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Response to Lighting

from Edward Seaton (visionfx@xsite.net)
Yes..... The China lantern. I have used them in both film and video work. They are great and they are cheap, and the are easy to pack! However if you don't know where China town is, there are many other ways to do things. I find it hard to believe that your camera does not have a manual white balance, but no matter you can work around that. Here we go....

Light is measured in color temerture.

outside in the sun it is around 5200 kalvin, or 5.2k. This light looks very blue because it is very hot.

inside light, (normal every day bulbs) is around 3200 kalvin, or 3.2k. This light looks much more orange than the outside light because it is much cooler.

Now, that is just the basics. If ya wanna know more about color temp, get a book. It is good stuff to know.

So, what if you wanna use inside lights (3.2k balanced) outside durning the day to fill an actors face so he don't look ugly?

BLUE GELLS!!! They ain't expensive. By the way, a gell is a blue piece of see through plastic that you put infront of a light to change the color light that it produces. You should have a set of different colored (oh yes, they come in every color), gells in your light kit. Even if your light kit is a flash light. Be an artist!! Have fun with the pretty colors.

Anyway, you also wanted to know about putting together a light kit. You can get used umbrellas and such for very little money. They beauty of DV is that it really doesn't need all that much light. No matter what flipping camera you have. There is no need to buy really expensive equipment. I just bought (new) a couple of 250 watt video lights that are meant for wedding video guys and gals for 50 bucks. They are great. If you don't have the money for an unbrella, boounce the light off a white wall. If you don't have a white wall, buy a piece of white foam board from the local art supply store, and bounce the light off of that. If you don't have that hang a white sheet on a wall. Use your imagination. By the way, the best way to get difused light is by shinning it through something that will diffuse it like the China laterns, or special diffusion paper called tough spun. God does it by shinning the sun through a wonderful layer of what we film and video people call clouds! Awsome. God is a really great film maker if you didn't already know. Bouncing light is also a very good way to defuse it, like off a wall or off the ceiling.

It sounds like those lights at the hardware store, the 1000 watt ones will work great. 50 bucks! I will have to check it out man. Just get some gells and a light ing book, and then it doesn't matter what color light you have cause you can always make it different.

(posted 9277 days ago)

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