LightingDark, light and colour

3 Point Lighting

3 lights Back LightKey lightFill light

back light

camera

Fill light Key light

star

Key LightingMain source of

light

Fill lightFills in shadows

from the key light

Back Lighting

Separates figure from the

background

3 Point lighting

All 3 combined

3 point lighting

• Effects:

• Few Shadows

• Can see all their expressions

• Makes them look glamorous

High Key Lighting

More Filler lights are used

Lighting appears”real”

Can be a brightly lit sunny day or even a night scene

High Key Lighting

Few shadows on faces

Images often very bright

Low Key Lighting

Little fill lighting

Sharp contrasts in light and dark areas of screen

Low Key Lighting

Often lots of dark shadow areas and areas that are brightly litEffects: mystery, threat, suspense, draw attention to lit area

Describe the Lighting in this

shotWhere is the brightest light?

Where are the shadows?

What patterns are created by the light?

What effect do these features of lighting have on the viewer?

• The brightest light is behind the characters. This is created by backlighting, where they are lit from behind.

• This has caused the characters in the frame/shot to appear as silhouettes

• This adds a feeling of mystery as you are not certain who the characters are. It is not clear whether she is looking at him, but her feet suggest she is.

• The backlighting, combined with the smoke/mist adds to the mystery.

• It can:

• Highlight important objects or characters by drawing our eyes to them with bright light

• make a character look mysterious by shading parts of their body

• reflect a character’s state of mind

Effect of Lighting

• Look at the following stills and say what type of lighting is used

• What effect does the lighting create in each image?

Photo 1

Photo 2

Photo 3

• Colour works on your subconscious to create mood

• Every colour has associated ideas and meaning (connotation). Often these are based on cultural meanings

• Colour can draw your eye to something in a scene

Colour

Exercise• Work in groups of 3-4

• One person thinks of a colour and says it aloud

• Others write down the first thing that comes into your head

• Compare results: how similar are your connotations?

Use of colour

Effect: contrastDraw your eye to

the figure

ColourLighting filters

Can create mood and character by

using colour

Exercise• Watch the clip from “Dead Again”

• Describe the lighting and colour that is used and the effect of these

• Choose at least 4 different features

• Consider what we learn about characters, objects, mood, what is happening