Lighting without lights at DVinfo.net

Glenn Chan · September 10th, 2005, 12:18 AM

What I'm wondering about:

A previous thread discussed shooting without any lights at all, using reflectors (and presumably negative fill) instead.

Let's get more extreme than that.

What about lighting without any lights or lighting tools at all? Just find a location that gives good lighting to begin with.
What locations (and time of day) would be good for this?

Has anyone tried:
Gas station
Rooms with white walls (the white walls should act as reflectors and give nice soft fill light)
(outside) Using a building wall as a reflector

I'm not sure exactly where this would be useful, maybe except for ENG and documentaries and landscapes where you don't really have a chance to use lighting instruments.

Jack Smith · September 10th, 2005, 08:38 AM

Glenn , I think lighting without instruments is sometimes a neccesity.I believe a lot can be learned about light by this practice.It can also be useful to achieve specific effects whether ENG or for a production.
I have had certain shots I needed and had to wait until both weather and time of day lined up.An example is the QUALITY of light just before a storm where the sky darkens, the leaves turn up ,the light stays bright ,the background goes down a couple of stops, but light is very soft.Now try to think of a scene where this lighting would promote a certain emotion.
Outdoors scenes are very dependant on weather,time of day, surroundings,etc as not everyone can bring enough lighting to overcome these factors.
Would make a good challenge to have a scene and see how everyone lights it without instruments.Just to learn more about light.
Good question Glenn

September 10th, 2005, 12:18 AM	#1
Glenn Chan Inner Circle Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Toronto, Canada Posts: 4,750	Lighting without lights What I'm wondering about: A previous thread discussed shooting without any lights at all, using reflectors (and presumably negative fill) instead. Let's get more extreme than that. What about lighting without any lights or lighting tools at all? Just find a location that gives good lighting to begin with. What locations (and time of day) would be good for this? Has anyone tried: Gas station Rooms with white walls (the white walls should act as reflectors and give nice soft fill light) (outside) Using a building wall as a reflector I'm not sure exactly where this would be useful, maybe except for ENG and documentaries and landscapes where you don't really have a chance to use lighting instruments. Last edited by Glenn Chan; September 10th, 2005 at 12:05 PM.

September 10th, 2005, 08:38 AM	#2
Jack Smith Major Player Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: ontario Posts: 445	Glenn , I think lighting without instruments is sometimes a neccesity.I believe a lot can be learned about light by this practice.It can also be useful to achieve specific effects whether ENG or for a production. I have had certain shots I needed and had to wait until both weather and time of day lined up.An example is the QUALITY of light just before a storm where the sky darkens, the leaves turn up ,the light stays bright ,the background goes down a couple of stops, but light is very soft.Now try to think of a scene where this lighting would promote a certain emotion. Outdoors scenes are very dependant on weather,time of day, surroundings,etc as not everyone can bring enough lighting to overcome these factors. Would make a good challenge to have a scene and see how everyone lights it without instruments.Just to learn more about light. Good question Glenn