Lighting a video interview with Arri Fresnels

The key light is the main source used to light the subject. Its direction and ratio to other light used establishes the mood of the illumination. An Arri 650-watt fresnel is used for the key in this setup. Place the light about seven to eight feet from your subject, directly off to one side. Cover the light with a Rosco #3026 frosted sheet to reduce hard light. Project a narrow beam from head to toe. Use barn doors to reduce spill light hitting your backdrop. This bright side light makes for interesting highlights but may cause harsh face shadows. We’ll deal with this later.

The fill light shines on the scene from a point near the camera, illuminating the shadows caused by the key light. Use an Arri 300-watt fresnel and position it adjacent to the camera, which is also about eight feet from the subject. The light is covered with a RoscoSun #3410 1/8 CTO Orange Gel. This soft light focuses on the face, eliminating shadows. The added filter also gives the face the appearance of a warm tan.

A good technique for lighting hair can be remembered as "Triple 5": Using an Arri 300-watt fresnel, set the light on the opposite side of your key light five feet back, five feet to the side and five feet above your subject’s head. Use barn doors to create a narrow, bright band and focus it on the subject’s hair beginning at the head and trailing down to the shoulders. Don’t use a gel here; you want to create a bright, harsh light that produces a glowing halo around the subject’s hair.

The final light to be set is the backdrop light. The backdrop is set about eight feet behind the subject. I frame the shot in camera before setting this light to make sure I’m lighting the ideal portion of the background. I use an Arri 300-watt fresnel with a snoot (above, left) to precisely throw the beam needed for the desired effect. The light is then gelled with a Rosco #80 blue gel (above, right) to further enhance the scene.

Before shooting, take an exposure reading. The lights and distances used here should yield an overall f/stop of 4.0 in your video camera. When read separately, the key and hair light should read a little brighter with an f/stop of 4.05. The fill light and background light should each read an f/stop of 2.8. These readings will produce a film-like look from the brighter side light and hair light. The fill light is just bright enough to eliminate shadows, and the backdrop just bright enough to be noticed, but not to overpower the key light.

When viewing the set up in your monitor, make certain that your camera is seeing the scene as you have imagined it. This step is your last chance to make small color-temperature adjustments with your gels, or to adjust the light patterns on your background. You can also check for sunlight that may be coming into your set from windows. This light can be color corrected, if necessary, with a RoscoSun #85 color correction filter.

Gear: Arri 300-watt and 650-watt fresnel lights, Spectra Pro IV-A light meter, RoscoSun #85 color-correction filter, Rosco #80 Blue Gel, Rosco #3026 Frosted Gel, RoscoSun #3410 Orange Gel and Sony PVM-8045Q 8-inch pro color monitor housed in a Porta-Brace field case.

DJ Johnson, partner, Pope Johnson Video Production

DJ Johnson began his career in 1997 as a producer for a national cable company and is now a partner in Pope Johnson Video Productions in Columbus, GA. The multimedia studio specializes in corporate, industrial and retail television production for area ad agencies. Johnson has been recognized with numerous national and regional awards for videography and editing. He believes good lighting techniques are essential for every producer to know.

Pope Johnson Video Productions
www.popejohnsonvideo.com
627 Second Ave., Suite 1
Columbus, GA 31901
ph: 706.324.3870
popevideo@knology.net