3pointlighting1

3-Point lighting

ALL LIGHTS ON

ONLY THE KEY LIGHT ON

ONLY THE FILL LIGHT ON

ONLY THE HAIR LIGHT ON

ONLY THE EDGE LIGHT ON

FULL LIGHT SET UP

• The original concepts of contrast and light angles were often influenced by the light coming in from a window

HISTORY

KEY LIGHT

• Primary or dominant source of light in a shot• Often suggests an out of frame source • The choice of fixture (hard or soft) and its

position will help set the mood of the shot

Soft Key Light

• Creates the shadow line running down the cheek

Full lighting with Soft KeyRifa 88, 1000W

Soft light Rifa with fabric egg crate

Hard Key Light• Dramatic transition between light and dark areas

• Rembrandt Lighting- when key light is positioned so there is a light triangular patch under the near eye• Has a slimming effect on the subject

Rembrandt van Rijn, Portrait of a Lady with an Ostrich-Feather Fan, c. 1658/1660

Full lighting with hard key

Pro-light, 250W Focusing Hard light

Simple Light Setups• One light will do the work of both Key and Fill • A second small light from behind adds a little shine to hair and adds a finishing

touch • A small hard source can be used to see where the shadows are• By adding an umbrella increases the relative size of the light source so softness

increases

Single light (Omni-light 500 W) with umbrella, positioned to function as Key light, with enough softness to also act as Fill light. Result of One light Source

Fill Light• Lightens shadows• Combined with the Key light, Fill light

defines the mood by lighting the shaded areas in a range of intensities

• Can vary from none, to a level equaling the Key light

Fill Light

You can most easily alter the mood of a shot by raising and lowering the intensity of the Fill

Rifa 44, 250W Soft lightFill light alone

Hair Light• A light from behind the subject, often weaker

than the Key or Fill, aimed at the head & shoulders

• May also be called a backlight

• Separates subject and background

• Adds highlights & shine to hair

Background Light• Used for lighting background of set as a whole or

specific areas

• Lights objects in background of set significant to image

• Separates subject and background

• Possible to use multiple background lights

Color background

• In this shot, we added red gel to an Omni-light, focused wide enough to cover the background area of the shot

Omni-light 500W focusable

A popular technique used in media to give the background a more theatrical effect. It provides a contrast of color and feel between the environment and the subject.

barn doors were used on the fixture to trim any spill that may fall on the subject