Everything You Need To Know About Lighting
Lighting is one of the most essential factors involved in effective cinematography. Understanding the basics and techniques behind lighting can help in creating high-quality results for your project. Lighting is important in video and film production because cameras do not respond to lights in the same way that the human eye does. If you are new to video and film production, the first learning curve is understanding why lighting is so key. Regardless of content, any video will have a thought and design behind the lighting. The more advanced the video and film production, the more advanced the lighting behind it. Here we discuss the different types of lighting and how they can play a major role in your film.
Three-Point Lighting
The most basic lighting in film is the three-point lighting setup. Lighting from three directions can shape your subject and set them apart from their background. For this to work, your lighting equipment needs to face your subject from three directions: front, back and side.
Key Light
A key light is the primary light of the scene. It will be the most intense and direct light source of the entire shot. It will be the first light you set up, and will be used to illuminate the subject or actor. Avoid placing your key light close to the camera. This will cause your lighting to become flat and featureless. If a key light is positioned to the side or back of an actor, it will create a mysterious/dramatic mood, and overall keep the image dark.
Fill Light
A fill light illuminates the shadows that are created by the key light. A fill light is usually placed on the opposite side of the key light, and often not as powerful as the key. As the primary function of the fill is to remove shadows created by the key, it’s important that the fill remains indistinctive and does not create shadows or its own characteristics. The closer the fill light is to the camera, the less shadows it will create.
Fills are easy to create even if you don’t have another light at hand; you can place a reflector on the opposite 3/4 to the key. Light will spill onto the reflector and bounce up to your subject. A fill light is measured in a fill light ratio also known as a key/fill ratio. It describes the relative amount of light from the key and the fill. For example, a ratio of 1:2 would indicate that the fill is half the intensity of the key.
Back Light
A back light is set up behind your subject, and is usually placed higher than the object it is lighting. A backlight is often used to separate an object or an actor from a dark background, and to give the subject more shape and depth. Backlighting can help bring your subject out and away from looking two dimensional. Non-diffused sunlight can often be too harsh to light your subject as a key light, but as a backlight, the sun can make your subject stand out. With the sun as a backlight, you can use a reflector or a foam board to bounce the sun at a lesser intensity back up to the actor. To create a silhouette, expose for the backlight and remove your key and fill.
Soft Film Lighting
Soft lighting is an aesthetic used by cinematographers to eliminate shadows and to recreate subtle shades of light from exterior sources. It can be used as a fill light and can add youth to a subject’s face. It also gives the illusion of coming from practical sources.
High Key Light
This is an effect created by heightening the key light and using fill lights generously. This keeps the lighting bright and balanced in your frame, creating almost no shadow. This balances the lighting from object to object in your frame. This is known as your lighting ratio.
Low Key Light
Low key focuses on the use of shadows as a character, rather than the subjects in the light itself. It’s commonly used throughout horror and thriller films. Often will be achieved with just one light. Low key lighting will have a high lighting ratio. Low key lighting works better when using a hard light source.
Diffused Overhead Lighting
