In home lighting
 

Does anyone here have any experience or opinion about lighting to be used in the home or other locations that provide the best lighting?

Today, I bought some bulbs to go in my recessed lights and they appear to make a big difference with my eyes but have yet to use my camera.

I got the GE Halogen/Reveal they are just 60 watts but compared to my Sylvania 65W they are much better.

Hi Guy,

OMG, don't we wish we could get by with a handful of 60W halogen bulbs! Unfortunately, when it's all said and done most of the time we're probably reaching for about 2,000W of lights in our kits for many indoor scenes. Even when I'm on the run in the field where I can't setup my lighting kit, I struggle with only two 100W battery operated halogen bulbs.

But perhaps for your environment, application, and expectations, you might get by with far less light than most of us.

If you're just gettting up to speed, you might want to check out some websites, book, instructional DVDs, and scan through our forum posts here.

Good luck, Michael

Hi Guy,
I agree with Michael. Give your new bulbs a try with some footage, and see how it looks, but in general, you are likely to find that standard in-home room lighting will be inadequate for capturing great imagery.

The camera doesn't process images in quite the same way that the eyes and visual cortex do. So environmental light designed for good illumination to human perception doesn't always translate as well if seen through the camera view. Stronger and more varied lighting systems are often called for.

Part of the dilemma is also that the camera cannot process the sense of depth and dimension in the same way our brains do. So, you'll also want to avoid using lights just to make everything look bright .... and flat.

Good lighting takes into account the proper application of surface illumination and shadows to help the camera perceive a sense of dimension from the subject. I like to think of it as using light to 'sculpt' the subject.

There are tons of threads and resources in the forums pertaining to different lighting techniques as well as great resources for light kits across a wide range of budgets.

Being good with production lighting is probably one of the most valuable skills to have within the world of video production. I have been working on improving my lighting techniques for a couple of years now and I still feel like a newbie because there is so much to learn, but every step of the way improves the quality of my work.

-Jon

(PS - Hey Michael, we're finally getting some sun up here for a change. Nice huh?)
-J.

Guy - If you are looking for lighting to use in the home, I have just knocked up a simple 12V 50w Dichroic bulb on the end of a boom. I have found it ideal for lighting individual's faces whilst still leaving the background in ambient light.
This works really well. It wont light the whole room cleraly, but is great for picking out detail. It works from a 12v battery so is lightweight and portable and can easily move with the actor / subject.
You also have some adjustment. These are available in varying wattages and beam widths.
Give it a go, it really does work and the colour temp seems about right for daylight too!