25/11/2017 1 An introduction - Lighting for TV and Film, 3rd Edition

 Lighting for TV and Film, 3rd Edition

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Acknowledgements 2 The nature of light
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1 An introduction
 

WHY BOTHER?
Of course we take light for granted. It is part of our everyday world; a phe-
nomenon so familiar that we cease to think about it.

When shooting on location there is usually light of some sort around. It may
not be ideal, but at least it allows the camera to see what is going on. If whatever
you are looking at happens to be in shadow, move it into the light; if the sur-
roundings are insufficiently bright, add illumination of some kind. In the studio,
surely all you need is overall lighting from a large bank of lamps. So why all this
mystique about lighting techniques? Why does one need to study the obvious?

Most of us start with questions like these. It is certainly puzzling when you
find that a straightforward interview has needed a dozen lamps, and then see a
particularly impressive lighting effect which was achieved with just a single
lamp!

WHY DO WE NEED LIGHTING TECHNIQUES?

There are a number of reasons why carefully arranged lighting is desirable. Some
are self-evident, others are less obvious:

Light intensity To produce high-quality pictures the light level (intensity)

needs to be appropriate for the sensitivity of the medium you’re using, and
the lens aperture (f-stop). As we shall see later, if there is too little light, fo-
cusing can be very difficult (limited depth of field) and various picture de-
fects become prominent (e.g. picture noise).

Lighting contrast Bright areas and deep shadows can be an embarrassment,

for the camera can only handle a limited contrast range. Suitable lighting
can often overcome this problem.

Inconsistent pictorial effect A subject may be strongly lit from one camera
position and silhouetted from another. It may look less attractive as the an-
gle changes. Careful lighting can correct these differences.

Light must suit the production techniques If, for example, a shadow falls on
the subject as the camera moves closer, this will not only be a distraction but
may prevent the audience from seeing the subject clearly.

Inappropriate illumination Poorly arranged, light can produce flat, two-di-

mensional pictures. Effective lighting creates an illusion of depth and solidi-
ty; subjects stand out from the background.

Unsuitable illumination Badly chosen lighting treatment can make a picture

appear artificial and unconvincing. Suitably arranged lighting builds an im-
pression of realism, a completely convincing environment.

Light should develop a suitable ambience The environmental atmosphere

and mood should be appropriate for the occasion.

Lighting affects a subject’s appearance Depending on the way light falls on

a subject, it may appear beautiful, ugly, mysterious, distorted, stark, crude
…

Uncontrolled illumination can cause distracting effects It can result in shad-

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ows, hotspots, reflections, that take the audience’s attention. Careful lighting

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25/11/2017 1 An introduction - Lighting for TV and Film, 3rd Edition

can avoid or suppress these problems.

WHAT CAN LIGHTING DO?

From what we have already seen it is clear that lighting in television and film is
about much more than just making things visible. Skillful lighting allows you to
adjust and manipulate the impression conveyed on the screen. You do this by
carefully controlling the strength and quality of the light, by arranging its angle
and coverage.

A magical property of light is its flexibility – the ease with which it can be
controlled. You can totally transform a situation in an instant at the touch of a
switch. Or you can alter it gradually and imperceptibly, without your audience
realizing how subtly it is changing. Simply by adjusting the relative intensities of
the same group of lamps you can transform a scene’s appearance or the prevail-
ing atmosphere.

Lighting potentials
Let’s look at typical ways in which lighting allows us to control the picture:

Light can reveal form, texture, detail. We can strongly emphasize features,
or light them so that they are barely discernible by adjusting the coverage,
quality and direction of the light.

Light can conceal. Carefully arranged shadows can restrict what is visible.

Light gradations can suggest surface contouring. Even where none exists,
shading can make a flat surface appear curved or sloping.

Light can imply features that are not really there Light patterns and cast
shadows can convincingly suggest features as diverse as distant buildings,
water, falling snow, windows, foliage …

Light can modify our impressions of distance and size in a picture.

Light can adjust the color of subjects. It can add color to neutral surfaces,
and alter color values within the scene.

Light can suppress all surface contouring and detail, and reveal only the
subjec’s outline. Silhouette style.

Light can suppress all surface contouring and concentrate on subject detail.
Notan style.

Light can emphasize solidity and form. Chiaroscuro style.

Light influences how the audience responds to a picture. Light can intrigue,
mystify, excite …

Lighting can guide the audience’s interest. It can concentrate their attention
and move it from one area to another, gradually or abruptly.

Lighting can create compositional relationships for the camera. By forming

and adjusting tonal masses.

Light can develop an atmosphere or mood. Lighting can build up a particu-

lar ambience.

Light can imply time of day and weather. It can suggest that a scene is lit by
strong sunlight or moonlight, stormy conditions, etc.

Light can establish environmental associations. Light patterns, shadows, can

suggest that action is taking place in a prison, forest, church, etc.

Light can isolate a subject. For example, within a spotlight.

Light can create visual continuity. It can join and unify a series of separate
subjects.

Light can provide visual movement. Patterns of moving light and shadow,
flashing lights, color changes, etc. can create exciting effects.

WHAT IS BAD LIGHTING?

It could be argued that there is no such thing as bad lighting; simply lighting that
is inappropriate for that particular occasion. If you a lit a newsreader with an
overhead light, the skull-like result would be quite unacceptable. So would
ghoulish underlighting from a low lamp. However, both treatments could create
an excellent effect in a dramatic situation, where you want to shock your
audience.

In practice, there are all kinds of ‘bad lighting’. It may, for example:

Distract our attention – e.g. a wrongly cued lighting change that makes us
over-aware of production mechanics.

Produce an ugly or unattractive effect – e.g. the unflattering effect of two

nose shadows, black eye sockets, hot tops to heads.

Prevent us from seeing the subject properly – e.g. one person’s shadow falls
across the face of another.

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25/11/2017 1 An introduction - Lighting for TV and Film, 3rd Edition

Create an entirely inappropriate ambiance – badly designed lighting can

cause an attractive studio setting to look phoney or unattractive. Even a real
locale can appear unconvincing if ineptly lit!

LEARNING TO LIGHT
There are really three broad approaches you can follow when lighting for the
camera.

The first is trial and error. You move lamps around until you get acceptable
results. This takes a lot of time and patience – and luck. It is possible to learn
about lighting this way, and achieve great pictures. But more often they are a dis-
appointing miss.

In the second method one learns routines. Lamps are located to illuminate the
subject in a regular pattern. Results can be very satisfactory, but there is a same-
ness about all the pictures. Atmosphere is sacrificed for technique. This mechani-
cal approach teaches you little about the artistic potentials of lighting.

The third method, which we shall follow here, is creative analysis. You build
up lighting treatment methodically from a real appreciation of how light behaves.
Here we shall consider how light modifies and enhances; how it alters the appear-
ance of subjects; how it can develop a mood. You will discover how to manipu-
late light; how to use light creatively to achieve exactly the effects you are seek-
ing. When problems arise, creative analysis enables you to discover and correct
them systematically.

From this foretaste of the potentials of lighting let us begin our journey into
this fascinating field by exploring the nature of light itself.

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