10/19/2013
Never Shoot Your Mother in Front of an Open Window and Other Common Video Lighting Mistakes
Recently, a friend videoed his mother in front of a bright window. It was a beautiful day outside and he thought it would be fun to use the window as a backdrop behind her. He was recording her telling some of the family stories in order to preserve their family history. Instead of the nice archival quality footage he had been hoping for, however, the window made mom look like a dark silhouette against its bright backlighting as if she was trying to disguise her identity to hide from gangsters instead of leave a legacy for her grandchildren.
Perhaps you, like my friend, have also experienced unexpected results when using your video camera. Perhaps your subject’s face is in the dark, looks garish or something just looks plain wrong and you aren’t sure why. Today, I am going to discuss a few lighting errors that are way too easy to make and steps you can take to correct them.
Since his mom was not in the witness protection program, he could’ve easily fixed his shot by using the window, which had indirect sunlight coming through it, as a lighting source instead of a backdrop and putting his mom at a 90 degree angle to it. In addition, he could’ve put a piece of white foam core or poster board on the her opposite side to bounce some of the diffused sunlight back on to her face to fill in the shadows for a softer look. Had the sunlight been direct, he could’ve simply done the shoot in another room where it was indirect.
Shooting indoors after dark can be tricky as well. While a ceiling light illuminates a room just fine for your eye, it may not be enough light for a camera and your video may take on a grainy surveillance video look. If this is the look you are going for, great. If not, try turning on table and floor lamps near your subject to brighten up the lighting, taking care to light them from the front and side while avoiding backlighting.
Another common mistake is shooting at noontime. Because the sun is straight overhead, this creates unattractive shadows. When I was in grade school, we learned about a primitive clock called the sundial, which was basically a stick stuck into the ground that cast shadows onto a series of numbers surrounding it as the sun moved across the sky. This worked great to tell medieval time, but isn’t suited for television lighting. If you shoot at noon, your subjects nose will tell the time across his bottom lip and chin a la sundial and you’ll be very, very sorry. If you absolutely have to shoot video outside during noon or midday, put your subject underneath shaded areas such as porches or thick trees that have more diffused lighting, keeping in mind that if there is a bright background behind your subject, he’ll be in silhouette unless you set your camera for a brighter exposure to compensate.
Another thing to watch out for is similar: shooting in direct sunlight during the late morning through mid-afternoon period. The shadows are not quite as garish as they are at noon, but you will still be dealing with harsh lights and darks. You can face your subject toward the sun to help with this, but he or she may end up squinting. If you face your subject away from the sun in order to compensate, watch for anything that casts a partial shadow on your subject’s face such as a baseball cap brim, a slightly overhanging tree branch, etc. While you may still be able to see the areas in shadow clearly, the camera eye is less sensitive and will interpret the lighting difference more starkly as lights and darks and will not give as good a result. As is with noon shooting, putting your subject under a canopy is optimal.
The best time to shoot outside is during the photographer’s so called golden hour-either an hour after sunrise or an hour before sunset. During this time, the light from the sun is refracted through the atmosphere for a more diffused, softer lighting. It’s hard to take a bad shot during these times. Another great time to shoot outside is on an overcast day. The clouds act as a diffuser for the sun and you’ll have even, attractive lighting with no harsh shadows.
These lighting suggestions, while just the basics, will get help you started toward more professional looking video. In the meantime, stay tuned for more diy tips and an upcoming ebook.
