How to light a medical clinic at DVinfo.net

Jonathan Grant · May 9th, 2016, 09:01 AM

I'm having to shoot a Q and A video in a clinic/lab and trying to figure out how best to light it. I don't have a lighting kit so I'll have to buy one (actually, the clinic will). I'm trying to find the most efficient best value option.

I'm thinking getting some high CRI fluorescent bulbs (5500k) to replace the ones in the ceiling near the shooting area. Not sure what to do from there. What would you guys recommend?

Mike Watson · May 9th, 2016, 11:43 AM

Read through any of the "what should my first light kit be" threads in this forum. The opinions are varied. I'd need to know more about what you're shooting, your skill level, and your budget to give particular recommendations.

In general, look for soft key light (LED panel, fluorescent) and a hard back light (fresnel). A third light will help you illuminate the background.

Jon Fairhurst · May 9th, 2016, 05:03 PM

The most important questions are how many people and how much area do you need to light?

For instance, if it's a two person Q&A, that's one thing. If it's a five person panel in front of a 100 person audience, that's another.

For the large audience, high CRI tubes make a lot of sense. I regularly film a corporate meeting and just use the built-in lighting (LED tubes) for the audience. For the speaker, I use two stage ellipsoidal lights, one as a key and the other as a backlight. Sometimes, I gel the backlight with a 1/4 or 1/2 CTB to give a slight blue cast. Those lights work well as they are tight spots that I can move far from the lectern. They've got "slats" (or whatever one calls them - like barn doors, but they slide in and out) to block unwanted rays.

In my case, the lectern is also under the general lighting, but it's between bulbs, so the speaker's face is relatively dark without additional lighting. Lighting the speaker transforms the feeling of the result from "amateur" to "(semi)pro".

Regarding the background, it depends. Is it plain, busy, dark, or light? Often, leaving the background a bit dim is nice for getting the subject to stand out. If the background is busy, it's nice if there is distance so you can blur it with shallow DOF. If it's plain, one trick is to use a wrinkled, colored gel or foil on the floor and to bounce a strong spot off of that. It will reflect a mottled pattern that makes a blank, white wall look interesting. :)

Steven Digges · May 12th, 2016, 11:37 AM

Johnathan,

Here is one of the type of old threads Mike is referring to:

http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/photon-m...-old-ones.html

There are shots there from a time when I lit a medical clinic but it sounds to me like all the general lighting discussion will be more important to you. Lighting a Q&A session is different than lighting medical procedures. We need more details on what your doing?

Kind Regards,

Steve

May 9th, 2016, 09:01 AM	#1
Jonathan Grant Regular Crew Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: norman, OK Posts: 111	How to light a medical clinic I'm having to shoot a Q and A video in a clinic/lab and trying to figure out how best to light it. I don't have a lighting kit so I'll have to buy one (actually, the clinic will). I'm trying to find the most efficient best value option. I'm thinking getting some high CRI fluorescent bulbs (5500k) to replace the ones in the ceiling near the shooting area. Not sure what to do from there. What would you guys recommend?

May 9th, 2016, 11:43 AM	#2
Mike Watson Trustee Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: San Diego, CA Posts: 1,082	Re: How to light a medical clinic Read through any of the "what should my first light kit be" threads in this forum. The opinions are varied. I'd need to know more about what you're shooting, your skill level, and your budget to give particular recommendations. In general, look for soft key light (LED panel, fluorescent) and a hard back light (fresnel). A third light will help you illuminate the background.

May 9th, 2016, 05:03 PM	#3
Jon Fairhurst Inner Circle Join Date: May 2006 Location: Camas, WA, USA Posts: 5,513	Re: How to light a medical clinic The most important questions are how many people and how much area do you need to light? For instance, if it's a two person Q&A, that's one thing. If it's a five person panel in front of a 100 person audience, that's another. For the large audience, high CRI tubes make a lot of sense. I regularly film a corporate meeting and just use the built-in lighting (LED tubes) for the audience. For the speaker, I use two stage ellipsoidal lights, one as a key and the other as a backlight. Sometimes, I gel the backlight with a 1/4 or 1/2 CTB to give a slight blue cast. Those lights work well as they are tight spots that I can move far from the lectern. They've got "slats" (or whatever one calls them - like barn doors, but they slide in and out) to block unwanted rays. In my case, the lectern is also under the general lighting, but it's between bulbs, so the speaker's face is relatively dark without additional lighting. Lighting the speaker transforms the feeling of the result from "amateur" to "(semi)pro". Regarding the background, it depends. Is it plain, busy, dark, or light? Often, leaving the background a bit dim is nice for getting the subject to stand out. If the background is busy, it's nice if there is distance so you can blur it with shallow DOF. If it's plain, one trick is to use a wrinkled, colored gel or foil on the floor and to bounce a strong spot off of that. It will reflect a mottled pattern that makes a blank, white wall look interesting. :) __________________ Jon Fairhurst

May 12th, 2016, 11:37 AM	#4
Steven Digges Trustee Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Phoenix, AZ Posts: 1,828	Re: How to light a medical clinic Johnathan, Here is one of the type of old threads Mike is referring to: http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/photon-m...-old-ones.html There are shots there from a time when I lit a medical clinic but it sounds to me like all the general lighting discussion will be more important to you. Lighting a Q&A session is different than lighting medical procedures. We need more details on what your doing? Kind Regards, Steve __________________ www.CorporateShow.com Been at this so long I'm rounding my years of experience down...not up!