Lighting 101 - Part 5: Bounce Cards
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White cards reflect white light. What about those times when you want to change the color of the light. In these instances you might want to try a gold reflector. The golden color of the material warms the image making the environment more relaxing.
In my camera bag I carry a collapsible 5 in 1 reflector kit. It not only includes a white and silver surface, it also has a diffuser, gold, and black surfaces. The diffuser allows you to soften light (like from a key light), while the gold reflector warms the image. But what is a black reflector for? Actually by using black material you remove unwanted glare or light from a shot. It isn’t a magic go to for lighting problems, but it does work rather well. These 5 in 1 kits sell for around $50.00. [an error occurred while processing this directive]
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| A 5 in 1 reflector kit can come in very handy, and because it collapses easily, you can take it nearly anywhere. |
While the discussion of bounce cards has focused mainly on the fill light, you can also use bounce cards for the key light. In this example, a Omni spot was used as the rim light for the subjects hair, while a white bounce board was used to reflect the light back to the subject. Because the rim and key light generally have the same lighting ratio, this is a great way to reduce the number of lights in the shot by one more. The soft fill on the right side of the image is the result of bouncing the light from the bounce card off of a gold reflector.
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| Two lights used in the scene; a back (or rim) light, and a background light. All other illumination is provided by reflectors. |
With a little time and forethought, you can bounce light from almost any source and have it change the feel of your shot dramatically.
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| By adding a heavy diffusion filter, you can make your image more dream or film-like. |
Next time we’ll take our lighting discussion outdoors, and look at some ways to light your subject in the field.
Catch up on the first four installments of the series by clicking the links below.
Lighting 101 - Part 1: The Key is Key
Lighting 101 - Part 2: The Fill Light
Lighting 101 - Part 3: The Back Light
Lighting 101 - Part 4: The Background Light
For information about making your video look more film like, be sure to read the article here.
For information on filters and how they can improve your image, read the related article here.
When not working deep in the labs of the DMN Central Division testing the latest and greatest software/hardware products Stephen Schleicher can be found at the local university teaching a few courses on video and web production. He can be reached at schleicher@mindspring.com. You can also visit him on the web at www.mindspring.com/~schleicher
Source: Digital Media Online, Inc.
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