Cinematic Lighting Fundamentals: A Beginner's Guide to Film Lighting Techniques

Luc Ung

The 5 Characteristics of Lighting [00:00:54]

This segment introduces the five core attributes of lighting, which are essential for cinematographers, gaffers, and directors to understand and manipulate. These attributes, when considered in a specific order, streamline the lighting process on set.

1. Direction
2. Quality (Softness)
3. Color
4. Intensity
5. Cut & Shape

Lighting Direction [00:01:14]

This segment goes over the importance of lighting direction in filmmaking, exploring several lighting setups and their effects. It emphasizes how light direction impacts the mood of a scene and how cinematographers can use it to tell stories.

• Front Light [00:01:59]

  

  • Achieved by placing the light on axis with the camera, either behind or in front of it.

    

  • Often avoided due to its tendency to flatten the image and reduce the perception of depth.

    

  • Contrast, created through alternations of light and shadow, is difficult to achieve with front light because it eliminates shadows on the subject's face and illuminates the background.
  • A "topper" flag or net can be used to darken the background without affecting the subject.

    

• Butterfly Light [00:03:34]

  

  • Involves positioning the light in front of the subject and high enough to create a butterfly-shaped shadow under the nose.

    

  • The cheekbones create shadows, adding depth to the subject's face.
  • Easier to control background light with a butterfly light due to the downward angle.
  • Not flattering for all face types, particularly those with deep eye sockets (which can be mitigated with a bounce board).

• Rembrandt Light [00:04:33]

  

  • Named after the Dutch painter Rembrandt, recognizable by the triangle of light on the shadow side of the face.

    

  • Achieved by positioning the light roughly 45° off-axis to the subject's eyeline and at a 45° downward angle.

    

  • Commonly used in movies for its natural and three-dimensional appearance.

• Side Light [00:05:22]

  

  • The light is placed at about 90° relative to your subject's eyeline, creating a very dramatic look

    

  • To avoid shadows on the subject's cheek, you want to place the light slightly closer on axis with the camera in order to avoid this shadow cast by the talent's cheek itself.

  

• Kicker/Edge Light [00:05:57]

  

  • Light is placed 15-45° behind the subject, creating a highlight around the shoulders and cheeks.

    

  • Often paired with a reflector or key light to balance contrast and add depth.

• Backlight [00:06:44]

  

  • Creates a highlight around the subject's shoulders by placing the light directly behind them.

    

  • Differs from a kicker in that it doesn't wrap around the subject's cheek.
  • Used to separate the subject from the background, often positioned high and pointed down to avoid lens flare.

• Tips on Lighting Direction [00:07:11]

  • Generally, lights are positioned high and pointed down to create natural shadow fall.
  • Shadows can be used to evoke specific emotions.
  • Study lighting by observing shadow positions and how they affect the scene's mood.

• How to Study Lighting While Watching Movies? [00:07:44]

  • Ask "Where is the light coming from?" and "How does it make me feel?"
  • The former question can be answered by looking at where the shadow created by the nose is falling.

• More Tips on Lighting Direction [00:08:28]

  • Lighting is dynamic, and a single light can affect talents differently based on their positions.
  • Collaboration between cinematographers and directors is essential for blocking.
  • Cinematography is an interpretation of reality, not a scientific recreation.

Quality (Softness) [00:10:04]

This part is all about the quality and softness of light, looking at how it can be manipulated to achieve different effects.

• Hard vs. Soft Light [00:10:04]

  

  • Hard light creates shadows with well-defined edges.
  • Soft light creates shadows with less defined edges.
  • Quality of light is determined by the size of the light source relative to the subject.

    

  • A larger light source relative to the subject creates softer light.
  • A smaller light source relative to the subject creates harder light.
  • It is the relative size between your light source and your subject that determines the softness of the light.

    

  • A shadow is made up of two components: the umbra (deep dark center) and the penumbra (fuzzy perimeter).

    

  • Hard light has a very small penumbra or none, while soft light has a large penumbra with little or no umbra.

• Manipulating Light Softness [00:12:58]

  

  1. Diffuse the light source to make it bigger and softer.
  2. Move the soft light closer to make it softer.
  3. Move the light away to make it harder.
  4. Fill the diffusion frame evenly for softer light.
  5. Spot the unit to make it harder.

• Additional Tips [00:13:33]

  • Soft light can soften skin imperfections.
  • When "extending" a practical light source, making the added film light softer is more acceptable than making it harder.

Color [00:14:22]

This section explains how color temperature and gels impact the look and feel of a shot.

• Color Temperature [00:14:41]

  • White light comes in many tones, from warm orange to cool blue.

    

  • Color temperature is measured in Kelvin (K).
  • Lower Kelvin numbers indicate warmer, more orange light, while higher Kelvin numbers indicate cooler, bluer light.

• White Balance [00:15:32]

  • Cameras have a white balance setting to adjust for different color temperatures.

    

  • Matching the white balance to the color temperature of the light source makes white appear neutral.

    

  • When balancing to Tungsten (3200K), the camera sensor becomes less sensitive to red and orange.
  • When balancing to Daylight (5600K), the camera becomes less sensitive to blue light.

    

• Creative Uses of Color Temperature [00:16:41]

  • Balance the camera to the most prominent light in the scene, then adjust other lights accordingly.
  • Set different color temperatures to create specific moods, such as a colder feel for winter or a warmer feel overall.

    

• Color via RGB/Gels [00:18:41]

  • Gels act as filters, cutting out parts of the light spectrum.
  • Using gels or RGB LED units changes the color of the light.

Intensity [00:19:36]

This section looks at the intensity of light, as well as key and fill ratios in filmmaking.

• Stops vs. Brightness Levels [00:19:58]

  

  • Opening or closing a lens by a stop doubles or halves the amount of light.
  • Human eyes interpret light logarithmically, so brightness changes may not appear linear.

    

    

    

• Key to Fill Ratio [00:21:06]

  • Refers to the brightness difference between the key side and fill side of a subject's face.
  • Different ratios (e.g., 2:1, 4:1, 8:1, 16:1) can convey different emotions.

    

  • A fill light above and behind the camera or slightly on axis can look more natural, while negative fill makes the fill side darker.

    

• Negative Fill [00:22:49]

  • To make your fill side darker, you can use negative fill, typically a 4x4 floppy.

    

  • This cuts off ambient light bouncing from walls and objects that would naturally illuminate the shadow side.

    

  • The larger and closer the negative fill, the darker the fill side will get.

• Foreground to Background Ratio [00:23:17]

  

  • Measures the brightness difference between the foreground (subject) and background.
  • Having the talent one to one and a half stops brighter than the background is generally effective.

    

  • Tips for controlling the ratio:
    • Use separate key and background lights.
    • Discuss blocking with the director to avoid distracting backgrounds.
    • Position actors away from the background.
    • Use snapgrids and egg crates to minimize light spill.

Cut & Shape [00:24:58]

• This part wraps up by highlighting tips and tricks to best shape the light
  1. Use Siders to control the spill of your light on the background.

     

  2. The further the flag from the light, the cleaner the cut.

     

  3. Place flags between the diffusion frame and the subject (rather than between the light and the diffusion frame).