DPHU1006 Chap.6 Cameras and Lighting on Set
Cameras and Lighting on Set
Cameras and lighting are the Week 5 lecture topic, and the course hands the cinematographer a precise checklist: white balance, shutter speed 1/50, aperture, ISO and focus, plus a lighting plan, an equipment list, spare batteries and equipment tested before the shoot. Quiz 2 covers Weeks 3 to 5. This chapter explains what each setting does and how they interact.
It draws a three-point lighting plan of key, fill and back light for a student interior, and it shows how to open the aperture for shallow depth of field, which the Photo Project requires, without changing the 1/50 shutter. The reason it matters for marks is simple: the Video Project rubric rewards visuals that are clearly visible throughout and penalises footage that is often difficult to see.
The settings in this chapter connect to three assessments. Quiz 2 can ask what each one does. The Photo Project requires a shallow depth of field image, which depends on aperture and distance. And the Video Project's visual criterion separates footage that is often difficult to see from footage that is clearly visible throughout and shows a strong grasp of filmmaking technique.
A cinematographer who checks the same five settings before every take protects all three.
What this chapter covers
- 01
The cinematographer's pre-take checklist
- 02
Three-point lighting: key, fill and back light
- 03
Hard and soft light, and mixed colour temperatures
- 04
Aperture, depth of field and the f-stop series
- 05
ISO, noise and keeping the shutter at 1/50
- 06
Testing equipment and carrying spare batteries
Worked example · free
Choosing a white balance for a mixed-light room
- +1Choose one dominant source for the face; here the lamp is the key light.
- +1Reduce the other: draw the curtain or move the actor so daylight only rims the hair as a back light.
- +1Set white balance for the lamp, around 3200 K, so the face reads natural and the window glows cool behind.
Key terms
- Key light
- The main and brightest light on a subject, usually placed to one side of the camera.
- Fill light
- A softer light opposite the key that lightens the shadows the key creates.
- Depth of field
- The distance range in front of the camera that appears in sharp focus.
- White balance
- A camera setting that matches the colour of the light so whites look neutral.
- ISO
- The camera's sensitivity setting; higher values brighten the image but add visible noise.
- Aperture
- The adjustable lens opening, given as an f-number, that controls light and depth of field.
Cameras and Lighting on Set FAQ
Why does the course specify a shutter speed of 1/50?
It appears on the cinematographer's checklist. At 25 frames per second, a common rule of thumb sets the shutter to double the frame rate, 1/50, which gives natural-looking motion blur.
How do I get a blurred background in a photo or shot?
Use a wide aperture, which is a low f-number, move the subject away from the background and get closer with the camera. Shallow depth of field is one of the Photo Project requirements.
What is three-point lighting?
A standard set-up of a key light that shapes the face, a fill light that softens its shadows and a back light that separates the subject from the background.
Why should the camera be tested before the shoot day?
The course checklist asks the cinematographer to test equipment before the shoot and to charge spare batteries, because a fault discovered on location costs set-ups that a student crew rarely has time to recover.
What should a lighting plan show?
A lighting plan is a simple top-down sketch of the set showing the actor, the camera and each light, with a note on what every light does, such as key, fill or back light, and how bright or soft it is.
What do the f-numbers on a lens mean?
An f-number describes the size of the lens opening. Lower numbers such as f/2.8 mean a wider opening, more light and shallower depth of field; higher numbers such as f/8 mean less light and more of the scene in focus.
Assessment move
Practise with whatever camera you will use: shoot the same face at three apertures and three ISO settings and compare the files on a laptop. Then light one corner of your room with a lamp, a white sheet and a window, and photograph each light on its own before combining them. Write the five checks on a card and tape it to the camera for the shoot: white balance, shutter at 1/50, aperture, ISO and focus.
Say them aloud before each new set-up. Recording a few seconds of a white sheet under each location's light also gives the editor a reference for colour correction.
