Instructional video light design

[Michael Cowan]

Good catch on Buddha! Thanks.

Michael Cowan
Heartbeest Productions, Inc.

– Everything Matters

[Bill Davis]

Ah, the plot thickens.

I remember looking at that rectangular glow in the initial pic and wondering if it was a skylight.

Now the reverse angle photo shows that the architect had fun with those clerestory skylights atop the east wall and with sticking a few odd shaped ones in the ceiling as well. Fun.

Rick looks to have been correct to have called the parapet walls outside the windows – but there’s still direct sun hitting the wood over there – which will make shooting west an issue – at least at the time the photo was being taken. Whether you can work with the results as a back or side light and go all daylight is something you won’t be able to tell before you get there.

Personally, the first thing I’d WANT to do is send a FedEx package to the location with the following: Two simple stands and two GoPros pre-set to wide angle and 5 minute time-lapse and instruct the client to set up one at each end of the room and let them run across the time of day that the shoot is planned. Cuz I’d worry that all those skylights would do something that would NOT make me happy when the money’s being spent. I realize that that’s probably NOT going to happen, but it would make me feel a lot more comfortable going in.

I know you’re talking Pan/Tilt/Zoom cameras, but I’m worried about that. It kinda presumes they’re set up in a fixed location. With all those weird overhead light sources, I’d want my primary cameras to be as “dolly-able” and as “truck-able” as possible. If a skylight shaft screws up a subject or background, then at least you can MOVE to get a better shot.

So I’d really want my tripod WHEELS in the travel kit – at least for the primary camera. I’d HATE to find myself spending all day dragging dragging Pan/Tilt mounted on stands back and forth trying to find shots of the participants without some blinding clerestory beam pulling audience focus from the teacher or the class being shot.

I agree with Rick that the space is wonderful. For Yoga. And for life. And even for architecture. It’s just not particularly wonderful for VIDEO over a full day – but given time, willing hands, access to consumables – and a maybe good electric lift to rapidly fly and position scrims and cutters as needed, and a camera dolly that lets you re-position to re-frame around any bright spots – you can certainly get enough quality video out of the space to look lovely and make a cool Yoga video in there.

Bottom line is that this is what we’re paid for.

If they’re not trying to totally cheap it out – this project is perfectly do-able.

The space likely won’t make or break the video. As always, the writing and the talent will.

Oh, and know that this kind of room will likely be a nightmare for sound. I presume you’re shooting MOS and laying in narration with mood music in post which is smart, cuz that huge hard surface cube is likely gonna be NASTY for audio. Just sayin’

Let us know how it goes.

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[Mark Suszko]

Maddeningly, the rez of the location pics is just barely too low for me to tell if those china balls are mobiles or working practical lights, and how bright they might get. If this is a solar-powered home running 12 volts all over the place… they might use spiral flo bulbs or LED’s already.