See the light

Lighting for film and video is a big subject and can be pretty daunting for anyone coming into the industry.  There are many excellent books on the subject and I would recommend Focal Press as being one of the best sources of information.

Getting practice is also not easy as many production outfits want experienced people only, so you may have to act as a runner or tea-maker in order to get an insight!

However, one other thing you can do is to start visualising how you would tackle various lighting scenarios.  For example, last night I was at the local gym and noticed daylight streaming in from the window casting some nice soft light on the people inside.  Near to the window, with a bit of fill light maybe from a reflector, there would have been no need for any artificial light if I was filming a person for an interview. 

However, moving inside the gym, the natural light still streamed in but was also mixed with fluorescent lighting from above – how would I deal with this if I had to light it professionally?  Turn the fluros off?  Then it would be too dark, so maybe black out the windows and go for full artificial lighting? 

These are all decisions that you can think about and visualise in any location: on a bus, at home, at an airport, without a lighting fixture in sight!

James