Moonlight bedroom scenes

[Isaac Brody]

Here's a question which I'm sure has about fifteen different answers. What's your method for shooting a moonlight scene? I was thinking about this the last few days and how so many films tackle it differently.

One method I've been taught is to use 1/2 CTB along with cookies to break up light motivated from windows. I've heard that in television some people use full CTB.

Do you all have special recipes for what you think is good moonlight?

And, what are your favorite moonlit scenes, interior and exterior?

[Christoffer]

I never shot a moonlight scene before but I know that if you shoot on video you should always soften your light. I've seen a large number of footage where the light is straight on with sharp shadow edges; it looks lit, artificial and B-isch.
Use more blue, one strong key light (depends on the sensitivity of the camera) and a large softsheet outside the window.

For outside areas I would use a bluish omni with at least 10K watt.
The rest I would do in colorgrading.

[Peter Majtan]

I have not shot moon-lit scene either (yet), but have been on the set when they shot day-time scene in the middle of the night (so they can control the lighting) on Dragon Heart... I have never seen so many lights in a outdoor location in my life and probably never see it again... Form what I have see tho I agree with Chris that You should use well diffused light without any strong shadows... I also like, when editing such a sequence, to grade first couple of shots little darker and make the scene progressively brighter - simulating that way our eyes adjust to such a light conditions. When viewed in the theatre it looks and feels more natural...

[Chris Newman]

...you should always soften your light.
On the contrary, moonlight is very hard. A powerful hard light on a tall stand as far outside the window as you can, with a full CTB works great. If the stand isn't high enough or the light isn't powerful enough that you can't put it far enough away, it will look unrealistic. (I used 600W on a 14' stand, and that was enough.) Then use soft light for fill. (Just bounce another light or two with full CTBs off the walls.) The scene I shot had candlelight for part of it, so I put a full CTO on the lights that were motivated by the candles, which contrasted nicely with the moonlight.

[Craig Ryan]

The cookie method sounds right...that way you could even simulate tree patterns, venetian blinds, whatever suits. A little haze would look awesome too but that depends on the mood I guess.

[OUinLA]

Technically, moonlight isn't blue but ctb is used to help sell the feel of night. I mostly use 1/4 ctb (on the key only) and under expose about a stop, 1.5-2 if shooting on 35.