Table Of ContentShaping Light for Video
in the Age of LEDs
A practical, hands- on guide to lighting for video, this book explores how LEDs are changing the
aesthetics of lighting and provides students with an indispensable guide to the everyday techniques
required to produce professional- quality lighting in the age of LEDs and wireless control options.
The book focuses on first- hand application of technical knowledge, beginning with simple lighting
setups and progressing to more complicated scenarios, and features accompanying diagrams, illustrations
and case studies to demonstrate their real- world application. Key topics covered include basic three-
point lighting, lighting moving actors, set lighting and exposure, instrument selection, bringing style to
your lighting, color temperature and the Kelvin scale, exterior lighting, lighting categories and genres,
green- screen techniques, money and budgeting, and electricity and electrical distribution. The book also
provides guidance on career paths including what a grip does, case studies with photos and diagrams,
and an extensive glossary of set terminology to introduce students to the language of filmmaking.
A must-h ave resource for film and media production students taking classes in lighting and/o r
cinematography.
Alan Steinheimer has 30- plus years of filmmaking experience, with 25 years of lighting as a gaffer and
lighting director in the San Francisco Bay Area. His resume includes feature films such as The Darwin Awards,
documentary and corporate work, commercials, and music videos such as Britney Spears’s Oops, I Did It
Again. He appears regularly as a guest expert in the Meet the Gaffer series on YouTube.
Shaping Light
for Video in the
Age of LEDs
A Practical Guide to the Art
and Craft of Lighting
Second Edition
Alan Steinheimer
Second edition published 2021
by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
and by Routledge
52 Vanderbilt Avenue, New York, NY 10017
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
© 2021 Alan Steinheimer
The right of Alan Steinheimer to be identified as author of this work has been asserted by
him in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised
in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or
hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information
storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks,
and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe.
First edition published by Arhus Publishing 2018
British Library Cataloguing- in- Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging- in- Publication Data
A catalog record has been requested for this book
ISBN: 978- 0- 367- 81913- 2 (hbk)
ISBN: 978- 0- 367- 81909- 5 (pbk)
ISBN: 978- 1- 003- 01079- 1 (ebk)
Typeset in Joanna
by Newgen Publishing UK
This book contains information about electricity and electrical equipment designed for the film business. Although
every effort has been made to be as accurate as possible, there is no way for this information to be completely
comprehensive nor a substitute for proper training and professional guidance. The author assumes no responsibility
for misinterpretation of this information or for accidents caused by the misuse of this information.
On the cover: The cover photo is from a corporate lifestyle video segment styled to look like a nightclub or possibly
a music video. It was shot at an employee meeting area and is an example of how lighting can transform a mundane
room into an atmospheric set. Lights used: ARRI S360 in party- color mode on right for an edge light, two S60
SkyPanels for steep key and top light, four Astera Titans positioned in picture, and an ARRI M8 for the bar pattern
on wall. Some solid flags utilized to reduce nearby ambient lights.
Photo by Alan Steinheimer.
Contents
Acknowledgments xii
Introduction 1
1 Why we light 3
The evolution of motion-picture lighting 3
The LED revolution 4
Working with what you have 5
Aspirations and reality 5
2 Lighting basics 6
Three- point lighting 6
Motivated light 6
Key light placement 7
Key light softness 8
Age vs. beauty 11
Lighting test with three subjects 12
Fill and fill light 14
Low fill light 14
Backlight 14
Edge light 15
Eye light 18
Eyeglasses 19
Bald and balding heads 20
Looking for far- side/ off- side lighting 21
3 Grip equipment basics 24
What is a grip? 24
C- stands 25
History of the C- stand 26
Cutting light 26
The division of labor 28
Gobo heads and arms 28
Learning to grip 30
Dollies and dolly gripping 32
Grip trucks 34
The education of a grip 34
vi | Contents
4 Electricity 35
Electrical basics 35
The mystery of how duplexes were wired 36
Tips on searching for separate circuits in an office setting 36
Tips for searching for circuits in homes 37
Plugs and wires 38
20- amp pin connectors 40
Ohms 40
LEDs rule, tungsten drools 40
Costly trip 41
Running power cords 41
Overall strategies for running power 41
Troubleshooting minor electrical problems 43
5 Exposure and compression 46
Exposure 46
F- stops and T- stops 48
Issues of scale and geometric progression 48
Foot- candles and lux 49
Log shooting 50
Darker skin tones 50
LUTs and the difficulties of monitoring picture 51
Analyzing the video image 51
Gamma curves and log 53
Rec. 709 and Rec. 2020 53
LUTs 53
RAW 54
Color and LEDs: Thoughts from Kino’s Frieder Hochheim 54
LUTs and color: A DP’s perspective from Joseph Seif 55
Art and craft inputs 56
6 Color temperature, the Kelvin scale, and gels 58
Color temperature scale 58
Mixed light 59
Plus Green and Minus Green 59
Why bother using a color temperature meter? 60
Trick question about moonlight 62
Film vs. video 63
Dealing with overhead green- tinged light 64
Gels and color correction 66
Plus Green/ Minus Green gels 66
Theatrical gels 66
Diffusion gels 67
Smoke/ fog as diffusion 68
Neutral density gel 68
Wrangling acrylic ND panels 70
Windows 70
ND gel for windows 71
Contents | vii
Shootable double net 71
The art and the science of putting up window gel 71
Additional notes on windows 72
7 Refining portrait lighting and cross keying 74
Far- side key and Rembrandt lighting 74
Contrast ratios for green screen 76
Cross keying 78
Cross keying for three cameras 79
Cross keying for drama 81
Softening the key 82
Softer backlight 83
Negative fill 84
Key placement for drama 84
8 Planning for motion on set 86
Moving actors 86
Moving camera 89
Using bigger lights for action 91
Vérité style for docs 93
Summary 93
9 Background lighting 94
Framing the shot 94
Choosing instruments 95
Single- source lighting 97
Practicals 97
Windows 98
Set design 99
10 Choice of lights: 3200K and Kino Flos 102
Budgets and negotiation 102
Overview on choosing lights 103
Lighting selection for a 3200K shoot 104
Baby vs. junior 105
Kino Flo bulb lights 108
Sign of the times 108
More tungsten 110
Chimera banks 112
Dimming for tungsten 113
High- speed shooting with tungsten 113
Tungsten summary 114
11 LED lights 115
LED revolution 115
Big LEDs arrive: the ARRI S360- C 118
LED dimming control 120
LED soft light spill control 121
viii | Contents
Dedo LEDs 121
The LED explosion 121
LED Fresnels 122
LED spacelights 123
Feature creep 124
LED lanterns and China balls 124
LED PARs 125
LED lekos 126
LED tubes 126
The Plus/M inus Green feature 127
Chimera and DoP light banks 127
High- speed shooting 128
LED summary 129
12 HMIs 131
HMI history 131
Safety issues 132
Flicker- free work with HMIs 134
HMI problems 134
HMI summary 136
13 DMX and controlling lights 137
What is DMX? 137
DMX for tungsten 137
Dimmer packs for tungsten 140
Camlok connectors 141
DMX for LEDs 141
Luminair, Blackout and LumenRadio 142
Astera pixel control 142
Strategies for DMX control of lights 143
14 Green and blue screen 144
A bit of history 144
2K spacelights 144
Pollution of the green- screen frame 145
Daylight stage shoots 146
LED spacelights 146
Good and bad cycs 148
Digital green vs. Chroma key green 148
Making your own cyc with soft goods 148
Edge light with head to toe 149
Floor light 149
Creating a silhouette on green 149
Tilting towards daylight shoots on green 150
The battle for stage superiority: LED vs. tungsten 151
Location issues 151
Feet/ shoes framed out 151
Feet/ shoes in frame 151
Contents | ix
Myths and half- truths 154
The future 154
15 Daytime exterior lighting 155
Scaling and crewing 155
Reflectors outside 156
Quality and cost 157
Skinning frames 158
Taking your shower curtain outside 160
Tips for day exteriors 160
16 Nighttime exteriors 163
Scaling 163
Condors 165
Dealing with street and ambient light 165
Problems with working all night 165
Tips for night exteriors 167
17 Types and genres of lighting 169
Trends in lighting 169
Broadcast 169
Sitcoms 170
Long- form TV drama 170
Feature films 170
Survival strategies for movie- making 171
Commercials 171
Tabletop 172
Angle of incidence factor 175
High- speed cinematography 175
Music videos 177
Fashion lighting 178
Corporate videos 178
Documentaries 180
My personal approach 181
18 Advanced electrical 183
Single- phase vs. three-p hase power 183
Order in the electrical universe 183
Is single- phase power better than three-p hase? 184
Hertz 185
When do you need big electrical distribution? 185
Laying out power cords 186
Balancing the amperage draw 186
Paper amps 187
ARRI T12s and 120V vs. 220V 187
The actual cable and distro order 188
What is banded cable? 188
Distro boxes 190
