Chapter 16 Lighting Applications 335
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light is just barely bright enough to visually
separate the subject from the background. In
some instances, it is omitted entirely.
The brightness of key and fill lights is adjusted by
focusing and/or moving the lights toward or away
from the subject. Rim light, however, may be
controlled by a dimmer, since the warming effect
of dimming a light is usually acceptable in this
application. Used as rim lights, LED panels can be
dimmed without changing color temperature.
Background Light
Like the key light, the background light is
usually “motivated.” It mimics light from sources
such as a lamp or window that would naturally cast
light on the background. A wall lamp, a window
light, or spill from a room light can act as motivated
light (Figure 16-5). When working with just a few
lights, you can usually achieve background lighting
by directing spill from the key and/or fi ll lights. fi
Background light intensity should be
adjusted so that subject and background seem
lit by the same environment, but the subject
is slightly brighter. Two or more background
lights may be needed to do the job.
Background lights often produce less intense effects
because the lighting instruments must be placed well
away from the background to keep them out of the frame.
With the four lights in place, we can build
a complete lighting setup, Figure 16-6. Though
developed for classic pictorial realism, this
basic scheme can be used with any of the four
major lighting styles, Figure 16-7.
The basic lighting setup demonstrated
here uses four lights and covers a space
only about the size of a single action area.
At large shooting locations, the lighting can
involve many more instruments, but they
tend to be deployed in multiples of these basic
layouts. When multiple instruments are used,
some perform double duty: for example, the key
on subject A may also be the fi ll on subject B. fi
An “action area” is a spot within a location that is
fully lit because important activity takes place there.
Figure 16-5. Background light placement.
Plan Elevation Effect
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Figure 16-6. Complete lighting setup.
Plan Elevation Effect
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