Lights For Home Videos
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Old school film can.
Photo: Nonqaba waka Msimang.
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There are companies that rent lighting
equipment but you don’t have to take that route because you don’t have the
budget Ryan Coogler had, for shooting Black Panther. You can also find basic lights at the lights
section of department stores.
However, the story comes before lighting. Is the video about a child naming ceremony, Bar
Mitzvah, wedding anniversary, music video about a pianist, rock video, your 2-year-old’s
birthday party or college application video?
The story will determine where you put the lights. For example, you shoot low for toddlers
because they are running around, so lights would be on the floor.
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Cellphones.
Your phone has a torch or searchlight.
Use two phones on either side of the subject you are shooting so that the
light meets. See the effect. Decide if
you like it. For example, you can
place them on the floor, to show the actor taking off his shoes.
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Garden lights.
What is in the basement at home?
You might find garden lights you can use for exterior shots of the video. No tripod?
Put them on a drum.
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Home lights with more power might do the trick
for interior shots. Explain the video scene
to the person at the store. They will
advise accordingly.
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Reflectors are cheap and easy to carry. Professional studios that take photos of
models and cars use them all the time.
Play around with the reflector and see how it changes the light on the
person’s face. Avoid pointing it
directly. It will blind the
subject.
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Twelve tea lights cost or five dollars depending
where you buy them. You can put them strategically around the person or thing
you are shooting. Candle sticks also
a light source but you need candle holders.
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Observe lights.
Some produce a yellow tinge, others a snowy colour. Old school photographers used blue gels for
night scenes. Go outside and look at the
night. It’s either pitch black or looks
blue.
Just be creative.
Lighting also means studying the sun, where it falls throughout the day,
its shadows around the house and outside, how it behaves in winter and summer.
By: Nonqaba waka Msimang
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