Lighting For Television

The art of control and effect

The Principles of Light

• Light is part of the electromagnetic energy spectrum.

X-ray and Gamma rays

Audio 20 Hz – 20 KHz

Radio and Communications freq.

The Electromagnetic Spectrum

Violet

Indigo

Blue

Green

Yellow

Orange

Red

Lighting Terminology

• Color Temperature: The relative reddishness or bluishness of light. Measured in degrees Kelvin.

• Primary Colors: For light the primary colors are Red, Blue, & Green

• Photographic principle: Lighting design utilizing 3 lights to light a subject.

• Gel: A colored filter that allows only certain light to pass through the filter.

• Fresnel: A hard light that is a common type of light fixture for a TV Studio.

Fresnel Light

Lighting Terminology (cont.)

• Hard light: A directional light sources that produces sharp falloff (shadows have edges)

• Soft light: Diffused light that produces few shadows.

• EFP Floodlight: Used for portable lighting situations. Usually consists of a bright halogen bulb – Very hot to touch.

• Ellipsoidal Spotlight: An adjustable lighting fixture that allows the lighting director to focus light where he/she would want it.

EFP Floodlight

Ellipsoidal Spotlight

Lighting Terminology (cont.)

• Flag: Cloth or material that will block light from an area of a set.

• Scoop: A light fixture that has no lens and produces soft light.

• Kelvin Scale: the scale used to measure the relative reddishness or bluishness of light.

• Light Plot: A detailed diagram that shows the placement of lights on the light grid.

• Grid: A support system that lights are hung from

Light Plot

Grid

Lighting Terminology (cont.)

• Raceway: The electrical grid that supplies electricity to the grid. Usually it is a complex array of wires.

• Light board: A control panel that allows an operator to control light intensity to each circuit.

• Gaffer: An assistant lighting director.• Falloff: The intensity of the shadow’s edge

produced by a light fixture

Light board

Lighting Terminology (cont.)

• Background light: The purpose of the background light is to establish a "base level of overall lighting" on the set, and to illuminate the set pieces.

• Barndoors: The flaps attached to the front of the instrument, they are manipulated to prevent light from striking unwanted areas.

• Diffusion: Diffusion scatters light, creating soft, somewhat blurred shadow edges, and less severe modeling.

Lighting Terminology (cont.)

• Scrims: A wire screen used to cut down the amount of light emulating from an instrument. It is inserted between the lens and the barndoors.

• Side light: Side light is sometimes used as an alternative to the standard three point lighting setup.

The Photographic Principle

• Most common type of lighting design

• Or 3 point lighting– Key light– Back light– Fill light

Fill Light

Soft lightBack Light

(hard or spot light)

Key Light (hard or spot light)

The Kelvin Scale• Measures the relative

Reddishness or bluishness of light

Candle light

Incandescent Light fixtureFluorescent lighting fixture

Studio lighting (Quartz/Halogen light fixtures)

Outdoor light on a beautiful sunny day (Approx)

Kelvin Scale

Outdoor light on a cloudy Day

Outdoor light on a stormy day20,000 K

15,000 K

5600 K

3200 K

2800 K

2200 K

1200 K

Light Plot Plan