Lighting

Backing in the early days of cinematography, lighting was always a natural source used when filming. Studio roofs would be opened in order to allow sunlight in and give a good effect for the scene. As time moved on, and technology as well as film developed and the production of films widened, the need of appropriate artificial technology was needed. the use of artificial lighting became more common and this helped the film industry develop worldwide. From the start, lighting was a key part of film making and played a substantial part in the narrative.
Some genres often stick to natural and standard lighting in order to give a more neutral realistic feel. Others however, use lighting as a means of creating much greater experimental effect. Some genres such as sci-fi and horror use lighting in a much more different and unique way, where possible and this gives a more adventurous feel.

Some different key lighting often used in filming:

Three point lighting – this is standard mainstream lighting often used in films and also on the TV. This is where three different lights are used: key, fill and back. The intensity of these lights can be altered in order to create different effects.

High key lighting/soft lighting – this is where the key light is brighter than the fill light and this makes the object appear brighter and softer.

Low key lighting/hard lighting – here the fill light is brighter and stronger than the key light; this results in dark shadows on the object.

Back lighting - This technique is very often used in thriller and horror films in order to show the more dominant characters or slayers and killers. The subject is only lit from the back and this creates a silhouette effect. The features of the person are not visible and this is an important style of lighting we will be using in our opening sequence to show the slayer.

Side lighting – this highlights the subject from only one side showing the subject distorted and imbalanced.

Frontal lighting – this shows the image as being very flat.

Ambient lighting is a term used in order to describe the use of light in a certain way to create a definite mood or emotion. This lighting is only used very subtly but still enough to create and effective outcome.

In order to achieve good results in filming, you need to use different sources of light and firstly get acquainted with the way they work. There is now a greater range of lighting that can be used when filming and this giving a greater range of effects. By changing the intensity, position and number of these lights, different motions of lighting can be obtained. There are different tips and techniques that can be used when using lighting, but the basic need is to become familiar with what is known as three-point lighting; this consists of the key light, fill light, and back light. Once you are familiar with this technique it will allow you to be able to distinguish the difference between 'good' and 'bad' lighting.