If your camera light will accept filters, you can buy
or make a half screen to reduce the bottom part of
the light beam.
Bald Subjects
Balding heads are best handled by the
makeup department—a little neutral powder
will kill refl ections and be quite invisible to the
camera. If the subject refuses powder (as men
sometimes do) try moving the lights up and
then, if necessary, farther to one side to reduce
the refl ections.
Subjects Wearing Glasses
For refl ections on eyeglasses, the solution is
similar. In general, small-source spotlights are
easier to move out of the incidence/refl ection
path (as explained in the sidebar). However,
refl ections from the softlights often used for
interviews can be tolerable, because viewers
know that the subject has been lit for video.
For brief shots, it is often enough for the subject to
lift the earpieces of the eyeglasses slightly off the
ears, tilting the lenses downward, and deflecting
the reflection. When not overdone, this adjustment
is generally invisible to the camera.
Specialized Light Sources
Practicals (such as table lamps) and
environmental light sources (streetlights, signs,
Darker Complexions
Darker facial tones are beautiful when well lit,
but they can offer contrast problems—especially
in wedding cinematography, when the bride’s
skin tones are contrasted with a brilliant white
wedding dress. The trick here is to get more
light on the face than the dress, Figure 16-23.
Many on-camera lights can be fi tted with
barn doors that partially block light from the
white wedding dress. With stand-mounted
lights, half screens can be added to the barn
doors to further moderate the lower part of the
light beam.
Figure 16-22 A thin face appears broader when its
sides are brighter than its center.
Figure 16-23 White clothing against darker complexions creates contrast problems. Reducing the light to the
lower part of the frame improves contrast.
Contrast problem Lighting adjusted
346 Video Digital Communication & Production