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Share your lighting setups.

acearchie

acearchie

macrumors 68040
Original poster
Jan 15, 2006
3,264
104
Does anyone have any lighting diagrams they could share?

I have hired out some strobes from my Uni to play around with and apart from using common sense don't really have a solid point where to start.

I will probably have some lighting diagrams to share in a weeks time when I have done my shooting but in the meantime I wondered whether anyone had any to share that I might be able to emulate?

Lighting diagrams can be created using the Online Lighting Diagram Creator.

Cheers!
 
S

snberk103

macrumors 603
Oct 22, 2007
5,503
91
An Island in the Salish Sea
acearchie said:
Does anyone have any lighting diagrams they could share?
...
Click to expand...

It all depends on what you are shooting. Its shape, its texture, its reflectivity.

I recently found a very old lighting manual booklet - and by old I mean from the 1940s - that appears to be full of very good advice. Despite being written before strobes. Certainly it is better than some of the classes I took.

Most of what I know, I taught myself and therefore is mostly done by eye and by the seat of my pants.

But it really is entirely dependent on what you are shooting, and then what kind of an effect you want.
 
steveash

steveash

macrumors 6502a
Aug 7, 2008
527
245
UK
Don't get me started on lighting!

The best way to learn is to experiment, ideally tethered to a computer so you can see your progress. I would start off with one light without a modifier. Move the light around, then try adding different modifiers, gels etc, add a reflector, add a second and third light... You also either want a hugely patient subject or a dummy to give you some consistency.

There are many standard set ups but they won't teach you more than you can see in a book: you see the set up and you see the results but without personally experimenting you don't see why it works well only that it does.

Lighting diagrams are OK as starting points but they are 2D representations of a multi-dimensional situation so not all that useful.
 
acearchie

acearchie

macrumors 68040
Original poster
Jan 15, 2006
3,264
104
snberk103 said:
It all depends on what you are shooting. Its shape, its texture, its reflectivity.

I recently found a very old lighting manual booklet - and by old I mean from the 1940s - that appears to be full of very good advice. Despite being written before strobes. Certainly it is better than some of the classes I took.

Most of what I know, I taught myself and therefore is mostly done by eye and by the seat of my pants.

But it really is entirely dependent on what you are shooting, and then what kind of an effect you want.
Click to expand...

Thanks, will bare that in mind when I have a go. Funnily enough I have a set of old lighting books as well that I have since had a look at and I have to say they are much better than some of the newer books you can buy.

Designer Dale said:
Do a user search on FrankieTDouglas and see if you can contact him. He does a lot of studio and lighting work in a creative vain.

Dale
Click to expand...

Thanks for the tip. Checked out his site which has already given me some ideas.

steveash said:
Don't get me started on lighting!

The best way to learn is to experiment, ideally tethered to a computer so you can see your progress. I would start off with one light without a modifier. Move the light around, then try adding different modifiers, gels etc, add a reflector, add a second and third light... You also either want a hugely patient subject or a dummy to give you some consistency.
Click to expand...

Bought a 2m USB cable just for this purpose so I can shoot tethered although I might have to get a 10m one too as I feel like I'll be walking around a bit trying to "find" the light.
 
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