Notes
Ratio
Lighting Ratio – the relative relationship between the illumination and shadow in any given shot or even the light and shadow on a single subject within that shot
start with just a key light the key
00:49
light is typically the biggest and
00:52
part of the subject and casts shadows on
00:54
another part if all we have is the key
00:57
light then we have a high ratio or high
00:59
contrast between bright illumination and
01:02
dark shadow a high ratio like this
01:05
creates a look called low key lighting
01:07
this term can be sort of confusing since
01:10
a high contrast high ratio creates low
01:13
key lighting now we’ll bring in a fill
01:18
named because it’s used to fill in
01:20
shadows with just a little fill light
01:22
like this we still have relatively deep
01:25
shadows and thus a high ratio but you
01:28
can see a little more detail within
01:29
those shadows as we add more and more
01:32
fill light the ratio or difference
01:36
lowers until you can see lots of detail
01:38
in the shadows and there’s not nearly as
01:40
much difference at all between the
01:42
shadow and illumination this is a low
01:45
ratio which is called high key lighting
01:49
yeah I know it’s counterintuitive here’s
01:52
how I remember which is which in my head
01:55
I just substitute fill for key high fill
01:59
equals high key lighting like this or
02:03
this or this or this high key is
02:08
typically used for comedies and less
02:09
dramatic situations back to Corey still
02:13
lit high key let’s lower the fill until
02:18
we’re back to low key lighting which is
02:19
easy to remember if you think low fill
02:23
see what I mean
02:25
here are some other examples of low key
02:27
lighting low key lighting is associated
02:31
with crime dramas horror films darker
02:34
and more dramatic stuff
02:36
got it
Quality
there’s more filmmakers can also affect
02:43
our experience and interpretation of any
02:45
particular image or moment by adjusting
02:47
the quality of light Coria is being lit
02:50
now with hard light which means light
02:53
coming directly from the source hard
02:56
light picks up every detail and creates
02:58
a very clear defined line between shadow
03:01
and illumination and if you shoot at low
03:04
key like this it can create a very high
03:07
contrast look it’s not exactly
03:10
flattering but it’s edgy and tough
03:12
looking great for scary serious or tense
03:18
situations see what I mean okay let’s
03:24
give Corey some fill good
03:27
now while hard light is direct soft
03:34
means breaking up the light so that
03:36
instead of coming directly from the
03:37
source and essentially a unified
03:39
straight line the light is broken up so
03:42
that it hits the subject from a variety
03:43
of slightly different angles light can
03:46
be diffused in all kinds of ways
03:48
including bouncing it off board or wall
03:51
or putting semi opaque material between
03:54
the light source and the subject or even
03:57
by filling the location with smoke not
04:00
you however you diffuse it diffused
04:03
light softens details blurs the border
04:06
between illumination and shadow and
04:09
depending on your lighting ratio can
04:11
lower contrast and provide more subtle
04:14
shades of gray on a scale between
04:16
darkest shadow and brightest light for
04:20
this reason that the more flattering
04:21
soft light is often used on glamorous
04:24
stars romantic situations and lighter
04:29
moments and of course there’s a very
04:31
wide range of diffused light from super
04:34
soft to practically hard got it
04:39
nope sorry there’s more the
Direction
direction of
04:42
the light in relation to the subject and
04:43
camera also affects the interplay of
04:46
illumination and shadow most lights in
04:48
most shots is aimed at the subject from
04:51
about a 45-degree angle from a little
04:53
above eye height that’s what looks most
04:56
natural because that’s where most light
04:58
naturally comes from in our world lamps
05:01
windows light fixtures and of course the
05:04
Sun it also allows for those places
05:07
where our faces protrude brow nose
05:09
cheekbones to catch light and cast
05:12
shadows so that they appear
05:14
three-dimensional this is known as
05:16
modeling but the filmmaker can always
05:18
diverge from this more normal lighting
05:20
direction in order to alter the way we
05:22
experience and interpret the character
05:24
or situation for example there’s
05:31
subject facing the camera by removing
05:34
all detail backlighting silhouettes and
05:37
thus abstracts the subject
05:39
handy for threatening characters or for
05:42
differentiating noble or superior
05:45
characters sort of the low angle of
05:48
lighting directions now if we keep that
05:50
backlight but at our standard key and
05:53
fill light you can see Corey’s face but
05:57
his edges feature extra rims of brighter
05:59
light this appropriately named edge
06:05
method of making the subjects stand out
06:07
from the background kind of like tracing
06:08
or outlining subjects and light makes
06:11
them pop when lighting folks known in
06:14
the business gaffers talk about
06:16
three-point lighting they’re referring
06:18
to the combination of a key light a fill
06:21
light and an edge or rim light which
06:23
they also sometimes call a kicker now we
06:27
can reverse the light source and place
06:29
it facing the subject from the same
06:31
angle as the camera this is called
06:39
that accentuate it Corey’s various
06:41
dimensions are gone leaving his features
06:44
looking rather flat depending on your
06:48
context there are all kinds of uses for
06:51
frontal lighting
06:52
such as making our normally beautiful
06:54
heroin look harsh and unforgiving during
06:57
a police interrogation or accentuating
06:59
the rather bland personality of a
07:01
dim-witted or gullible victim if you go
07:04
all the way with this technique and
07:06
remove all shadow like George Lucas did
07:08
here you can create a prison purgatory
07:10
that’s so featureless and sanitized it’s
07:13
scary
07:15
speaking of scary
07:17
let’s try lighting from underneath Cory
07:22
when the light is placed in the most
07:24
unnatural direction shining up at the
07:27
subject from below the normal order of
07:29
shadow and illumination is reversed this
07:32
distorts the features making the subject
07:34
appear frightening or threatening it’s
07:37
perfect for scary characters and
07:39
unnatural situations sort of the Dutch
07:41
angle of lighting directions it has an
07:44
interesting effect on cast shadows too
07:46
normally our shadows are smaller than us
07:48
cowering down on the ground where they
07:50
belong
07:50
but reverse the light direction and you
07:52
get these big bold shadows climbing the
07:55
walls it’s enough to make even pee-wee
07:57
Herman and cartoon mice intimidating
08:04
ratio quality direction lighting got it
08:13
wait yeah I do
08:17
I’ve got it I’ve got it
08:48
life comes on in action okay that’ll be
08:51
my cue
Capital High School 