LIGHT COLOURS:
Sunlight: Blue
Fluorescent: Green
Purpose lights: Yellow
Tungsten: Orange
Daylight: Blue
TYPES OF LIGHTING EQUIPMENT
There are two types of light that can be used on the scene - practical lights: i.e lamps on scene, or purpose lights.
Purpose lights:
These are often referred to as Red Head or Blondie lights.
The lamps can be set into three positions, and the reflector can be adjusted from the rear to widen (flood) or narrow (spot) the beam of the light. The lights are usually equipped with barn doors - a device fitted on the front of the device which has two big doors, plus two little doors to block the edge of the light's beam.
Safety Issues:
Purpose lights will get very hot, and due care should be taken to avoid accidents, including burns and/or fire. It is good practice to loop the cable through the legs of the stand, avoiding possible toppling of the light. The use of shot bags is also recommended.
CABLING
Ensure cabling is not coiled to avoid heat build-up, and possible interference to audio cabling, caused by higher induction levels. After the shoot the cabling should be coiled correctly to avoid knots, and to allow for speedy uncoiling the next time the cable is used.
THREE POINT LIGHTING
Three point lighting consists out of back, key and fill lights. The back and key lights are usually hard focussed, and will cut a sharp shadow, whereas the fill light will be soft focussed. As the name infers, the back light is placed behind the subject - the fill light is placed closely behind the camera, and the key light is set at an 45° angle from the camera and subject.
The set-up order is as follows:
1. do close-up focus of subject - ensure camera is set a appropriate height - usually level with subject.
2. turn off all other lights
3. set up back light
4. set up key light with back light switched off
5. set up fill light with back and key lights switched on
THE FOUR 'F's
FILTER
F-STOP
Reference from Photos by Richard Website:
'A number that indicates the size of the lens opening. Some common f-stops on 35mm cameras are f2, f2.8, f4, f5.6, f8, f11, f16. The larger the f-stop, the smaller the lens opening, f16 is the smallest in the above series. Smaller openings (like f16) have greater depth of field.'
website: http://www.photosbyrichard.ca/glossary.php
photo reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F-number
FOCUS
History:
Reference: Wikipedia
The camera obscura (Lat. dark chamber) was an optical device used in drawing, and one of the ancestral threads leading to the invention of photography. Photographic devices today are still known as "cameras".
The principle of the camera obscura can be demonstrated with a rudimentary type, just a box (which may be room-size) with a hole in one side, (see pinhole camera for construction details). Light from only one part of a scene will pass through the hole and strike a specific part of the back wall. The projection is made on paper on which an artist can then copy the image. The advantage of this technique is that the perspective is right, thus greatly increasing the realism of the image (correct perspective in drawing can also be achieved by looking through a wire mesh and copying the view onto a canvas with a corresponding grid on it).
With this simple do-it-yourself apparatus, the image is always upside-down. By using mirrors, as in the 18th century overhead version illustrated in the Discovery and Origins section, it is also possible to project a right-side-up image. Another more portable type, is a box with an angled mirror projecting onto tracing paper placed on the glass top, the image upright as viewed from the back.
website: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camera_obscura
photo reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camera_obscura
The Iris is the mechanism that controls the aperture opening in the camera lens. Aperature size is measured in f-stops.
References from Shuttermap:
'Aperture – A small circular opening in a camera lens through which light passes to expose the film (or camera sensor in digital cameras). The size of the aperture can be changed to create different exposures. The aperture diameter is expressed in f-stops - the lower the number, the larger the aperture, which means a longer exposure on the film. For example, an f-stop of 2.8 (large aperture) would mean that the film is exposed to more light as opposed to an f-stop of 11 (small aperture). So if the sun is shining brightly, a higher f-stop is needed to create the right exposure.'
photo reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aperture
'Depth of field
The amount of distance between the nearest and farthest objects that appear in acceptably sharp focus in a photograph. Depth of field depends on the size of the aperture, the distance of the camera from the subject, and the focal length of the lens. The bigger the aperture, the greater the depth of field. If the camera focuses on a distant subject, the depth of field will be greater than if it was focused on a near subject; and if you fit a wide-angle lens to your camera, it will give you greater depth of field than a normal lens.'
photo reference: http://www.cambridgeincolour.com/tutorials/depth-of-field.htm
'Shutter speed – The length of time the shutter remains open to let light pass through the lens to strike the image sensor/film. The slower the shutter speed, the longer the exposure time. A shutter speed set at 1/60 or simply 60 means that the shutter will be open for exactly 1/60th of one second. A shot taken at night (low lighting conditions) would require a slower shutter speed to expose the film. Faster shutter speeds are good for action sequences, as it freezes the subject in motion.'
web site: http://shuttermap.com/article-5.html
FRAMING & RULE OF THIRDS
Framing:
Framing matrix: 4:3 & 16:9
Take care not to frame through joints (elbows, wrist, knees/
Rule of Thirds:
Reference from Wikepedia Web Site:
'The rule of thirds is a compositional rule of thumb in photography.
The rule states that an image can be divided into nine equal parts by two equally-spaced horizontal lines and two equally-spaced vertical lines. The four points formed by the intersections of these lines can be used to align features in the photograph. Proponents of this technique claim that aligning a photograph with these points creates more tension, energy and interest in the photo than simply centering the feature would.
The photograph below demonstrates the application of the rule of thirds. The horizon sits at the horizontal line dividing the lower third of the photo from the upper two-thirds. The tree sits at the intersection of two lines, sometimes called a power point. Points of interest in the photo don't have to actually touch one of these lines to take advantage of the rule of thirds. For example, the brightest part of the sky near the horizon where the sun recently set does not fall directly on one of the lines, but does fall near the intersection of two of the lines, close enough to take advantage of the rule.
The application of the rule of thirds to photographs is considered by many to make them more aesthetically pleasing and professional-looking. The rule of thirds can be applied by lining up subjects with the guiding lines, placing the horizon on the top or bottom line instead of the center, or allowing linear features in the photograph to flow from section to section. In addition, many photographers recommend treating any "rule" of composition as more of a guideline, since pleasing photographs can often be made while ignoring one or more such rules.'
web site: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rule_of_thirds
Aurora Australis photo reference: www.teara.govt.nz/. ../Standard/3/en
