pock!.!t light. the Tow can be lIsed as an umbrella bouncc. hidden III

odd placcs or lIsed in grollp:-' for a jj·og light or eye illumination. T\vO Tows can be ganged by simply inserting the male end or the stand clamp into th~ kmait: side of the other Tota. Adding more lights to the stack is a problem: they arc too close together to allow thc doors to OpOIl fully.

CHINESE LANTERNS AND SPACELIGHTS Chillc:;c lantcllls are the ordinmy paper glob!..! lamps available .. II hOllscwarc ston~s. A socket is suspendcd in::.idc \\hich holds clther "l11odiul11 base bulb (household. ECA. I::CT. BBA. BeA. etc.) or a I K or ~K bi-post. Just nbout any rig is possible if the.: globc is large

B.20. (above) The Mole nook light; a very handy compact unit that can be tucked into a variety of spaces. (Photo courtesy of Mole Richard­son.)

8.21. (left) Color correct fluorescents in the form of a right light for the camera. This is the ITis. made by Soft­lights. (Photo courtesy of Softhghts.)

the tools of lighting 153

8.22. (top) Spacelights and lekos in use on a miniatures shoot. (Photo courtesy of Mark Weingartner.)

8.23. (right) Two Musco lights set up to light a large background for a water sFiot. (Photo courtesy of Musco Lighting. Inc.)

Cinematography 154

enough to keep the paper a sare distance Irol11 Ihe hot bulb. Control is accomplished by painting the paper or taping g!.!1 or diflhsillil It)

it. Similar in principle arc spacclights (Figure X.2~). \\hich arc basI­cally big silk bags \vith sc\"cral 1 K nook lights inside. For establish­ing an e\en overall base le\'cl 011 a sct, they can be quite lIseful. \\ilh a bit or rigging. they can be made dimmable. although it is not <.:011-\cnienl. When cabling. you \vill v.ant to separate them into dilkrCll1 circuih to gi\ e you soml: degree or control o\'er the level.

SELF CONTAINED CRANE RIGS There arc a number or units \\ hleh consist of 51..:\ eral large II M Is rigged 011 3 crane (Figure g.:!3), MO~I also carry their 0\\ ~1 genera­tor. Musco \\as the fir"!! orthesc. but now there arc sc\cralto ChOll"lC

from. These units can prm ide workable illumination up to a half mile 3\Va) and are lIsed l'or moonlight clTccts and broad illul11l1Hltion of' large areas. The main Musco unit comes \\ illl its 0\\ n 1000 amp generator. \\ hich is typical of this type of unit. The oK heath arc indh idually aimablc b) a handheld remote control \\ hich operate .... lip to 1000 reCI <1\\ a) from the truck . rhe boom allo\\ ~ placement or the heads at lip to 100 fecI in the air.

LEKOS The ellipsoidal reflector spot (Leko) "a theatrical light . but" l"eo occasionally as a small elTcets light hl.!C311SC or its precise beam con­trol by the blades. Becall,e the blades and gobo holder arc located at the rocal point of the lens. the leko can be focused sharpl} and pat­ICll1cd gobos can be inserted to gl\C shaq)ly detailed shudO\\ clli:ch. Not alllckos hmc gobo holder slots and iryoll need one yOlllllll~1 specify when ordering (Figure :-).2-1-). Lekos come.: in a :-.ize <.Jelinct! b) their lens si7e and focal length hueh as 6x9). rhe longer the focal length the narrower the beam.

BALLOON LIGHTS Balloon lights arc a n::CCJ1l dc\'c lopl1lcJ1t which pro\ ide a PO\\ crful and tkxiblc Ill'\\ tool ror night c\lcriors (Figures H.:!5. H.1(i ami X.27). They generate a son. general filllighl for large areas. Perhaps their grcalc'-Il ad\antagc is thut tht..!y arc much easier to hide than a crane or scalTolding. They arc also faster to ,",el lip. The disad\ an­lage IS that thc) can be ,'cry time consuming and c\pcnsi\'c to gcl Wind is a f"ctor \I hen flying balloon lights. The sma ller the balloon. the 100\cr the acceptable \\ ind spccd:-; for keeping the balloon alnfL IS-20 mph lor the "nailer balloons (25 mph for the large one,)" a general upper limit ofsafcty. A good referencc IS to obsenc Ilag ... irthcy'rc napping straight out. it's too windy.

PORTABLE UNITS Portabll..: handhdd. I:wlter) operated unih arc gClll!rally t:allcd SlIll­gUllS. Thcn.~ an.! 1\\0 basic types: tungsu:'11 and 11 M!. Tungsten SUIl­gun:-. arc lIsually either I::! \ olt or 30 \ olt ilnd pll\\ cred rwm battery belts. Some arc '-Ipt.:cilkall) designed as "Iungulls. but ...,omc arc 120 \ all lights com crlcd by changing the bulb and power cabl!.! (Figure X.2X.) Iypically. a tungsten sungun \\ill run for about fifteen to l\\('nt~ minutes. Sungllih \\ ilh 11\11 bulbs an..' da~ light balance and 11101'1..' cllklclH than tungsten units.

DAY EXTERIORS Da) (,.\lcrior ... call be approachcti in tlm.:c \\il)""_ filllllg \\ illl lurg.e units sLlch a ... u Brute Arc or 12K 11M!. bouncing the c\isling light \\ ilh r('Acetor.., or CO\ cring Ih(' :-'C(,llI.:' \\ IIh a large "ilk to controilhc conlra:-.t. L suall) it is some combination orthe three (Figure X . .:!9.)

CONTROLLING LIGHT WITH GRIP EQUIPMENT Ollf.:e \OU h,-1\c a li!.!ht "orkin!.! \ou ha\c to f.:olHrol it. \ ...... oon a ... : Oll g~t be) ond \\ hal ('<Ill bi: do~e~ \\!th the barndoor..,. it hecomc.., the pnn illee oftllt.., grip departmcnt. Cinp equlpmcnt I ... \\ ide and \aried. but in relation to ligilling control it Itlll ... 111(0 three ba ... ic Cf.ltegorie ... : redul.:tion .... hat!()\\ f.:a..,tIlH! and dll1'I.I ... lon. RcduCIIl!.! the amollnt or lig.ht" itholll altering. the 411alit) i ... done" itll nels. 'flle same Cramc ... - , ...

LIGHTS Up! INDUSTRIES

16K 1-1\11

t-'()OTC,\ ,\I))£~

:t.sn 01 ..... It-XlI)'!1 ~x".,,, ... n \1.\.'IIlI~-on

P'C)\\U: LlCIITI;";C ()PEltAnrooc lin 1l'\I 'illl,. CASE I'MOOl"n S17.l: WATrACg SOt..kcti '\~11':t \IU'_, IIEICUT lrs\GE \\'T. SIZ£

11K II!>" I$)OOIWDCO! 20IVlPH Ii 'DO"It4CO' 30'·120' WTa'Ib mbl. 4O'"k4l"lO-"

8.24.{above) A leko being used as an on~camera light.

8.2S. (left) Balloon lights in use on a boat movie. {Photo courtesy of Air­star.}

8.26. (below, left) Photometries for a 16K HMI balloon light. (Photo cour tesy of Airstar.)

8,27 (below) A balloon light on a night shot for a car commercial. (Pnoto courtesy of Fisher lights.)

the t~ol f qlll ng 155

S.2S. (top) A sungun With handle.

S.29 (top. right) lighting a "watk and talk" is often a triCKY business. Here, the gaffer and key srip are "HoIIX­wooding" (hand hold.ng) a slight d.f­fusion and a reflector card.

S.30. (above. middte) Ftylng a 20x20 silk requires an experienced crew. (Photo courtesy of Matthews Studio Equipment.)

8.31 . (above) The soft side of a reflec­tor board. (Photo courtesy of Mat­thews Studio Equipment.)

cinematography 156

I

lIsed for nets can be covered \\ nh while silk-like.: material \\ hich is a medium ht.::iWY diITlI~ion. \\'h(:11 they arc co\crcd \\ illl bhu.:k du\'ctYllc they art: flags and cullers. \\ hich can control spill. cast shadows or block on' flarcs from the lens. The samc silk-like m:'lIc­rial also comes in larger sizes for butterflies and o\'crhcaus. These come in \ariolls !'li/cs~ commonl\': -h-t. 6.\6. X,X, 12\ 12 and 20\20 These arc n:fcrn..:d to as Xby. 12b"). etc. (Figure X.30).

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON LIGHTING Lighting is a \ ast subject: hen: \\ c hm croom onl)- to CO\ cr the bn:-.ic tools. For morc on lighting IcchlllqUCS. photometric datu. gnp eqUip­ment and Il1cthods. dl.!clricai distribution. bulbs and SCI.!J11.! lighting examples sec .HUliol1 Pic/II/'e and / 'h /('() Lighting by lhe same author. also Jlublished by focal Press. Photometric data. bulb deSignation, for all typt:~ of lights. gel charl~ and color correction data can abo be found ill The Filll1l11l1Aer ,- Pocke! Relerel1c('. abo a Focal Pre ...... book.

lighting as storytelling

9.1 (previous page) Philosopher Giving A Lecture On TheOrrery,Joseph of Derry. (Photo courtesy of the Derry Museum, Derry. England.)

9.2. (belowl Caravaggio's The Calling of St. Matthew. The lighting carries a great deal of the storytelling power of the image.

Cinematography 158

STORYTELLING In prc\ iOlls chapters we ha\'c looked at the technical and practical aspects of lighting. In this chaptcr wc \\ ill look at lighting a~ a ke) clcmcnt of storytelling.

Lct's di\'crt our attcntion from film for a moment and look att\\o paintings. Stud) ing classical art b uscful in that the painter Illusttdl the whole story in a single framc (not to mention without dialog or subtitles). Thus the painter muSI employ every aspect of \ isual lan­guage to tell the story "fthe painting as well as layer it \\ Ith subtes!. symbolism and emotional content. As \\ ith thc films or Kubri('k. Welles and KurosClwa, it is also useful 10 study thc visual design as nothing in the fi"clmc is accidental. E\{:ry elemcnt. en~r) color. e\'CI} shado\\ is then: for a purpose and its part in thc \ iSLIal and storyt~ll­ing scheme has been carefully thought out.

First. let's look at this beautiful painting by Joseph of Derry. Figure 9.1 on the prc\ iOlls pagc. It is ca lled .1 Philosopher Giring A /.('('­fUrl.! 011 The One/:\,. Th~ orrery is a mechanical model of the solar systcm. sort of like a small planetarium. This painting was made at around Ihe same time that Nc\\ton publishcd his nc\\ thcoric~ or physics and gra\ itation. The philosopher has placed a lamp 111 the center of the dc\ ice to rcpn:scilt the sun lor his students. The bcatlli­ful single source casts a light so reminiscent of many of the paint­ings of de La Tour. It is a clean, simple light \\ hich makes the f~IC~S glO\\ \\ ith fascination and the excitement of learning.

Light also has a grl.!tlt power to fonn space. In this casco the central source forms a ::-,pherc of space \\ hich envelops the studcnh. Outsidl! II is another ..,pacc. sharply delineated. Within the sphere of light is knO\\ ledgc, outside is darkness ignorance. As N~\\ ton said. "\~Ihat \\ c kno\\ is a drop. \\hal wc don't kllo\\ is an ocean."

Ckarly the light represent:-. kno\\ Icdg~. the illuminating pO\\ cr or the great mystcr) of thc uni\CrSL\ but it is nol.lust a s)mbol II tells the story Itsdf. Let's go back briclly to our primary esample. Canl\i.H.!gio's The Col/ill':!. ()(SI. \fOl/hl'H- (Fi!.!ur..: 9.:!). i\., \\e m~ll­tioncd bricl1) In thc chapter 011 1 J,\IIaII.OJl.1!,II~/ge. the light I., a ('ru­cial part of thc design. It carries a major portion of the storytL!l1ing as wcll.

The boldne.,~ orcan.n aggio· ... \ i~ion (amI \\ hall11al\~s thIS painllng. the g~ncsis urthe Baroquc a ... opposed to merely an ('\.tension of the Rcnai ... sancL') is that he scts this talc Ihun the Bible in COllllllon ... cl­tings (and contemporary for hi., timc) a diml} lit t~l\ (Tn. S(lm~ local 10\\ Iii\:., arc drinking anu playing caruso Christ. \\ ho is gi\ ing Matthc\\ hi ... calling as a disciple, is mostly in shadO\\. nlmost a back1!round charactcr. barely sc~n in IhL! back at the fur right. hiS

olltsl7-etchcd hand bridging til": gap bct\\een thc t\\O groups. The 1~ll."t that he is in shadO\\ Is Important, as i., the ~l11nll sla~h of light that I~III., across his face.

II. \\. Janson dbcu ...... es the painting 111 hiS /11" ""lOr\' 0/ /1'1: "\los1 decisin: i~ thc strong b...:am of light abo\ c Chnst Ihat IIluml­natcs his face and hand in the gloom) interior. thus carrYlIlg hi., ('all across to Matthc\\. \Vithout thi ... light. so natural \..:t so chafl.!~d \\ ith S) mbolic meanlllg. the pictur~ \\Qu ld lose its I;lagic, It... pm' cr to make us aware of the di\ inc prescnce." Thc lighting is chiaro~curo at it~ besl: not only docs it create strong

con trasts and clear!) delineate the charactcrs in sharp rcllL!f(thc lig­urt.!s almost jump out at us), the strong directionality or the light guitks the eye anti unifies the composition. What IS unimportant tall ... into shadO\\ and thus docs not distract the c)c. \ccoruing to Fdmund Burkc Feldman in 1 lll'ielies of'1 /,\/fclf E.'"/}(!I'ic:"cc:, "In Baroque painting, light is an aggressin:! liberating rorcl'. >\ slllull

amollnt or it is l:J1ough 10 n~\"cal the spirilunl opportunilic~ that lie hidden." I Jerc the strong beam of sun light is the hand arGod ilselL reaching into the du~ky tavern to pluck Mnllhcw out of the darknl:~s. The light coming rrom outside is clearly the presence of the di\ inc truth; it penetrates the dusty darkness of ignorance in the tavern. thus the shadows arc equa lly important - ignorance, lethargy and wasted lives. As \\c discussed in t 1.\'1101 LUl1gllage they also form negativc spaccs \\ hich arc imponant compositionally. They arc both 1'0\\ erfui. enigmatic paintings that carry depth, of

meaning and content far beyond their mcre visual beauty - the kind or thing we stri ve for evcry day on the sel. All that is missing is a producer in lhe background saying. '"It's awfully dark, couldn't \\e add some fil il ighto"

ORIGINS OF MOTION PICTURE LIGHTING Ili storica lly. 1110tion picture lighting has gOlle through a number of periods. At first it was purely functional. The low speed of the film and the lenses together \\ ith lack of high-power. controllable light sourccs made it a nccessity to just pour as much light as possible onto thc scenes. As a result. Illost films were filmcd outdoors in broad daylight.

E\ en .... tudio:-. \\ ere outdoors: sets wcre built on the back lots III

open air. using the sun as the luminaire. The \ery first studio \vas de\ eloped by K. L. Dickson. tho co-creator (\\ ith Thomas Edison) or motion picture tcchno logy. Called "Black Maria:' it was built on a rc\oh ing platform. so that it could be rotated to 1'0110\\ the .... un as it crossed the sky during the day (Figure 9.3).

In Ne\\ York. \\ here the film industry \\"as born. studio!>. were built \\ ith glass ceilings 011 the top noor of buildings. The only form of con trol \\as hUl.!e tents of Illuslin. \\ hi ch cou ld be strl.!tchcd across tile ceiling to so-nell <llllimodulatc the light. Later. adaptations orarc Icllnps \\ cre u .... cd to pro\ ide a degree of illumination. but \\ith little control. Gas dischargc tubes n;rv similar to modern t1uon:scents (Figure 9 .... 1-) \\cre als~ used. but th~y IOO \verejust 1"<1\\ sources. This was not considered a problcm. ho\\'c\ cr. At that time, in the theater.

"nalurar' lighti ng was considered to be broad. nat lighting ,,\ hlch mcrely illuminated the elaborate sets,

It \\as the brash talent of theater impresario Da\ id Belasco and his lighting designer Louis Ilarltman who tUnled this trend around. Belasco's cmphasis was on rcali~tic clrects to underscore the dranK!. Also working at that timc \\ as J\dophc Appia, who bdie\cd that the shadO\\ s wcre as important as the light. and that thc manipulation or light and shadov. \·vas a mcans of expressing ideas.

It \\as an nctor \\ ho had worked for Belasco who tran:-.lated man} or these ideas in to the world of film: a young man named Cecil B. DeMille. Working with cameraman Alvin Wycoff. he employed cxprcsshl.! singlc sourcc lighting that was both naturalistic and \isu­ally involving. When Tcchnicolor "as introduced, the necessity of huge amounts of light was a setback ror na tural , cxprcssi\ 'c lighting. but black-and-\\ hite films sti ll contin ued to lise lighting ere:!ti\ ely and efTecti\ely.

FILM NOIR Ccrtainly. onc of the highlight:-. of lighting a:-. storytelling is thc cra or film nair: American films of the rorties and fifties. primarily in the mystery. sllspense and dctccti\'c genres. nearly all of thl.!lll in black-;Jlld-\\ hite. The noir genre is bcst known ror its lo\\-key light­ing !>.tylc: ~I(Je light. chiaroscuro, shadowy (Figure 9.5). This was, of cours\.? onl) olle of the \ ariolls c1elllents or visual style: they also

9.3. (top) The Black Mana, devel oped by Edison and Dickson, the first method of controlling lighting for filmmaking.

9.4. (above) D.W. Griffith and his cam era man Billy Bitzer examine a piece of negative in front of some Coo· per-Hewitt tubes, one of the earliest artificial lighting sources. (For a more extensive aiscussion of the history of film lighting see Motion Picture and Video Lighting, by the same author, also puolished by Focal Press).

9.5. The black·and-white noir period is one of the highest achievements of film lighting as a story element - this frame from Mildred Pierce (Warner Bros., 1945).

lighting as storytellll1g 159

9.6. Although not strictly a nair film, Citizen Kane is of the same era and employs the same techniques of visual storytelling with lighting that is expressive, visually striking and makes specific story points. Here the reporter has come to the vault where Kane's memoirs are kept. As the guard brings forward the sacred book which we hope will contain the ultimate secrets, the single beam of light represents knowledge reaching Into the darkened space in much the same way that it does in the (ara· vaggio (Figure 9.21.

Being a backlight with no fill. it leaves the characters in complete silhou· ette. representing their ignorance of the knowledge. (Citizen Kane. RKO. 1941. Now owned by Turner Classic Movies).

9.7. An example of the classic meta phorof noir the characters trapped somewhere between the dark and the light. good or evil. knowledge or ignorance. In this frame from The Big Combo, which we previously looked at in Visual Language, the detective and thewoman have triumphed over the bad guy and are emerging from the darkness into the light.

As in the shot from Citizen Kane (Figure 9.6), the light seems to exert an almost palpable pull on them. Backlit and glowing, the fog forms a concrete space distinct from the foreground space of blackness and emptiness. Silhouetted and faceless. the shot is about their situation and the resolution of their conflict, not about their individual thoughts or expressions at this moment.

cinematography 160

lIsed angk. comp()~ition. lighting. montage. depth and I1lQ\l!1l1cnt in e\prcssi\"c nc\\ \\ays. Many factors came togcther to inl1ucncc thi:-. :-.tyle: technical inno\.ation:-. :-.uch a:-. tlIster, finer gmincd black­und-\\ hite negative. faster Icnses, smaller, more mobile camera doI­lies. cameras light enough to hand-hold and portable pO\\cr supplics. all perfectcd during \\'orld \N'ar II. alle\ iHted many of the logistical problems pn:\iously connected \\ IIh location filming. This enabled filmmakers LO !!ct Ollt to thl: dark. mean streets of the

city \\ ith its shado\\ y alleys fr'aught with unkno\\ n dangers. hlink ing neon lights reflected on rain-soaked pavemcnt and all orlhc Ill)-ster: and menacc or thc city after dark. I3cyond just thc grill) rcalit)- and !!roulHJedncss that comc "lIh actual locations. the challell!.!cs and ~ariolls difficulties or lighting in and around real structufes .... tend to force cincmatographers to e\perimcnt and be bolder \\ Ith their IIght­II1g there is less of a tendcncy to just do it the samc old \\ i.ly it', ahnlYs becn done back in the studio. Thc second result of the \\ ar was the influ.\ of I uropean dircclllr,

and cinematograph!..!rs \\ho brought \\ illl them thc ·· ... full heritagc or (iel"mnn expressionism: mo\ ing camcra: oddly angled shots: a chianbcul"O frame inscribed with wcdges of li1.d1l or shadO\\ \ ma/cs. truncated by foreground objects or ptll1cluated \\ Ith glintiilg ht:ad­light:-- bounced off mirrors. wet surfaces. or thc polished steel of" a gun burrel." (1\1ulI1 Siher and Lli/abeth V,urd. Fi/III\(lII'I.

RUI all or Ihis is more that iust \islIal stvle: II is inherenth a part of the storytelling. an inicgral narrati~'c dcvice. ":'\ sith..:-III close-up may reveal a face. half in shado", hall' in light. at the pre­cise momcnt of Indecision." (Siher and Ward). Bevond nnrrali\c. it bt:comcs part of character as \\cll noir \\a~ tile hirth of the protagonist \\ ho is not so clearly dcfined as purely good or c\ il \~ \I ith Walter NefT in DO/lhie /1/(/cII1I1ilr or Johnny Clay (tbe Sterling Ilayd\.!n character) 111 the Killing and so many otht:rs. they art: l:har­actcr:-. full 01' contn.l<.lIctioll and allenallon. In thclr \'el") being the)­may be pulled between good and evil. light und dark. illuminalion and shadO\\. This reflects the confusion and scn",e of lost idcals that returned \\ IIh the \.etcrans and survi\'or:-i of the \vac It also rcllech the "/eitgeisC' of the times: the growing undercurrent that not all things can be known. ·· ... the impossibilit) ora Single. stable point of \·ie\\. and thus the limits tn all seeing and kno\\ ing." {J.P Tcllolte. /()icC!s Inlhe Dark) that \\ hat is unseen in the shadows m:.l\ he as significant as \\ hat is secn 111 the light .

LIGHT AS VISUAL METAPHOR L~I\ tllrn 110\\ 10 il more recent C'\tllllpk, a Him thill ll~l!S light a~ a metaphor and a ...... torytclling perhaps belle!' than an) other of the l110dcrn era: Barry Lc,inson's The\'lIfllrlll. Mastcrrully photo­graphed by Caleb Dcschancl. thl..! lilm is so visually lIllifil!d and \vell thought out that it \\ ould be possible tn cOlllment on the metaphoric or narn.Iti\ c U\C or li!.!htin!.! in almost C\ cry sccnc: here \\ c \\ ill c\al11-

inc only the high poInts. - . In the opening shot we sec the title character alone. (kjcctcd and

ohler. smin!.! at a railroad stallon. lie is half in light anti half in ... h:'H.hm. a rnctaphor for his ullcertain future and hrs dark. unclear past. The train arrin::-. and blacks out the screen. lie gets on. b,nd oftitk: ... cqllcncc. II i ... mysterious. suggestive [lnd suprcml.!ly simpk (foigure 9.~).

TIn: .\-alurol IS the tak of a talented young baseball plaY!.:T Roy Ilobbcs (Robt.:rt Redford) \\ ho is din.!rted from his career b\ a chance cncollnter \\ ith a dark and mysterious young lady. but maies a cOllll.!hack )'1.!aJ"S later as he simultaneously find:"! Ion! \\ ith his long lost childhood s\\ccthearl. It is a story 01" good \crsus c\ il in the cla .... sic sensl.! and Lc\ inson and Dl.!schanelusc :1 \\ ide Hlriety of cin-ematic and narrativc dl..!\ ices to tell it. ~

As thl.! story I"h.:gins. Roy is a young farm boy full of I.!nergy. talent. promIse and inltuu<ltion for his sweetheart Iri s (Glenn Close) who olw:.l)-s wcars \\ hite. This section is shot in bright aftemoon sunlight: the \ ibrant energy of nature \\ ithjust a hint ofa soft filler. It is back­lit with thc slln and e\erything is WBrlll and goldl.!n.

J lis illther dies ora heart attack in thc shade ofa tree and that nil.!ht thcre is a rerocious storm: inky blue punctuated \\ ith stabs or\iol~nt lightning. :\ bolt splits thc trce and Roy lISCS the heart or the tree to make his 0\\ n bat \\ hich he inscribes \\ ith a lightning bolt: a svmbol of the power of natu!"!.:: light in ib most inten"Se. pri~niti\e and pure form. lie gels a call li'om the majors and asks Iris out I(JI" a last mceting. They are silhouetted on a ridge against a glO\\ ing ultrama­rine blue sky \\ hich n.:prcscnts night and the tcmptalions of cros (i"igure 9.9). If you look closel)- . it is completely unnatural (it's da)--ror-night \\ith a blue filh:r) but beautiful and perfectly portrays th!:!r mcntal .... tatc. In the bnrn. as thc\ make lo\e the\ arc cll!!ulfcd III strip!:s of moonlight ahernatlllg ~,ith darkness: It is a rtldiant

9.S.The opening shot from The Noru rol- a faceless character lost some where in the light and the dark, sus pended in time: the past is uncer· tain and the future is unclear. This purgatory of being caught between them establishes the mood and tone of uncertainty and conflict between two worlds that is carried through the rest of the film. (The Narural, Tri· star Pictures/RCA/Columbia, 1984.)

lighting as storytelling 161

9.9 (top) Early in the film, Roy and Iris are young and innocent, but their purity IS disrupted when they meet in the blue moonlight and make love. We will only find out at nea rl y the end of the film that this loss of inna eence leads to a son, which Roy does not know about until he is redeemed and recovers thiS purity which is rep· resented by the golden sunlight of a wheat field where he plays catch with his newly discovered son. Here and In his love tryst with Memo Paris (Figure 9.13) blue represents the danger of succumbing to temp­tation.

9.10 (above) The Lady In Black the temptation that leads to Roy's downfall. She IS always lit dimly and is somewhat shadowy an ephem eral figure; in this shot underlit for a mysterious look

9.1 1. After years of foundering in the narrow darkness of obscurity, Roy emerges into the light of the one thing that gives him power - the bright sunny open space of a base­ball field.

cinematography 162

moment but there arc hints or dange..:r (\\c \\ill lcarn much latcr III

the film thm she..: is made pregnant '5) thi s ellCoull1er). As he board ... a train 10 trm d lO hi s major league tryout. th1l1gs darken a bi!. The..: only light source..: is the rclatin:: ly small \\ il1lkms of the train and \\ hile they admit pknty of light. it is 10\\ angle and somc\\ hat shad-0\\ y and makHllenl.

LIGHT AND SHADOW - GOOD AND EVIL It is hen: that he first sees the..: \\t111li.1I1 \\ ho IS lO bnng c\ 11 and tempta­lion inlo his life The Lady In Black (rigure. 9.101. \\1111 \\e li,.'1 see in silhollelle and Ii'olll Ihe back. USllally portrayed backlil or in shado\\. as befits her c\ il naturc. she i11\ ites him to her hotel room. shoots him and then jumps to hcr death. ending. his ba ... eball hope ...

Si\tcen years later. wc sec him arri\c at thc stadiUIll or the 'Je\\ York Knights. lie is in lotal darkness as he \\alks lip the..: ramp. then cmcrge ... into "iunlight il"i he enters the ballpark: he is home. \\ here he belongs (Figure 9.11). Gi\en his first chance to pl a:-. thl.! ~equeIH.:I.· open;., \\itll a shot of \\ hat will becollll.! an important symhol. the lighting towers of the field. They are dark and sil holletted against black storm clouds. It IS t\\ ilight. half\\a} betwcen day and night. \ ... he hlerally "knocks Ihe cover olrlhe ball" Ihere i, a boh oi'lighllllng and it bcgin ~ to nlill. Lightning. thl.! mo~ t pO\\ erl'ul form of light. is a recurring symbol throughollt the fllm light a:.. pure Cllerg~. bnngmg the PO\\ cr of nature. Coming back into the dugollt. \\ can: introduced to a second \ i~lwl thcme: tile nashbulh~ or nc\\ s photog­rapher, (Figure, 9.14. 9.15 and 9.16). As one of hi s teammates adopts the lightning bolt i.I:-. a shoulder

in SIgn ia. the team take.:~ ofT: i.I sy mbol of the po\\cr of light and cncrgy that Roy has brought lO the squad. They are on a hot ... treak. ~o\\ \\e meet the Jud!!,c. halfo\\ner ofthc tcam. Slim\ ami e\ il. his o lliee.: i ... complctely d;rk. lit onl~ by the dim li ght tl1m ~sceps through the closed \cnctian blinds (l-"igure 9. I::!) . Ili s nice is obscured in ... h<1dO\\. After the Jud uc tries to !!,ct hl111 to lose so he can bm the team. Roy rcbutT.s hin~ and 011 hi~ way out defiantl ), flip s the i'oum light :.. on. Then the bookie emergcs from the shadows. Their aHempt at briber) ha\ illg nlikd. they contri\ c to set him lip

\\ ith ~lemo (KlITI Basinger. \\ ho al\\ ay:-. \\ ear ... blac"-) at a fane)' re ... -tamant. \\ hen: th..: only illumination is the table lam ps \\ hich cast an ominolls lIllderlight 011 the.: charactcrs. although fill is adlkd for Ro~ (puril~) and Mcmo (,,1\\ beauly). She lakes him 10 Ihe bcach and in a reprise of the love scene bClween Roy and Iris they are bath~d in blue Illoonlight. BUI Ihis is a slighlly dilrerenl moonli ghl Ihan \\e sa\\ \vith his boyhood girl: colder and harsher; sensuous. but not romantic (f:'igure 9.13). Sht! com~s to seduce him and she is COI11-

pklci> in ,ill~oUCHC. sexy bUI sIJllmyslcrious.

FADING FLASHBULBS NC\.I Cllllll':-. a ml)ntagc S!.!t]lICIlCC offtashbulb!-! popping. sylllbol!/lIlg

fume. cdehrit), glamour and the seduction of the Iii"" lil~ \\ hich \\ ill distract him li'om basl'bull. Roy descends inlo a slump. bringing the tcam do\\ n \\ illl him. In hb decline. the flashbulbs still go on: but in manclolls subtlet\ \\c scc them in S[0\\-1110Iioll at the end ofthl.:lr

hurn cvcle a" tllL'\ fllde Ollt. iri", comes to a Uilmc In \\ntch. lI11hc-1\110\\ J1~ .... t to Ro\. _'\s the team is losing and R~\ is "trikinL!. out. In s ,land, lip (I igllt'O 9,19). Her Iranslu;elll \\ hile hal i, ba~klil h} a ... inglc shan or ,un light. making her appear nngdic Ro) hilS n h01111: rlln that breaks the :-.ladiulll clock Slopping time. Photographer:-,' flashbulhs go oll"anu as Ro) pecr~ into the crowd looking for Iris he i, blinded 0) Ihol11 and ean'l scc her (Figure 9,17), Later. Iho~ meel and go ror a \\ alk. \ , he lells her Ihe stOJ) or his dark past. Iho) arc illl:ompklC ~ilhollt.!t1c. 111 darkness c\clllhough it is mi<.iti<l).\"i he ends hi ... conlcs..,ion the) emerge into full ua)<light. Later. the sihcr bullt:t that has been in his ~tol11ach sends him to the hospital.

9.12. The Judge, the most elemental evil in the film, claims to abhor sun light - he stays always in the dark; only a few meager slits of light manage to seep into his darkened den.

9.13. As Roy begins to fall victim to the temptations of fame and the glamour of the big city, he once again is silhouetted in dark blue - even the car headlights seem to be glowE-ring at him as he falls for the seductive Memo Paris.

9.14, (below. leftl Throughout the film, flashbulbs represent the glare of fame, fortune and celebrity. For Roy, as the new hero of the team, the newspaper flashbulbs are every where .

9,15, (below) They quickly become the flashbulbs of the paparazzi as he paints the town red with his glam ourous girlfriend Memo.

9.16. As the nonstop nightlife hurts Roy's performance on the field, a slowmo shot of a flashbulb fading to black represents Roys loss of power

the dimming of his light.

lighting as storytelling 163

9.17. (above) His long lost love Iris comes to a game. Roy seems to sense her presence, but as he turns to look for her, he is blinded by the glare of the photographer's flashes.

9.18 ,above. right) As Roy's light on the field promises to rescue the team and spoil the Judge's plans, he watches from his shadowy lair. This image is repeated at the end of the film when Roy's home run seals the Judge's fate and the fireworks of exploding bulbs glare on the Judge's glasses.

9.19. (right) As Roy is faltering on the field, near defeat. Iris stands up and a single beam of light illuminates her so that she is visible in the crowd -it gives him the power to hit a home run and win the game. The angelic glow makes her hat a halo to sup­plement the white dress and the standing pose. To reinforce the light­ing effect, she is surrounded by men only, all in dark clothes and hats.

9.20 (below) As a reporter comes dose to uncovering Roy's dark secret, he sneaks onto the field to photo­graph him at batting practice.To stop him, Roy hits a ball with perfect aim that breaks the reporter's camera; the nashbulb fires as it falls to the ground the glare of disclosure, of secrets being brought to light, is pre­vented by Roy's sheer talent with the bat.

9.21. (right) As Roy lays ill in the hos· pital before the playoffs, the Judge comes to offer him a bribe. Rather than rendering the Judge in shadow as might be the obvious choice, Deschanel arranges for the warm glow of the otherwise benevolent hospital lamps to glare on the Judge's glasses thus the light itself man­ages to obscure his eyes and partly disguise his evil. This is appropriate as he appears here not as the intim­idating force of evil but as a silky voiced cajoler.

(inematography

164

·'\gainst doctor\; orders. he tries to practicc in secrct. hut the: n:poncr attempts to takc a picture or him. Roy hilS a ball that smashcs his camera \\ hich ralls to the 1!rollnd and the flashbulb fire,", as it breaks: he is striking back at II;-e glare of publiCity that hi.!'" nearly destroyed him (Figure 9.10). The final climactic !.!ilmc i~ at nil!.ill and the stadiulll to\\~r li!..!.hh

burn brightly. The Judge and the hookie watch the gall1~ from-his sk)bo\, which \\c see from belo\\ as just a paJc )-cIIO\\ glll\\ <.1Il

the partially closed blinds: an imagL: OrC\ il and cornlplionluncnng 0\ cr the game (Figure 9.1 X).

Roy is struggling as his injury plagues him and It all comes tim\ n to one f1neJ\ pitch \\hich \\ ill win or lose the pennant. Ila\ing it all rest 011 the final pitch is, of course. a givcn in any basehall 1110\ IC.

but the cincmtlLOgraph} and the metaphor of lighting and lighlnlllg IOgcthcr \\ itll the mystical glo\\ oCthe dying spark ... gi\·cs this scene n magical quality \\ hich makes it OIlL' of the most melllorabk flnal :-.ccncs in American cinema and visually one orlhe most l11o\ing.

VISUAL POETRY Ro\ ~lall1~ a h01ll1.! rlill nght 11110 Ih~ .... ladlUIll lil!hh (I H!Ur~ 9.23). \\h1cl1 ,hattl.'r am.i .... hort-ci~cllit. scntilllg a .... hll\\cr ..... of ... par~:-\ UIlIO the lidd (I igurcs 9,2-1- and 9.25), In Ulle.: orlhc truly great il1lagc~ ofcol1-lcmporar: cinema. as he round" the basc.:s in skm-Illotion triumph. Rn) and his ccichrallllg lcal11lll~lIc~ arc em I.'lopcd III these gllm ing lirc\\o,"I.;:-.. a" if millltlturc .... tar ... of glory arl.' raining on them. A "iuII.. golden glo\\ of light pcrsonifil..!u cnglllf~ thelll a .... Ihl.! film cnc..J.... It i .... the light or pure good: Ro) and the pO\\cr or his talent as Sj1l1-

bolizl.'d b\ the hal can cd from the Ire\.' struck by IiI.!iHninu hm c transronn~d lhL'1ll and 111\ l!.!oratcd them \\ ull the c~""c'lcc of ~lll that is good abollt haseball (and all that it s) mbolizcs ahollt -\mcrican lh: 1l10C racy ).

rile lir~I1~-likc ghl\\ COIll!.:S from thc e\ploding lights ofthc Ikld (the illuminating ... pint of b:'hcball) .... hattcr~d b) Rll) ':-. home run (hi ... taiL-nl) \\hieh hme ju ... t becn struck by a bolt of lightning thL' sallle IJghtning that ha", brought Roy Ihl.: PU\\ er 01" hi ... ullsullied talent). These tIrc ... vlllhols and thc\; \\01'''-. but there is a morc subtle \ l"'lIal Ilh.'taphor at \\ 01'1... and II i~ \\ hat makes the ",hot so haunt­Intd\ CHlI.:;lli\ c. \\-I1<1t i ... llUll!ICal about this shot is that thc lil!ht is C\:-I:)\\l1cn.-. it IS all omnipre~cnt bathing glo\\. it is all arolindthelll. 1\ almost ... l.:elllS to elllHllah,: froll1 wit hin them as the\ basL~ in the beaut) of a purl.' and simple moment of triulllph in ba~eb311 and the triumph of right 0\ er the II1:-.idioliS attempts of the Judge to inli.:ct hn ... chall \\ 1111 hi ... money-hungl) inli.::-.tatioll.

\\·ilh thIS clegantl) Simple but \ isccral and ('\pfcssi\ c \ iSlial image s\ stCIll. Le\ inson and Deschanel make the mosl of and add c\tra I;.i~cl"" oj" Illcanlllg onlO a great ... 101'). a great script and a ",upcrhl\l\e cas\. In this particular film. light i", used as a metaphor 111 a n:r} clear :Ind SU ... tHIIlCd \\i.I)_ In 1110Sllill11~. lighting i~ a part nr",toryteliing III 1110re limited and Ic~s (weTtl) metaphorical \\ay~. but it can al\\<.IYs

9.22.(above) The moment before the do·or-die climactic pitch is thrown, lightning (which has always brought the power of good to Roy) strikes the light towers of the baseball field.

9 .23. (above. left) As Roy connects powerfully with the ball.he is framed so that the lights of the field (rep­resenting the ennobling power of baseball) are in the shot with him.

9.24. (left, below) Roy's home run strikes the lights of the field: one shatters, short circuiting them all and they explode in a shower of fire~ works.

lighting as story elling 165

9.25. As Roy rounds the bases, (he sparks from the exploding bulbs sur­round him and his jubilant (eam mates in a soft gentle wash of light­they are enveloped in an omnipres· ent glow of the power of pure good triumphant over evil - one of the most beautiful and haunting images in modern cinema. The light is non directional it is all around them, part ofthem, within them.

cinematography 166

be a faclor in undcrly ing story points. characlCr and ran icularl} the perception of lime and space. Fil mmakers \\ ho take a rejectiolllst attitude towa rd I ight i ng arc depri\ ing t hC111sch es of Olle' of the most important , subtle and powerful too ls of \ iSlIa l storytclling. Those who reject li ghting arc o ft en those \\ ho least understand its useful­ness and eloquellcc as a cincl11 '-l til: tool.

controlling color

10.1. (previous pagel Bold use of color in Bfaderunner. Throughout the film, color is tightly contro lled for maximum effectiveness.

Table 10.1 . (belowl Color, wave­length and frequency of the major bands of the spectrum.

1 O.2.{bottom) Color and wavelength of typical sources.

WAVELENGTH

COl~m"e", Rl'd 800-650

Q',Hlqt' 640-590

Ypliow 580-550

G, .. ",n 530-49(}

Blut· t

480 M,o

+ 11\\.1190 <150 440

V,oIH t

430390

1"0100""'1<, 0000

.....

Cinematography 168

FREQUENCY

r 400 470

470520

510590

590·650

650700

100 760

760 800

WHAT IS WHITE? T he eye w ill accept a \\ ide range or ligh t as "\,-,h ite." depending on externa l c lues and adapta tion. The phenomenon is both psychologi­cal (adaptati on) and el1\ ironmcnta l. T he color meier (and color film. \\ h ich is very objective abo ll t these th ings) \vi ll tell us that there arc enormous differences in the color or li ght ill a room lit with tung­sten light. one lit with ordinary Ouorcsccnts and one nooded \\ ith noon daylig ht. O ur percept ion te lls us tha t a ll thrce arc ""hile light:' mos tly because we are psycho logically cond itioned 10 think of them as \\ hite and phys iologica lly. the eye adapts. Wi thout a side-by­side compari son, the eye is an unre liable indicator of \vhat is neu­tral light. Unfo rt una te ly. co lor fi lm emuls io ns and \ ideo CCD's arc extremely sensi ti ve and un fo rgiv ing. An abso lute color referencc i!'l essent ia l.

COLOR TEMPERATURE In film and video production. the Illost cOlllmon systcm used in describing the color of lighl is color " temperature:' This scalc is der ived from the color of a theoret ica l black body (a melal object ha\ing no inherent co lor of its 0\\ 11 , technica lly known as a Planck­ian rad ialor). When hcated to inca ndescence, the black body glo\\ S

at va ryi ng co lors depend ing o n the tcmperatu re (Table 10. 1), Color temperature is a quantifi cation of the terms "red hot. " ""hitc hal:' cte.

Deve loped by Lord Keil in. the 19th century i3rilish scientdic piO­

ncer, color tcmperalll rc i!'l expressed in degrees Kch in in his honor. O n Ihe Celsius sca le. the rreezing poi nt of water e'luab () . The Ke h in scale takes abso lute zero as the zero poin t. Ab~olutc Lero is _273 0 Celsius on the Keil in scalc. thus 55000 Ke il in is actual I, 5227 Ce l si u ~. Dcgn:t:s Keh ill i!'l abbre\ialcd " K" and the degre~' symbol is omitted. Because a tungsten fi lamcnt heated to inl.'a IHjt:~­cenee is vcry similar to il Planck ia n radiator. the co lor tcmperature equ ivalence is very close for t u ng~ten hil logcn lamps. but nm fur HMls. CIDs and n uo rescl! n t~ (Figurc 10.2). A graph ic representa­tion of the \ ari ous wave lengths is ca lled an SE D (S pectral En~rg)-­Distr ibut ion) or S PD (Spec tral Po\\er Di,uibut ion).

W hen a metal objeci (such as tlte tu ngsten filame nt or" light bulbi is hcated to inc3 ndesccncc, ih SED is qu ite si milar to that or a Pla nck ian rad ialor and is fa irly smooth across al l \\a\e1cnglh ..... c\en ifsomc arc stronge r than others. This is not necessarily true for all light sourccs. Fluoresccnt lights. fo r example. have \ cry "spiky" out­puts, whil: h tend to be \cry heavy in grecn (F igure 10.3)

Color tem pera tures can be vcry mislead ing: fur many sourc~:-. (espec ia ll y those w hich exhibi t d iscontinuous SEDs). it is onl) an approxi mation and b rcferred to as "corrdatcd color h.~mperature:' Color temperature tell s us a grea t dea l about the blul! orange l:OI11-poncllt of li ght and \CIY littlc about the magenta 'green component. which ca ll produce ex trcmely unp leasant casts in thl! fi lm even if the meter indi ca tcs a correct reading fu r the color temperature. An approx imate measure of how close a source is to OJ pure blal:k

body rad iato r is the Co lo r Rendering Index (C RI ). a sealc or I tn 100 "hich gives some ind ication oC the abili ty of a source to rcnder color acc urately. For photographic purposes, only sourcl.!s with a CRI of 90 or abo\c ar..: generally considered acceptable .

COLOR METERS Most light sources arc 110t u narrow ba nd of the spectrum: hCllct:' they arc not a pure hue. Most co lored light is a combination oC\ari­ous wavelengths; there is 11 0 one numbcr that can ck scribc the color

r1L'ClInth:I). Rather. It b dcflncd on 1\\0 scale:,: red blw.:: and magenta green. /\.<::. a rcsult. most Illeh.:rs give two readouts (they arc call1!d three color mdcrs. since they measurc red. blue and green). one lor Ihe \\ ann cool scale and one for the mJ1!enta, !2n::cn scale. In the C(l~C orthe Minnlta color meter. the ma!,!,cnt~!.!reel~ readolll is nul in abso­lute number'::.. but directly in (lmo~nt o("riltratioll needed to correct the color 10 "110rl11<1I" 011 the magcnta green seak.

Ro:-.co Laboratorie:-. ll1i.1ke~ Ihl' 10110\\ ing recollllllendations for gels ba:-.ed 011 reading from a Minoltn Color TCl11periltun.:: meter. LB i:-. the Light Balancing inde\. . Its u:,e is based on \\ hether ) Oll are lIsing d;1\ lit!,ht or tllll!.!stcn bal:lI1cc lilm. Li!..dll balancin!.! \allies arc ~ hf)\\n in ' lahle Ill.). - --

CC intle\ i~ Color Correction. It describe~ the gn,.::en magenta aspl..'cts of the color :-.ollrce. It i ... most rde\:lIlt \\ hen shooting \\ nh fluore:-.ccnh ..... odium \upor. mercury \apor or other types of di:-.­charge sOllrce:-. \\ hich usually ha\c a large green component. The Ilc\\cr 'Vtillolw Color Mcter III has an e\.pnnded green-magenta <.;t:a le . Rt:commended COITeCliOib arc ... hO\\ 11 In rabk 10.-J and lOS)

MIREDS Another problem \\ ith color tcmpcr:.J1ure i:-. that equal change~ III

coh'r wJ1lpt:rf.llllre an: not ncce~saril) pcrcei\ ed a~ equal cll~111gCS III

colnr. \ chance or 50K rrom 1000K to ]050K \\ ill be" noticeabk dini.:rt:llcc in ~olor. For an cljlll\atent change in color perception at 5S00K. the color temperature \\mild need to shift 150K and about 500K at 10.000K.

For thi~ rea ... on. the mired ~\ste1l1 has been de\ 1"'(,<.1. ~lireel .... ti.llH.h for micro-n.:ciprocal lkgl:CCS. ~ l irl..·ds ;.Ire <.kri\cd by eli\ id­il1g 1.000.000 b) the Kch ill \aluc. For c\ample. 3200K equal, 1.000.000 .1100 311 I1l1relb. To compute ho\\ much color correc­tioll 1\ required. )OULISC the Illired niluc ... orille suurce and the Anal

Cmdl.·

Sunhght .. t (lilwo , low Willi",)" luoq\Hm bJII'

1200K

Photo bulb~ " , A,e with W~ {,UIXlO1 OOI1~

HMI~ , . Mlt!dily \un ltqh\ ~~Y"gh\ (~OOK

Cloudy ~ky .... (If'<lr hlu~ Iky

1 0.3.l leh) GAM color filters dISplayed as a color wheel. (Photo courtesy of Great American Market.)

Table 10.2. labove) Common film and natural sources,

10.4. Ibelow) These SED charts illus trate the uneven output typical of gas discharge sources which makes them difficult to control for film and video use.

r I.

I't t~ l";;i,t.;... ~ =~

controlling color 169

85 (Full (TO) + 131

1/2 (TO +81 .-1/4 (TO +42

t 1/8 (TO +20

+ (T8 -131

112 CTB -68 +

1/3 Blue I -49

1/4 Blue

i -30

1/8 Blue -12

+1~FUUQ9 1 1]1 FuUBtue

~ Sun 85 68 +H",.",If~BI","''--_ + 81 Half ao ~:~9-+-:Th",i.",d-".,,,:U',-­+ 40 t Quarter et:g + 30 Quarter Blue

...:tlO~hth f:!Lr C"'-fl-"", •• ",h''-!.h ",.'u"._ j 12 UVfiher ,

t-"'--r-,,',.::.4 PlusgrN'n

"' Plu~9ree!!.­full Plusgleen

u I' (4 .~musg.r{'e. n I '1!L4 Plu5grecn .. 6 1/2 Mmu59reen 5 1/2 P'us~n

+1'3 MinuS-green 12 Plusg reen

Table 10.3. (top) Light Balancing Index for the most common correc­tion geis. Table 10.4. (middle) Color compen­sating as indicated by the Minolta Color Meter II. Color correction applies only to the magenta-green balance. Table 10.5. (bonom) Color compen­sating values as indicated by the Minolta Color Meter III.

Cinematography 170

desired color. If YOLI ha\ c source at 5500K and \\ ish to COI1\ ~rt it to 3200K, subt ract the mired \a luc of the desired color from that of the sou rce. 5000K = 200 mireds. 3200K = 312 mired, and then 312-200= 11 2 mireds. 5 orange has a mired value or + 112. On the mired scale, a plus sh ift value means the filter is yello\\ ish. a minu'l value means the filter \\ ill give a blue shift. When combining fillers. add the mired v(l illes.

COLOR BALANCE OF FILM No color film ca n accurately render color uncler all lighting con­ditions. In manul:,clure, the fi lm is adjusted to render color accu­rately under a particular condition. the two Illost common being average daylight (type 0 film ). which is set lor 5500K and a"erage tungsten illumination (type B lilm) designed lor 3200K. There is a third , which is based on the now disused "photo" bulbs, which \\ere 3400K (Iype A film ), rather than 3200K; these arc rare now.

Given the ract that providing tungsten light is cost ly and electric it ) intensive, while sunl ight is lIsually far more abundant. most motion piclure films arc Iype B, ba lanced for tungsten. The idea is that \\e put a correct ing filter on w hen we can Illost alTord to lose light to a fi lter ractor - in the sunlight. Kodak and Fuji now have se' eral dayli ght balance films availab le.

COLOR BALANCE WITH CAMERA FILTERS There arc three basic reasons to change the colof of lights:

To correct the color or the lights 10 match the lilm type (instead of usi ng a ca mera filter) To match various lighting SOUfces For elTeet or mood

To shoot with typc B film undcr "blue" light (in the 5500 degree area) an 85 orange filter is used. The 80A or 80B blue fi(ter, Il)r shooting daylight film with WH rlll light are ra rely used. and in most cases shou ld be combined wi th a UV filter because tungsten f1Im cannot IO lemte the high proporlion or UV in daylight and 11M Is. There is some li ght loss when using a correction filter and the filter factor must be used to adjust the T/stop. For convenience. mo~tmal1-ufacturers li st an adjusted Exposure Index which allows 1'01' the Alter loss.

When using this adjusted EI. do not also usc the lilter factor. 1: 1 is n01 technically the same as ASA (American Standards Associa­tion) which is the sca lc used to ra te film for still pholOgraphy. but 111

practice they arc the sa mc. This is because the speed of color film i~ not measured in the same way as black-and-\\ hi le emulsion (sec the chapter on Exposure). Color film speed is determined by tC!->ling.

You wi ll also notice t\\O dilTerenl Eis on cans of blaek-and-\\hite fil m. as we ll. This is 110t related to correction filters. since non~ arc needed. It has to do \\ ith the fact thai black-and-\\ hi te films \-a ry in their sens iti vity to colors. In most cases the EI for tungti tcn light wi (1 be 1/3 stop lower. Most black-and-white fi lim available Imlay arc panchromatic. meaning they arc re lat ively sensi ti ve to most or the vis ible spect rum. Ea rl y black-and-white fil ms were orthochro­matic: they were not sensiti ve to blue light at all. This mcant that actors wi th blue eyes appeared to have white eyes. Smaller color mismatches can also be corrected with color filters. as \\ell. If the scenc lighting is 2800K. lor example (too warm). then an 82(' lilter will correct the li gh t reaching the film 10 3200K.

There arc three basic filler families used in Aim and, Ideo pro­duction: conversion, light balancing and co lor compensating. ThiS app lies to both lighting gels and camera filters.

CONVERSION FILTERS COIl\ I.:rsion filters \\'ork in the Blue-Orangl.: a\is and dl.:al \\ ith runda­I11l.:nlal color balance In rdalion to the color sl.:l1 ... iti\ il\ of thl: l:l11ui­sinn. COIl\ (:[:-.ion filtt:rs alT~ct all parts of the SfD for~"'l11ooth color rendition . Although theft: used to bl.: Illore. curn.:IlII) there an: only t\\ 0 types or color ellluision: daylight and tungs tcn. Tilt: basic filter families arc shO\\1l in Table 10.7. Thc cOll\crsion filtcrs \\c use 111 film and \ ideo are called eTO and CTB (sec belo\\ ).

LIGHT BALANCING FILTERS Lluht RaianclI1U filters arc \\ armlll[! and coollll!.! fillers: thcy \\or].; on~lhl.! enlm,: SI':-D as \\ ilh the cOll\cfsioll tilters. hut thcy arc llSl!d to mal\e smaller shifts In the I ~llll!-()rangc axis.

CORRECTING LIGHT BALANCE Daylight sources il1l:iuuc:

Da)-light itsdf (da) light i .... a combination of direcl Still and open s].; ) I. 11Mb. ('00] - \\ hite or daylight t) pc Ilunrcsccilts. ( olur correct Iluon:scenh. DIchroic sourCl!s such a .... r" Y s. \rcs \\ Jlh \\ hilc-Ilallle carbons.

In !.!~n(:raL da\ Ii!..dll sources un: 111 the ra lH!.C of 5400K to 65001\.. altIH~lIg.h the) c:1I1 ~·i.lIlg.e much Ilighcr. Ncar ~ltllnsc and slln:-.cl Ihe)-

10.5. (left) Extension frames make it possible to gel these Muscos for a car shot. (Photo courtesy of Musco Lighting, Inc.)

1 0 .6 . (above) The Minolta ColorTem· perature Meter II.

(ontre Iling (olor 171

10.7. Gel taped to a 4x4 open frame is usually the best way to add color to an intense source such as these Ruby Sevens. Care must be taken not to get it too close or the gel will burn. (Plioto courtesy of Luminaria, Inc.)

Table 10.6. The basic filter families and their designations.

cInematography 172

, I'··

'"

are much warmer as the sun is tr;;\\·c linQ throlli.!.i1 a 11luch thicker layer of at11losphere and morc of the blue \\ a\ \.!fength:-. are filtered out. The amount of du~t <.Ind humidity in the air arc also lactor:-,. \\hich accounts lor the different calorrng~ of light prc\alcnt III dir­ferent locales. Perhaps most 1~11110US is the tran~llIcenl bill\,! light of Venice made famous by the painter Canaletlo.

Correction is achicn;u \vilh either "XY' or eTO. both of\\ hich an . .' orange filters. Thl' Rasco product is Rosco~un X5 (X5 rcfer:-. to th e \\ 'rattcn number equi\alent). it has a mired ~hift \ aille or 131 \\ hich \\ ill comen 5S00K tn 3~OOK. (Technically. thb i~ \.!qui\"alcnt to a \Vrallen X5B: Wrallell X5 hn ... a Illired ~hin Hlluc or 11~ . \\ hich COIl­\ erts )500 to 3400. ,,1 ightly cool for tung~t~n halance.)

CTO eTO i~ thc acronylll for ColorTL'mpcratllrc Orange. ('10 I'" \\armer thun X5 and has <.I hit!;her mired shift \ liluc: 159. This 1ll\.!L!n ... that 11 \\ill COIl\Crt ()500K to 3100K, \\hich is e .... cellcnt \\hen rOlTcct­in!.!. cookr sources C\uch as IIMls. \\hich arc running blu\.! or hC~I\· ih~ ... kvlit :-.illlatinl1s. It b abo lIscl'ul \\hen !.!.oin!2, for:1 \\ar11ler look. ,,~ il ." ill COI1\ en 5500K 10 2940K. (5500K - 1111red I X I. shlfi \ "Iue of 159. Warmer e'Juab posili\c. I X I + 159 3~() mired. 01\ Ide 1.000.000 by :l~O 29~OK.) The dillerenee is baSle"ll) Amertean ". European: probabl~ due to the fact thaI European "kyllght is gener­ally bluer Ihan American skylighl (Table 10.7). /\ n i mponant \ arial ion 0 r X5 is the combi nat inn of color correct Il1n

and nelltral uellsit). The pllrp0"le of this is to avoid haying to putt\\ll separate gels on a \\ indO\\. \\ hich might increase the rO ...... lbilit~ 1'01' gel noise and reRcction~. not to mention the additional Clht (\\ hich b sub:-.tantial). The \uriatians arc shO\-\1l inlablc 10.9: Lnfortlillatch. no one makes a I 1 R5 plu:-, ND filter. \\ hich \\ auld he u ... eful to pr~'­sen\.! a natural blueness in the \\ il1<.lo\\ S.

TUNGSTEN TO DAYLIGHT Filters for COI1\ enin!.!. \\·<1rm tUIH!sten ~ollrce", to nOllllllal dn\ hebl arc called I"ull blue. Tough Blue ~Jr CTB (Color Temperalure · lll~lc) Crable) O.X).

The prohlem \\ ith "blueing the lights" is that C rl3 ha ... a tran~mis­..,Ion or 36'}o \\hilc ~5 has il transmission or 5Xoo. This means that \\ hile )OU lose almost a stop and a hall' \\ ith erB. you lose only about 2 3 or a stop \\ ith CTO. CTB is ,cry inelfieient: its 1Il0st common lise is to balance tungsten light!-t im .. idc a room \\ ith the daylight blue \\ indo\\ light Lhal b coming in. This is a losing situa­tion from the start: the windo\\ light is liable 10 be far more PO\\ crful than the tungsten lighls to begin "itll. Ifwc then lose:2 stops ofTthe tung..,tcll by adding eTa \\ c arc really in trouble (not to mention thl..! nlc t that \\e also ha\\: to put an 80B filter on the lens \, Ith tUllgStCI1 balance film and \\e lose hca, il) there too) . In practice 1110st people tr) 10 D\·o ld this solution: the altcrnati\ cs arc:

Put ~S on the \\ inuO\\ s and shoot at tungsten balance. 8) doing this we i.l\ oid killing the tungsten lights. we don't ha\c to li se an ~OI3 on the camcra and we lose 23 of' 3 stop olT the" indo\\s. \\ hich may keep thcll1l11on:: in balance with the Inside exposurc. Put I :2 gS on the \\ indows and I :2 blue 011 the lights. Put I 2 CTll on thc liglll> and let the \\ indO\IS go slight I) bl ue. This is acltmlly OJ more reali stic colordTect and is mllch prcicrred thc..,e days. Usc daylight balance lights (FAYs. IIMls or Kinos) inside.

FLUORESCENT LIGHTING One of the Illost COlll1110n color problems \\1: Illee LOdaj is ..... hooting in loc~t1lon ... \\ here the dominant source i~ fluorescent . The problem \\ ith Ouoresecilb is th,l1 the) arc not a continuous spectrum source: 111 1110st cases they :m .. ' \C11 he3\ y in green. Another problem IS

IIKlt c\ en if they may appear to be approximatcly con'cet in color. thl..!ir discontinuous "'pcctn.l may cause thelll to rcnder color ,·cr) poorl y. (Recall Ollr discussion of metal11erism in the chapter on C%r 71"'01:\: ) This is I11ci.lsun.:d as the Color Rendering Il1dc.\ (CR I) . \ C RI of 90 or bCller is considered nccessary lor lilm and \ ideo \\ork. A':-. a result. nuore!'lcellts cannot bc corrected only b) cham'!'lI1l.!. the co lor \\ ith a l.!.cI on the lightin~ unit or filter on tht.: call1c-ra lens. .... ......

\1 ..,0 beca use of thci r dl':-.contl11uous spel.:tra. discharge sources (or \\ hl(.:h Iluorescellts are 01lL: cxample) can't be considered to hon e n tr\1e co lor temperature . Tile black body color tempemture that they approsimatc is ealled the Correlated Color Temperalure (CCT). On

TYPICAL CONVERSION

5S00K ·3200K

5500K 2900K,6S00K)o 3125K

MIRED VA=LU"''----t---"ST-,OP LOSS t 131 3/4 stop

+167 2/3 stop

NAME

85

FullCTO

112CTO 5S00K 3800K,4400K 3200K t81 1/2

li4CTO

1/8 CTO

5500K > 4500K. 3800K > 320~ +42 -F 113

SSOOK 4900K,3400K 3200K ~O lr3

NAME

f TYPICAL CONVERSION

CTB. Full Blue 3200K> 5500K

1/2 CTB. Half Blue I 3200K> 41 OOK

1/3 CTB, 1,"3 Blue 320QK 3BOOK

1/4 CTB, 1/4 Blue nOOK .' 3S00K

1/8CTB.l/88Iue 3200K 3300K

MIRED VALUE STOP LOSS

131

68

49

30

12

1-1/2 --y--

213 r 112

~

10.8. For this music video we wanted vivid color and a dreamlike effect. One tungsten bounce was g_elled double eTO and the other flame red, the two were on separate flicker boxes and the shot was overcranked. The result was a nightmare-in-hell feeling that fit the tone of the video.

Table 10.7. (left) (TO filters, conver sian va les and light loss.

Table 10.8. (left, below) CTB filters. conversion va lues and light loss.

controlling color 173

NAMl

8SN1 8'lNh

8SNQ

, RI

"'.

PI"

CONVERSIO~ LOS')

Oayllg hllo ~~ten 1 2 '3 Oayhghllo t.!JIl:9~It:·fI 2213 Davhght to I Ullg~lt'fl ] 2 3

~r'M.NAI C( 1!1!<U~f WHl"('

r.HN E IVA 'iT I"'DtXI~APPIlOX

)0 I}

E\\11tN'

"

Table 10.9. (top) Combination 85s.

Table 1 0.1 o. (above) Gels for correct ing green sources

10.9 This pool room shot needed to feel degenerate and raw. A 24K lightwave (similar to a Dino) was outside the WIndow. The exist ing daylight was allowed to leak in ana was uncorrected. The combination of the (WO contributed to the sleazy. hanky-tonk feel which was appropn­ate for the scene.

Ci nematography 174

practical locations it is not alway:o. possible to turn ofT thl: tluon:s­cenls and replace thcm \\ ilh Ollr 0\\ n lighls. ThL' many options and combinations can gel 10 be a bit confusinl!. somctiml:s. rablc 10. 11 sho\\ ~ [1 decision ellart for dealing \\ ith th~se situations. Additional tips on shooting with l1uoresccn ts include:

In the field. ilmay bc nccessary to usc a combinatIon ofthc:-L' lechniquc,. Whalc\er you do. SIIOOT 1\ GRA) SCALI ' 10

givc the lab a starting point lor corrcc tion. Shooting \\ ith ordinary Auorescents alonl: and kitIng th~ tub rCl11m e the green results in a very nUl color rendition . Aueling some lights (such as tungsten \"itll plusgrL'cn) gi\cs i.I much fuller co lor feeling to the image. Se\~ral hi gh output units arc available "hich use color (or­reeled (full spectrum) nuorescenls and can bL' u ... ed in COI1-

junction with IIM I or tungsten lighting (\\ ilh either daylight or 3100K fluorescent tubes) and pro\ ide perfL'ct (olor. The! are very efficient in power usage and gi\e a soft c\cnlighl Full minusgre(: n is equiva lent to CC30M (30 magenta) . 111 an emergency. il i, pos>ibk 10 u'c a piccc 01,(,(,30\1. Don· t forget that most backlil'.hted achertisinl'. sit!n.., ( ... th.:h as those i~ bus shelters) have fluorescent tubes .... in 111('111. The seene may look fine but the l1uorcscent cast of the lighted s igns will be \cry ugly. If you are ;.. hooting a large arca such a ... a stJpcnllarke\. till> tory or olliee. it is far more ellk ient to add green to your lights than to h'.I\e the ere\Iv' speno hours on ladder ... gellll1g or changing bulbs. When you add plusgrecn or Iluorofilter to lights they gIn.' a \ery strongl ) colored light \\ hich to the e)-I.! looks \ cry \\ rung and ooesn't appl:ar to visually match either 11M I or tungsten light. II looh absolulely awful. You \\ ill onen lind il dilli­cu lt to eOI1\incl: a din:clor thaI thIS the richt thin!!. 10 do. TI"\ Inking a color Polaroid. ..... -- -

CORRECTING OFF-COLOR LIGHTS

ARCS ll.l rbol1 arc;.. gi\'c all" hea\ y ultra\ iolet. Rosco Y-l or LL't.: L.( T. '{cl lo\\ rcducl.!s the UV outpu t. Correction of \\ hite name carhon arcs to tungsten balance: u~e Rosco MT2 (together \\ Jlh Y-I) or L.ce 2J1. Rasco MTY i ~ a combi nat ion of MT1 and V-I.

EXISTING

I YOUR

STRATEGY COMMENTS 50URCE LIGHTS

Use fluolescents only (adding Aoy None 01 Shoot Fluorescent

fluorescent fill if necessaryl and let the f1uorescents f1uorescents balance

lab time the green out of the print

Remove e~isl ing fluorescent lamps and

Aoy Tungsten leplace wi th "full spectrum" fluorescent

fluorescents Replace the lamps

bulbs which prOVide photographic or HMI

daylight or tungsten balance

Add mlnusgreen gel to the e~isting

fluorescents which removes the green Cool while Gel the f1uorescents

Wi th cool white fluorescelll s this will HMls Ouorescents (dayhght balance)

resuit in daylight balance Tungsten

I lights can be blued or HMls used

Add minusgreen gel. WIth warm whote

Warmwl1ite Gel the fluore5cenlS fluorescents this will result In a tungwm

fluorescents T(mgSlen

(tungsten balance balanc!'. Tungsten lights may be used or

HMIswllh8S

Add plusgr!'en to the HMls which

matches them to the heavy green output Cool whit!.'

HMls Gel theHMls of the fluorescents. Then use a came'a fluorescents

filter to remove the green or have the lab

time il out.

HMI HM Is general ly run a little too blue and arc vo ltage dependent. Un I ike tungsten. their co lor temperature goes up as voltage decreases. It is important to check each lamp \I·/ith a co lor temperature meter or co lor Polaroid and write the actual co lor temp on a pi ece of tape "!Lached to the side. For sli gh t correction Y-I or Rasco MT 54 can be used. For Illore correct ion. usc 1/8 or 114 CTO. Man y IIMls also rUIl a littl e green . Ilave 1/8 and 1/4 Illillusgrccil available.

INDUSTRIAL LAMPS Various types of high efficiency lamps arc found in industrial anJ public space si tu3tions. They fall into three general categories: Sodium Va por. Mcwl Halidc and Mercury Vapor. All of these lights have discontinuous spectrums and are dominant in one co lor. They al l ha ve very low CR ls. It is possible to shoot with thelll il' solllc cor­rections arc made. High pressure sodiu1l1 lamps arc very orange and contain H great dcal of green. Low pressure sodium is a monochro­matic light: they are imposs ible to correct.

CAMERA FILTRATION FOR INDUSTRIAL SOURCES The following arc recomlllended starting points for lIsing ca mera fil ­tration to correct oO:balancc industrial sources. They arc approxima-

Film Type Exist ing Source Camera Filters

High Pressure Sodium 80B + (( 30M

Tungsten Metal Halide 85 + ((SaM

Mercury Vapor 85 + ((SaM

High Pressure Sodium 808 + ((SOB

Daylight Metal Halide 81A + ((30M

Mercury Vapor 81A+((SOM

Table 1 0.11. (left) Strategies for deal­ing with off-color sources.

Table 1 0.12. Typical camera filtra­tion for common industrial sources. Always confirm with film testing or a Polaroid.

controlling color 175

t nol \\ IlIlt' J 111o!'l' ... (~nt

<..uu l \\ hitl? II11o r~ .. (ent

)).1\ light :;:;00"

D'l~li~ht ;:;::;00"

10.10. (top, left) Cool White fluores· cent with normal daylight. Notice how green the left side o f her face is. 10." . (top, middle) Cool White flu· orescent balanced against a tung~ sten sou rce with Rasco Plusgreen SO. Green is then removed by tfle lab. 10.12. (top, right) Cool White fluores· cent with Rasco Fluorofilter, which converts them to tungsten balance. 10.13 (above, leh) Cool White fluo rescent with Minusgreen (CC 30M) balanced with a daylight source. 10.14.{above.middle) A Warm White fluorescent with Rasco Minusgreen and 1/4 (TO to match a tungsten source. 10.15. (above, right) An Optima 32 (color correct fluorescent) matched with a tungsten source.

cinematography

176

l !lui \\ 11111'

I I unll' .... II·1l1

\\.H1Il \\ hili

1 IUOI\· ... ' ,'111

\lillU ... ~lt·l·1I

I I ( I ()

11I11::, .... lo"n

,::!llIlI,

Plu"'grl' l'!1 :;11

I 1/11 I' I

,!tI(t1

lltul\\hu ,,,

I I Ullft' ..... _"- III ,,~

Iluurufilll'r

(11'11111.1 ':!

tion~ onl) and ~hould be conllrm~d with metering and t ~Stlllg. \LTCI'

fail to shoot a gray scale and somc sk in tone for a timer':.. glilde On I) \\ ith these references \\ ill the co lor timer or \ ideo transfer col­orist be able to quickly and accuratel} correct the color. h1l' l1lor~ un shooting thc gray scale rdcrence se~ thc chapter on I1I1lIgl' (oil/mI. ra) close attention to ho\\ thl! gray scale is shot an incorrectly done gray scale can do morl! damage than nOIl~ at aiL i rth~ tck~iI1~

trans I\:1' artist or film color timer adheres to it. your uaili~ ... \\ ill be \'cry di ncrcl1t than YO LI expectcd. SOIllC starting points for test Ing arc sho\\ 11 111 Table I D . I~.

STYLISTIC CHOICES IN COLOR CONTROL As with everything in film and video production, stylistiC choic~s ancct the technical choices and \ ice \"crsa. This is cspeciall) tru(' \\ ith color correction. Until a Ic\\- years ago, considerable time anu money w~re spent on correcting e\er) single source 011 th(' s~l anu e\cry light or fixture that appeared in the frame to precisel) 3~O()" (for tungsten) or ;SOOK (for daylight or 11Mb) \\ ith no gr~~n. \s a result of the influcncc or cOllllllercials and music \ Ilkos. there i .... more ora tcndellc) to "let them go green" and c\cn let many difTer­~Ill mi\ed sourecs apr~ar in the frame. This is a mllch more natural­istic look and has becollll! a style all its 0'\ n. It has he~n said thai

'"green is the nc\\ orange." Some cOllll11cn:ials ami ic:.HUI'(,s C\ en go out ofthcir \\ay to cstablish thl! green fluore~ccnt look.