Lighting for Beginners - Links

[Jason Ramsey]

I'm going to get this section started by posting some links posted originally on DVXuser:

3 Point Lighting
Excellent article from Apple with information on 3-point, shooting outdoors, extreme light, and using reflectors.
http://ali.apple.com/ali_sites/ali/e..._Lighting.html (http://ali.apple.com/ali_sites/ali/exhibits/1000019/Effective_Lighting.html)

Awesome site handy images on 3-point lighting, then moving into interview lighting and general rules that are applied to it. Great article.
http://www.utexas.edu/web/video/prod.php?e=0#lights

Mostly text, but there is a VIDEO at the bottom that shows you the differences with key, fill, and background lights.
http://coe.sdsu.edu/eet/articles/lighting/start.htm
AWESOME LOW BUDGET LIGHTING ARTICLE. It goes through basically anything involved with lighting and doing it on a low budget, along with how to do it. Great for beginners!
http://www.exposure.co.uk/eejit/light/ Other links submitted by Scarletuser Members:

ARRI Lighting Handbook

(http://www.arri.de/infodown/light/br...ok_english.pdf (http://www.arri.de/infodown/light/broch/arri_lighting_handbook_english.pdf))

It has great overview and samples with detailed explanations that apply to lighting in general - not just ARRI lights...later,
Jason

[shaocaholica]

Thanks! The first link isn't working though.

[Christoffer]

I really didn't understand the difference between cinematography and lightning.
It's the same thing, isn't it? You paint with light...
If lighting is it's own category, wouldn't composition be another?

I'm not saying we should close this section, I'm just asking an open question because this dividing from cinematography is making my head hurt...

[Peter Majtan]

Man - You are hard one to please...

Lighting is so complex and so important that it definitely deserves dedicated section. Of course is a inseparable part of cinematography - but then we would have only one forum section - cinematography...

Just think of it as an chapter in a book and move on unless You are actually planing on contributing...

---------------------

I highly recommend the FREE brochure from ARRI:

ARRI Lighting Handbook

(http://www.arri.de/infodown/light/broch/arri_lighting_handbook_english.pdf)

It has great overview and samples with detailed explanations that apply to lighting in general - not just ARRI lights...

Highly recommended...

[Christoffer]

Composition is just as complex...

As said, I'm not shouting "shut it down!" I was just asking an open question based on mostly previous experience in similar divided discussions.
I mean, composition is a larger key to image storytelling then lightning (roughly speaking). Lightning is complex, but just as complex as composition, just as wide spread in artistic properties.

And I'm not hard to please I'm just daring enough to criticise common conceptions...

[Isaac Brody]

I see lighting encompassing more of the technical aspects of filmmaking: All that discussion about gels, diffusion, what it does, when to use it.

I see cinematography discussion along the lines of why you use a close-up versus a wide, what effect lens choices have on the environment and your characters, use of key to fill ratio to create dramatic lighting moods and create tension. How to use the tools to further the story.

Lighting Section: Technical Discussion, what light should i buy, etc. How do I shoot a moonlight scene?

Cinematography: How can I emphasize the character relationships and inner state through my shot compositions and lighting?

Of course, I'm sure there'll be a lot of overlap.

[Christoffer]

Lighting Section: Technical Discussion, what light should i buy, etc. How do I shoot a moonlight scene?

Cinematography: How can I emphasize the character relationships and inner state through my shot compositions and lighting?


Well, that makes sense I think...
But then it might as well be called "Cinematography: The Art" and "Cinematography: Technical" because there's technical aspects of other stuff then lightning...


May I suggest a "Still photography" section? Not only because Scarlet has still function but because cinematography and photogrtaphy goes hand in hand.

[Jason Ramsey]

And, those other categories will come around when the time comes. I figured this would be a good start. Audio, screenwriting, business/marketing, etc, etc, etc, etc... Some will have an audience here. Some, not so much.

Don't worry... eventually, there will be "too many" different sub-forums... All in due time my friend :)

Later,
Jason

[Peter Majtan]

Maybe a great idea would be to create a sub-forum titled "other aspects" or something like it - and when some of the "other" aspects becomes too much, it can be branched out into a dedicated sub-forum...

[Jared Caldwell]

Peter,

Excellent pdf! Thanks!

[Jason Ramsey]

ARRI Lighting Handbook

(http://www.arri.de/infodown/light/br...ok_english.pdf (http://www.arri.de/infodown/light/broch/arri_lighting_handbook_english.pdf))

It has great overview and samples with detailed explanations that apply to lighting in general - not just ARRI lights...

Added that to the list. Thanks.

Later,
Jason

[todd folts]

Well said "Just think of it as an chapter in a book "

I would say Chapter 1

[Pietro Impagliazzo]

I'm reading the Blain Brown book Motion Picture and Video Lighting.
It's pretty good.

Goes into the aspects of light, how to achieve certain looks, basic scenarios.
And it covers the technical aspect as well.

Peter, thanks for sharing the Arri Handbook. I didn't know about it.
Very objective and good for beginners that have no idea how lighting is set up for these kind of shots.

[Craig Ryan]

This is really cinematography in general, but is invaluable for those that aren't familiar with:

http://www.reduser.net/forum/showthread.php?t=2748

[aidenvfx]

Composition is just as complex...

As said, I'm not shouting "shut it down!" I was just asking an open question based on mostly previous experience in similar divided discussions.
I mean, composition is a larger key to image storytelling then lightning (roughly speaking). Lightning is complex, but just as complex as composition, just as wide spread in artistic properties.

And I'm not hard to please I'm just daring enough to criticise common conceptions... I think most DOP's will disagree with your assessment. Lighting plays a very key role in telling a story.

[Christoffer]

I think most DOP's will disagree with your assessment. Lighting plays a very key role in telling a story.


Colors might, but composition and framing is the thing that delivers the information to the audience. I didn't say that lightning isn't a key role, I just said that composition is more important to how the story is told. They work hand in hand but I really think that lightning gets far too much attention of the two. There's not much discussions about composition...

[kmikami]

Colors might, but composition and framing is the thing that delivers the information to the audience. I didn't say that lightning isn't a key role, I just said that composition is more important to how the story is told. They work hand in hand but I really think that lightning gets far too much attention of the two. There's not much discussions about composition...

I disagree. You can be in a situation with amazingly beautiful lighting occurring naturally - say golden light streaming through an interestingly shaped window at sunset and glowing off of a white marble room that is filled with smoke or dust - and take a quick snapshot that will still be a beautiful image. There might be 100 possible valid compositions you could come up with in that room that would lead to excellent images.

On the flip side, you can enter into a situation with dull or flat lighting and it may be nearly impossible to get an interesting shot no matter where you put the camera.

Lighting is everything in photography in my opinion and it's the most subtle and difficult part of the equation. Getting a great composition is relatively easy and comes instinctively to a lot of people. A lack of great lighting is often the biggest obstacle in the way of visual excellence when it comes to low budget, indie or beginning filmmaking.

[Cedric_Akins]

composition and framing

[Fahreza]

the ARRI brochure is very useful for a beginner like me.
thank you for posting.

[nespark]

I'm going to get this section started by posting some links posted originally on DVXuser

A gaffer/rental house owner/operator I work with in Boston by the name of Guy Holt has just compiled for his company news letter what is probably the best information regarding HMIs that I have seen anywhere. In his article, he undertakes a comprehensive survey of the prevalent lighting and portable power generation equipment, describes how he systematically tested how well they work together, and has made the results available online.

To paraphrase what he found, harmonic distortion of set power by HMI electronic ballasts is an increasing problem in HD production. It is becoming an issue because portable generators were not designed for the abundance of non-linear loads, like the electronic HMI and Fluorescent lighting, that make up lighting packages today. The problem is being further compounded by the increasing prevalence on set of sophisticated electronic production equipment like computers, hard drives and HD monitors which require clean power, but are themselves sources of harmonic distortion.

Normally, when you plug an HMI light into a wall outlet you need not be concerned about the current harmonics generated by HMI ballasts producing voltage distortions. The impedance of the electrical path from the power plant is so low, the distortion of the original voltage waveform so small (1-3%), and the plant capacity so large, that inherently noisy loads like HMI ballasts placed upon it will not affect the voltage at the load bus. However, it is an all together different situation when plugging HMIs into conventional portable generators. Given the large sub-transient impedance of conventional portable generators, even a small degree of harmonic noise being fed back into the power stream will result in a large amount of distortion in its’ voltage. Add to that, the likely hood that the percentage of the generator’s capacity taken up by electronic HMI & Kino ballasts will to be very high given its small size relative to typical lighting packages, and given the increasing prevalence of these types of light sources in production. Finally, add that the original supply voltage waveform of a conventional generator is appreciably distorted to begin with, and you have a situation where the return of any harmonic currents by an HMI ballast will result in significant waveform distortion of the voltage at the power bus.

The power waveform below left is from his article and is typical of what results from the operation of a couple of 1200W HMIs with non-power factor corrected ballasts on a conventional portable generator. The adverse effects of the harmonic noise exhibited here, can take the form of overheating and failing equipment, circuit breaker trips, excessive current on the neutral wire, and instability of the generator’s voltage and frequency. It is for these reasons, he argues, that it has never been possible to reliably operate more than a couple of 1200W HMIs with electronic ballasts on a conventional 6500W portable gas generator. Harmonic noise of this magnitude can also damage HD digital cinema production equipment, create ground loops, and possibly create radio frequency (RF) interference.

http://www.screenlightandgrip.com/images/waveform_AVR-Inv_Pkg.jpg

In the past, attention was given to generator features such as automatic voltage regulation and crystal speed regulation. But, given the rise in production problems associated with harmonic noise, an increasingly more important feature today is the quality of the generated power waveform and how well it interacts with the lighting units predominantly used today. For that reason, he did a series of tests that he summarizes in the article.

His tests have resulted in some rather startling conclusions. They show that when your lighting package consists predominantly of non-linear light sources, like HMI and Fluorescent lights, it is essential to have PFC circuitry in the ballasts and to operate them on an inverter generator. The combination of improved power factor and the nearly pure power waveform of the inverter generator creates clean stable set power (like that in the power waveform above right) that is capable of reliably operating larger lights (HMIs up to 6kw or Quartz lights up to 5kw), or more smaller lights, off of portable gas generators than has ever been possible before. For example, as I mentioned in a previous post, I used one of their modified Honda EU6500is Generators on a Red shoot to power a lighting package that consisted of a 2.5kw, 1200, & 800 HMI Pars, a couple of Kino Flo ParaBeam 400s, a couple of ParaBeam 200s, and a Flat Head 80. Given the light sensitivity of the Red Camera, this was all the light we needed to light a large night exterior.

The second startling result of the tests was that If you don’t have access to the newest PFC electronic ballasts, you are better served by using the older magnetic ballasts on an inverter generator like the Honda EU 6500is over non-PFC electronic ballasts. I highly recommend that anyone using HMIs on a set read his article. While the HMI lighting package he has developed as a result of his tests is new (introduced Jan 09), the set power issues caused by HMI ballasts have been vexing electricians for years. The article explains the electrical engineering principles behind these issues, and how his lighting package resolves them, in a way I have not seen elsewhere. In fact his tests will be cited in the upcoming 4th edition of the “Set Lighting Technician’s Handbook.” The article is posted on their website at: http://www.screenlightandgrip.com/html/emailnewsletter_generators.html
(http://www.screenlightandgrip.com/html/emailnewsletter_generators.html)

Eileen Ryan, Gaffer, Boston

[Peter Mosiman]

Wow! Eileen, excellent post, and thanks for all that info. I can't wait to get some free time and start sifting through it.

[nespark]

Wow! Eileen, excellent post, and thanks for all that info. I can't wait to get some free time and start sifting through it.

Thanks Peter. I strongly encourage anyone using HMIs on portable generators read the article. It is full of useful information that systematically refutes a lot the conventional wisdom I have read in forums. For example, you are better served by using the older magnetic ballasts on an inverter generator like the Honda EU6500is over non-PFC electronic ballasts. As Guy explains in his article, when electronic square wave HMI ballasts came on the market, they were at first thought to be the solution to all the problems inherent in running HMI lights on small portable generators. By eliminating the flicker problem associated with magnetic ballasts, they also eliminated the need for the expensive and ultimately unreliable AC governors required for flicker free filming with magnetic HMI ballasts and portable gas generators.

Since they are not frequency dependent, it was thought at first that electronic square wave ballasts would operate HMIs more reliably on small portable generators – even those without frequency governors. For this reason, as soon as electronic square wave ballasts appeared on the market, many lighting rental houses replaced the more expensive crystal governed portable generators with less expensive non-synchronous portable generators. The theory was that an electronic square wave ballast would operate reliably on a non governed generator and allow filming at any frame rate, where as a magnetic HMI ballast operating on an unreliably AC governed generator allowed filming only at permitted frame rates.

In practice, electronic square wave ballasts turned out to be a mixed blessing. Part of the problem with operating electronic HMI ballasts on portable gas generators in the past has to do with the purity of the power waveform they generate. With an applied voltage waveform distortion of upwards of 19.5%, conventional generators do not interact well with the leading power factor (current leads voltage) of the capacitive reactance created by electronic square wave HMI ballasts. The net result is harmonic currents are thrown back into the power stream, which results in a further degradation of the voltage waveform and ultimately to equipment failure or damage (for the reasons discussed in my previous post.)

The oscilloscope shots of the power waveforms below is from the article mentioned above and is typical of what results from the operation of a 1200W HMI with non-power factor corrected ballast on grid power (left), on a conventional generator (middle), and inverter generator (right.) The adverse effects of the harmonic noise generated by non-PFC electronic ballasts and exhibited here in the middle shot, can take the form of overheating and failing equipment, circuit breaker trips, excessive current on the neutral wire, and instability of the generator’s voltage and frequency. Harmonic noise of this magnitude can also damage HD digital cinema production equipment, create ground loops, and possibly create radio frequency (RF) interference.

http://www.screenlightandgrip.com/images/generators/wwaveform_elec_ballast.jpg

As is evident in the oscilloscope shots below of a 1200W magnetic HMI ballasts on grid power, on power generated by a conventional Generator (Honda EX5500), and power generated by an inverter generator (Honda EU6500is), the lagging power factor caused by the inductive reactance of magnetic ballasts has by comparison only a moderately adverse effect on the power waveform. Outside of causing a voltage spike in the inverter power, magnetic ballasts actually show a positive effect on the already distorted power waveform of the Honda EX5500 conventional generator. For this reason magnetic ballasts work better on conventional generators with frequency governors than do non-PFC electronic square wave HMI ballasts.

http://www.screenlightandgrip.com/images/generators/wwaveform_mag_ballast.jpg

These oscilloscope shots show that if you don’t have access to the newest PFC electronic ballasts, the older magnetic ballasts are in fact cleaner running on portable gas generators than non-PFC electronic ballasts. And, where inverter generators like the Honda EU6500is do not require crystal governors to run at precisely 60Hz, you can operate magnetic HMI ballasts reliably on them. In addition, the smaller magnetic ballasts (575-2500W) offer the distinct advantage of being less expensive and draw less power (once they have come up to speed) than the commonly available non-PFC electronic equivalents (13.5A versus 19A for a 1.2kw.)

Of course there are downsides to using magnetic ballasts. One down side is that you are restricted to using only the safe frame rates and shutter angles. But when you consider that every film made before the early 1990s was made this way, you realize it is not such a limitation. Another downside to magnetic ballasts is that you can’t load the generator to full capacity because you must leave “head room” for their higher front end striking load. When choosing HMIs to run off portable generators, bear in mind that a magnetic ballasts draws more current during the striking phase and then they “settle down” and require less power to maintain the HMI Arc. By contrast, an electronic ballasts “ramps up”. That is, its’ current draw gradually builds until it “tops off.”

For example, even though a 2.5 magnetic ballast draws approximately 26 amps you will not be able to run it reliably on the 30A/120V twist-lock receptacle on the generator’s power panel. As mentioned above, magnetic ballasts have a high front end striking load. For this reason, you must always leave “head room” on the generator for the strike. But, even though the twist-lock receptacle is rated for 30 Amps conventional 6500W generators are only capable of sustaining a peak load of 27.5 Amps per leg for a short period of time. Their continuous load capacity (more than 30 minutes) is 23 Amps per leg. And if there is any line loss from a long cable run the draw of a 2.5 magnetic ballast will climb to upward of 30 Amps. To make matters worse, the lagging power factor caused by the inductive reactance of the magnetic ballast kicking harmonic currents back into the power stream causes spikes in the supply voltage that can cause erratic tripping of the breakers on the generator or ballast. (for a more detailed explanation of why that is I, again, suggest you read SL&G’s newsletter article.) In my experience the load of a 2.5kw magnetic ballast is too near the operating threshold of a 6500W generator for it to operate reliably.

The only sure way to power a 120V 2.5kw (or even a 4kw) HMI magnetic ballast on a portable gas generator is from its 240V circuit through a 240v-to-120v step down transformer like the one SL&G manufactures for their modified Honda EU6500is. SL&G’s 60A Full Power Transformer/Distro will step down the 240V output of the generator to a single 60A 120V circuit that is capable of accommodating the high front end striking load, and even the voltage spikes, of either a 2.5kw or 4kw magnetic ballast at 120V.

Eileen Ryan, Gaffer, Boston