Video lighting
Your family history video will
always be enhanced with some directed lightiwng, especially for interviews.
Professionals use 2 or 3-point lighting—key, fill, and maybe back lights. Use
the principles of these lighting techniques to set up your interviews. Check to make sure your subject is comfortable enough with the lighting to be able to tolerate your required taping session. Aim for a soft lighting effect—no harsh shadows.
Three-point lighting
Key light—main
light on your subject.
Fill light—less
intense light set at 45° angle from the key light. It adds light to the
shadowed side of the face.
Back
light—placed behind the subject. It creates a soft glow on the shoulders and
head making the subject stand out from the background. Make sure the light setup is out of the view of the camera.
Indoor lighting
Use available artificial light for
key and fill. To soften shadows, reflect the light with a white foam board and direct the reflected light on your subject. You
can also bounce light off a white ceiling by directing a bright light at the
ceiling. Don’t mix lighting source types such as natural and artificial or
incandescent and fluorescent.
A window can provide good natural
lighting, but be careful not to shoot directly at the window with your subject
in front of it. That will cause the subject to be dark with a too bright window
behind them (backlit). Your camcorder may have a backlighting feature, but it’s
best to avoid this kind of backlighting altogether.
Outdoors
The sun is usually your key light.
Use a white foam board to reflect the sun for a fill light. Make sure it doesn't glare in the subjects eye. Light overcast days
are ideal because bright sunshine creates harsh shadows.
On a bright, sunshiny day, look for a
shady place with even lighting.
If you must shoot in full sun, place your subject with their back
to the sun. Use a reflector (white board) to highlight their face. You may have
to shoot down on the subject a bit to avoid sun spots. Be careful that your
camera or viewfinder never point directly at the sun.
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Copyright September 2009 Family History Coach All rights reserved Last update April 27, 2010
