Video Lighting Tips

There's a great article in this month's Videomaker Magazine on Lighting Accessories:

What: Barn Doors

Why: Control the amount of light coming out.
How: In video and film terminology, barn doors aren't used to corral farm animals. Think of them as leaves - 2 to 4 of them, usually. You put these doors in front of a light source. You will see them all over the place in lights used for film, television or Broadway productions. You use them to shape the light and place it where you want it and to mask it where you don't. This is a very handy piece of equipment that you will never tire of using. Be aware that lights run hot - if you need to make an adjustment to one of the barn doors, please use gloves. On a production, it is easy to forget about wearing gloves and just move the barn doors - that's a bad idea.

What: Gels

Why: Color balancing and some dramatic effect.
How: There are many names associated with gel - so you will hear it referred to as color gel, color filter, lighting gel or just gel. No matter the name, it all does the same thing. A gel is a transparent material that has color on it. You will see gels used extensively on theater productions, photography shoots, videography shoots and, of course, in movie production. You can use these gels for color correctness or to add color to a scene for dramatic effect. Gels are made of thin sheets of polyester or polycarbonate. You place them directly in front of the lights. Gels will not last you forever; they will fade or most of them will melt because of the intense heat from the lights.

What: Diffuser

Why: Reduce contrast
How: Like a gel, a diffuser is a translucent piece of material that you place in front of a light to soften highlights and shadows. You will also use a diffuser to reduce contrast and increase beam angle. Contrast refers to the difference between one tone and another or between the darkest and lightest parts of a scene. The light that comes through a diffuser is called diffused light. The diffused light creates softer shadows than a hard uncovered light.

What: Flag

Why: Block light
How: Photographers also call them cutters, siders or gobos. A flag is an opaque panel used to block light and shadow the subject, camera lens or the background. You can also use it to hide lights within a scene.

What: Umbrella

Why: Diffuse light in all directions.
How: This device looks exactly like its name sounds: umbrella-shaped. You place it in front of the light. You use an umbrella to diffuse light; it can turn a hard light into a large soft one. Remember that the interior of the umbrella needs to face the light or it won't work properly.

What: Reflector

Why: Redirect and intensify the light beam.
How: There are two types of reflectors. You use the first type for indoor lighting. This reflector is bowl-shaped and can come in various sizes. You use this type of reflector to shape and intensify the light's beam. The second reflector type is for outdoor use. You use these reflectors to redirect light. They are flat and colored in white, silver or gold.

What: Black Wrap

Why: Wrap a light source and control spillage of lighting.
How: Black wrap is a type of foil painted black, which you can use to shape the light without worrying about reflection problems. You can also use it to make small flags. (Remember: flags are for blocking light and shadowing the subject.)

Read the full article online here

Another article deals with the basics of video lighting:

The Rules of the Light:

1. The smaller the light source, the harsher the light.
2. The larger the light source, the softer the light.
3. The farther the light source is from the subject, the "smaller" it becomes (relative to the subject).
4. The closer the light source is to the subject, the "larger" it becomes (relative to the subject).
5. Lighter subject values reflect back more light than darker subjects do.
6. The angle of incidence equals the angle of reflectance.


1. The smaller the light source, the harsher the light.

If you hold your hand in direct sunlight, you will notice harsh shadows, which reveal texture on your hand quite nicely. The same is true for any pinpoint light source, such as an incandescent light bulb or hot video light. If the light source is very small, such as a bulb from a hot light or direct sunlight, it really does not "wrap" around the subject, because it comes from only one acute or pinpoint angle. This would be perfect lighting if you were asked to simulate a desert scene by shooting a few rocks in a sandy field. You would end up with well-defined, harsh shadows. The lower the angle of your light, the longer your shadows would be and the greater the texture of the rocks and sand. But the shadows would show very little detail.

2. The larger the light source, the softer the light.

If you move your hand over to a wall that is reflecting that sunlight or reflecting that pinpoint light source, you will notice how the harsh shadows smooth out, revealing more shadow detail and less texture. The reflected light source just became larger, and it now wraps the light around your hand, filling the shadows and softening the texture. The light is reflecting from many angles, and that allows it to wrap around the subject. This lighting would be good if you were to simulate an overcast desert scene showing the rocks and sand with softer shadows. You could still have the light coming from a lower angle, but the light would still wrap around the sand and rocks and the shadows would have some details.

3. The farther the light source is from the subject, the "smaller" it becomes (relative to the subject).

Well, you can't get much farther away than the sun... and, if you think about it, the sun is really, really big. So what gives? You have the largest light source around and still pretty harsh shadows. That's because it is so far away, and that makes it a really small light source.

4. The closer the light source is to the subject, the "larger" it becomes (relative to the subject).

You can't move any closer to the sun, but you can move closer to any artificial light source you might have created. OK, so just move closer to your hot lights... yeah... that's how you nearly set everything ablaze!

When you moved your hand close to the wall that was reflecting your pinpoint light source, what you did was create a larger light source that came from many angles and that allowed the light to wrap around your hand. You can manipulate the size of the light source by moving closer to your light source or modifying it. We already know what happens if we try to move closer to the sun, and the hot lights for that matter, but what happens if we try to modify that light, to make it appear larger?

5. Diffuse the Light

There are three basic styles: umbrellas, softboxes and flat scrims. They all accomplish the same task and differ mainly by how they are assembled and the "reflection" they produce. The advantage of umbrellas is their setup speed, ease of transport and cost. They are excellent for fast shooting where lighting must be compromised due to budget or time restraints. The reflections produced by umbrellas are difficult to manage and frequently show the "bones" inside, which usually isn't good for products. Softboxes are a bit slower to set up and require more room, but they offer better lighting control and better reflections than umbrellas. Scrims are slow to set up, require the most equipment and require more floor space than either umbrellas or softboxes, but they offer the most lighting control. You can set up umbrellas or soft boxes with only one light stand, whereas one scrim requires three stands: one for the light and two for the scrim.

6. Get The Right Angle

Step One: pick your camera angle. This is where 90% of budding photographers/videographers go wrong! They set up their tripod, usually at the highest point or eye level, and they start to shoot. Your camera angle determines your lighting (rule #6), because where your camera stands affects how your camera "sees" the lighting. Once you have your camera position, you can start to set up your lighting.

The three basic terms for lights are main, key and fill. The main, as its name implies is your main light. It determines the overall lighting but not necessarily the type of lighting. The key light is the "money" light: it makes or breaks your lighting. The fill is just that: it fills in shadows.

Read the entire article online here

More on lighting here