Camera focusing on lighting –
Lighting is a necessity to any film including documentary. It is a necessity for the camera as without sufficient light the picture will not be exposed enough to see. Lighting can also set mood and increase tension. Increasing tension and setting a mood is very important to drama however as documentary filmmakers we aim to capture the mood and tone of the event we film. So if we film in a dark area and as long as the image is clear enough to see this is fine. We are capturing a realistic element of the event.
The camera is a tool that can allow us to manipulate the light of the image. By turning the ISO number up we allow more light through the lens and therefore the image is more exposed than before. After a certain point this becomes a hindrance as our image will become grainy and look ugly.
We can also gain more light by decreasing our F-number. This widens the lens Aperture again allowing more light through the lens. However by decreasing our F-number we also decrease our depth of field, which is not always a possibility.
Other Tech Design
Shutter speed can also increase or decrease our amount of light in the camera. For video this is not an option as we keep a consistent shutter speed to capture motion smoothly. This is a shutter speed of 50 or 25 FPS. Shutter speed can be changed in video for such things as slow motion or other experimental techniques but we tend to leave it alone in video. For photography we are not bound by this rule as the speed allows us to capture motion in a still image. A slow shutter speed will blur an image but it will also increase the amount of light taken into the camera, as the shutter is open for a longer period of time.
The first video describes different frame rates and gives example videos. The second is just a personal favourite from the same people.
Lighting
Adding specific lights is probably he easiest way to create the mood and tone but using the above camera techniques we can fine tune our image. Some types of lights we may use include, Dedos, Red heads and blondes. We use our lights to enhance our subjects. This can be done by using a three point or even four point lighting system. The most common however is three point. The first light being a key light to expose the subject this is normally the brightness source of light. It should sit at an angle with subject at a level height. This however leaves shadow on the opposite side to the key light. This is where we add a fill light to bring out the other side of our subject. The fill light is set at a lower intensity than that of the key to add a more even scope of light. The last light to add is a Back light. This looks down from above and behind the subject. This makes the subject stand apart from the background. The last point if you have the ability of four point lighting you can add a backdrop light. This allows you more control over your environment and helps to shape the mood of the environment.
Canon 650D – Our Camera
A very powerful DSLR (Digital single lens reflex) camera that’s shoots HD 1080p video and takes RAW 18 megapixel pictures using an APS-C CMOS sensor. We use several different lenses but our main two are the EF-S 18-135mm zoom lens and an EF-S 50mm prime lens.
We use this with a rode mic plugged in to gain a better quality camera sound recording. This sound is however only used as a back up and for syncing our Marantz sound. We also have a viewfinder that is especially helpful when shooting outdoors when the sunlight can cause glare on the camera display screen. We use the Libec TH-650 DV tripod, as it is sturdy and durable.
We have more equipment available to us such as tracks, dolly’s, fig rigs, Jibs, and glide cams but these don’t find themselves at our documentary shoots as we pack fairly light and usually decide that extra cameras for batteries and memory cards are more useful.
Low key vs. High key lighting
Both have different uses and qualities. Low key contains higher levels of contrast and looks shadowy and dark this can change the tone of a shot. It often only uses a key light. It accentuates the features and contours of a face. High key lighting is the opposite and it should aim to make the subject look soft and even. It utilises many lights and is often bright. It has low levels of contrast.
Low key vs. High key
4K Cameras
From the right hand image you gain an idea of how many pixels are contained within an image. You can see that 1080p sits just under 2K. So 4K is over double the amount of pixels. This provides stunning image quality especially when viewed on smaller screens. But with this in mind when we do view this image quality on larger screens it still looks fantastic. We are able to shoot at 1080p which is a decent quality but 4K is the next level.