HD Tips and Techniques - Illuminating HD
Posted: Fri Feb 29, 2008 11:01 am
HD Tips and Techniques - Illuminating HD
By Chuck Gloman
Click Me!
With high definition becoming more popular and cost effective with the addition of HDV and AVCHD equipment, lighting manufacturers have been working overtime to develop lighter, brighter, and cooler lighting options. Focusing in high definition, whether 720p, 1080i, or 1080p, is much more critical than in standard definition, especially in low- lighting situations. In this article, we will look at some of the new offerings in lighting available.
IN THE FOREGROUND
One option is the one foot by one foot (1 x 1) Litepanel. Made up of hundreds of light emitting diodes (LED), it is a compact, daylight-balanced light source that gives off virtually no heat, is dimmable, and the LEDs will last for more than 100,000 hours. Color temperature orange (CTO) gels are available in full, three-quarter, half, and one-quarter, and slide in front of the Litepanel. The small holes in the back allow the user to align or “aim” the light at the subject by looking through the light—no other light offers this feature. In Fig. 1, Gabby is standing three feet from the Litepanel with a half CTO gel inserted. The only other illumination in the room is fluorescent lights 12 feet above the floor. As you can see from this actual HD frame, the Litepanel is acting as her key light with a reading of 180 foot-candles on her left (your right) side. The only fill on the other side of her face (at 60 foot-candles) is from a mirror used as a reflector 20 feet away.
White balanced for daylight, Gabby is slightly warm because of the 1/2 CTO in this example of a 3:1 lighting ratio. The f-stop on the camera was f2.8 with the lens at about 35mm. There is still detail in the background, but the subject in the foreground holds our attention. Normally, you would not be seeing the lighting instrument in the shot.
In any low light situation, the Litepanel offers sufficient illumination without ever appearing too bright. The light could have just as easily moved closer to the subject to simulate the light from a candle with dimming the fixture. Ambient light in the room is still necessary because at lower exposures, blacks tend to be noisy. With our background at f1.6, Gabby still has definition without the background appearing too dark.
Click here to read the entire article by Chuck Gloman at TVTechnology.com.
By Chuck Gloman
Click Me!
With high definition becoming more popular and cost effective with the addition of HDV and AVCHD equipment, lighting manufacturers have been working overtime to develop lighter, brighter, and cooler lighting options. Focusing in high definition, whether 720p, 1080i, or 1080p, is much more critical than in standard definition, especially in low- lighting situations. In this article, we will look at some of the new offerings in lighting available.
IN THE FOREGROUND
One option is the one foot by one foot (1 x 1) Litepanel. Made up of hundreds of light emitting diodes (LED), it is a compact, daylight-balanced light source that gives off virtually no heat, is dimmable, and the LEDs will last for more than 100,000 hours. Color temperature orange (CTO) gels are available in full, three-quarter, half, and one-quarter, and slide in front of the Litepanel. The small holes in the back allow the user to align or “aim” the light at the subject by looking through the light—no other light offers this feature. In Fig. 1, Gabby is standing three feet from the Litepanel with a half CTO gel inserted. The only other illumination in the room is fluorescent lights 12 feet above the floor. As you can see from this actual HD frame, the Litepanel is acting as her key light with a reading of 180 foot-candles on her left (your right) side. The only fill on the other side of her face (at 60 foot-candles) is from a mirror used as a reflector 20 feet away.
White balanced for daylight, Gabby is slightly warm because of the 1/2 CTO in this example of a 3:1 lighting ratio. The f-stop on the camera was f2.8 with the lens at about 35mm. There is still detail in the background, but the subject in the foreground holds our attention. Normally, you would not be seeing the lighting instrument in the shot.
In any low light situation, the Litepanel offers sufficient illumination without ever appearing too bright. The light could have just as easily moved closer to the subject to simulate the light from a candle with dimming the fixture. Ambient light in the room is still necessary because at lower exposures, blacks tend to be noisy. With our background at f1.6, Gabby still has definition without the background appearing too dark.
Click here to read the entire article by Chuck Gloman at TVTechnology.com.