When Filming, three-point lighting is important if you want to get the mood of the film right.
As the name of it states, three-point lighting has 3 components to it:
- Key Light- This is the main light in a scene. It is placed to one side of the camera which causes one side of the subject to be well lit and the other to show shadows.
- Fill Light- The fill light is placed on the opposite side to the Key light and is there to prevent shadows from appearing on the object.
- Back Light- These lights are projected from behind the subject. This makes an image look 3D, showing that the subject is in the foreground of the shot rather than it looking flat.
Reflectors
A reflector is a round disk shaped object that is shiny which allows you to reflect the light off objects to prevent the shadow effect appearing when filming under high key lighting.
Our Own Example
Here is our idea of three-point lighting. We used:
Key Light- Red Head
Fill Light- Reflector
Back Light- Red Head
If you want to find more out about 3 point lighting, here is a good link for the way three point lighting is created:
3 point lighting simulator
The lighting of a scene or shot in a film is the difference between an Oscar for best film and a bad review by the press in an article. One slight mess up with the lighting and a films appearance and ambience can be ruined.
