outdoor indoor mix

[Sydneys]

Just white balance… Constantly white balance. And, underexpose by 1/2 to 1 stop or so on high contrast scenes, so you’re able to adjust the color in post. Will your 750 watt lights work in the outdoors? Let me put it this way. I just shot a scene in a coffee shop that had a window looking out onto the street… We put neutral density on the window, and a 4K HMI with a softbox right in her face… Still had to blow out the window a bit.

[Bcooney]

thanks. so i definately need more light in some of these situations. I was thinking of treating the windows with orange gels to create a different temp….but i need the windows in the shot, plus treating them in my case is impractical….got to be in and out. So, they have to look norm. So, I need a 4K lamp to overpower what’s coming through the windows, underexpose a bit and color correct in post?

[Sydneys]

First, I wouldn’t recommend using anything but a neutral density sheet on the window… They do not change the color temp of the outdoors. An orange tint may make things look a bit odd on the outside… Secondly, a 4K HMI is much more powerful than typical lights in your lighting kit… They say the basic rule of thumb is that an HMI has 4 times the output of a typical tungsten & co. light. In my opinion, the higher the wattage, the less the multiplying factor is… At 4K, I’m thinking it’s in the range of 10-12K or so… But, I’m not an engineer, just an end user. If you can’t afford to rent an HMI or two, be prepared to use alot of wattage… Don’t be afraid to blow out the windows a little, it’s not uncommon to see that even in some feature films… One particular film comes to mind, I remember seeing a LOT of blown out highlights in Clerks 2…

[Bcooney]

thanks sydney