Lighting
What is lighting?
Lighting is
used to convey mood and atmosphere in a specific scene or a film. It can also
be used to guide the audience’s attention to a particular object, person,
emotion or gesture. Lighting can also be used to cast shadows and build tension
and suspense.
Key terms: Angles of lighting:
Under lighting:
The main
source of light comes from below the person. As portrayed in the example under
lighting tends to have a distorting effect on the character and is mostly used
in thriller or horror specific films.
Top lighting:
The main
source of lighting comes from above. As shown in the example, top lighting
highlights the features of a character. It’s also used to create a glamorous
look in a character.
Back lighting:
This is when
the light source is behind an character/object. If little or no lights are
used, silhouettes are created. As shown in the example, there is a dark outline
around the object which is visible against a lighter background.
Types of lighting:
Low-key:
This is when
the lighting is dark with only small areas of light. This also creates shadows. As shown in the example dark lighting has
been used to portray the cat.
High-key:
High-key
lighting is when lighting appears more natural and realistic to the viewer. For
example in a film it could be used to create a joyful mood with a mum and her
children.
Natural lighting:
This is when
no lighting effects has been put into practice, it is what the viewer is
expected to see. As displayed in the example, we can see natural lighting used
to portray the sunset onto a sea.
What genres might use low-key
lighting?
Low-key
lighting is mainly used in the horror thriller or genre to create suspense and
to control how much of the surrounding scene is revealed.
What genres might use high-key
lighting?
High-key lighting
is frequently used in classical Hollywood films because it gives an overall
lighting design which uses the fill light and back light to create low contrast
between brighter and darker areas. Mostly used in daylight, but also can be
used at night scenes.
Low-key lighting in thrillers:
In the
example we can see a scene from Taken 2 which demonstrates low-key lighting
being used and the use of dark lighting with only small areas of light. This also
creates shadows which increases the level of intensity in the scene.
Low-key lighting and the atmosphere
created:
The location
with low-key lighting is usually somewhere like an abandoned house or an
alleyway. The characters mainly consist of the usual protagonist and the
antagonist.
The moon and the gutter:
While watching I realised that the use of
low-key was dominant throughout the video. The affect that this had was that it
added suspense and it gave an idea about the lighting that the lady was witnessing,
which the dark lighting was used in affect also with the shade of small areas
of light, for example when they were showing the shadow of the moon on the
puddle. The lighting made me understand more clearly the situation that the
lady was in and gave the sense that the lady was in trouble
Onat, a clear understanding of the differences between types of lighting and how lighting is used to represent different characters, such as the antagonist and the protagonist.
ReplyDeleteTo improve;
Develop your understanding with further discussion on each of the examples which you have provided.
Explain how they are used to create different meanings. For example, discuss why the example of top lighting in the scream images is used and what response this could evoke from the audience.
Provide a conclusion stating what you have learned from the lesson, and some of the ideas of lighting that you plan to use in your own thriller.
Please make the changes noted above to your work.
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