First thoughts on film lighting

My website: https://michaelfirus.com/

And thus our long holidays come to a close. As the last harsh rays of summer light morph into the gentle glow of autumn’s clouds and low sun, we begin our classes once again.

In the studio this semester, our focus is on light. Often described as the brush and pigment by which films are painted, light is inextricably linked to the process of filmmaking.

One of the many insights touched upon during this introductory week was fundamental in nature. This was the fact that by the very act of setting a camera’s exposure, deliberate choices regarding lighting take place inherently. This is because the setting of exposure deals in essence with the regulation of light.

The basic components of an exposure relate to the concepts of shutter speed, gain and aperture.

These can be explained as follows: shutter speed describes the duration between a cameras shutter opening and closing. It is a specific length of time a shutter remains open and thus lets in a specific amount of light into the camera to hit the sensor. Gain deals with the artificial ‘boost’ that the camera can add to the image after the sensor has captured it. Finally, and most importantly, aperture can come into play. Aperture deals with the variability of the size of the opening within the camera lens. This opening can vary in size and thus vary the volume of light that can enter the camera and strike the sensor. A small opening is donated by a larger f-number while a smaller such number denotes a large opening.

 

Another fundamental of light touched upon during this week was that of natural lighting and its characteristics.

These can be classified alongside the natural phenomena that cause them:

Soft diffused light: this is caused by cloud cover and matte surroundings.

Harsh light: caused by direct intense sunlight and highly reflective surroundings