Leo Ticheli
Forum Replies Created
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LOL!
I’m so used to typing “Atlanta,” that I typed that for “Atlantis!”
Now that I think of it, Atlanta might just be as mythological as Atlantis!
Best regards to all,
Leo
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Leo, does the Biax 8 have the same “feature” as the Kino Flo: bulbs in pairs, if either bulb (or socket) is bad, neither one lights up?
Golly, I don’t know! Never had the problem, but we always keep spares handy, even though I don’t remember a tube failing on the set.
I’d like a Biax 8 for interviews, if for no other reason than that I could then move the fixture farther away from the subject and still have enough light. A lot of my interview setups resemble Spanish Inquisition torture scenes. (“Okay, you see that tiny spot surrounded by lights and stands and reflectors… That’s where you sit, and RELAX.”)
In your experience, working with non-professionals, do you have some personal rules about how close you are willing to place the key to the subject — sheerly for the sake of a comfortable, relaxed environment for the interview?
Obviously, anything you can do physically to relax the subject will help, but more important is the psychological approach, the skill of the interviewer to engage the subject. Warm-up dialog and questions that elicit natural responses are more important. I do tend to light in such a way that the subject’s discomfort is minimized.
One more random question: it’s commonly said in favor of fluorescent keys, that the light falls off more rapidly from them as opposed to Chimeras, thus enabling you to control the light on the background. Why is this so? I can’t understand the reason for this.
I think this belief is in the same category as the Bermuda Triangle, Atlanta, and the Loch Ness monster.
While different diffusion materials have a different character of light, my understanding of physics is that light sources of equal size aperture and intensity have equal fall-off following the law of squares. This is also my experience.
Good shooting!
Leo
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I prefer the Biax 8 from Mole Richardson; plenty of punch.
In the 4 tube fixtures, have a look at Kino Flo.
By all means, rent or borrow before you buy!
Good shooting!
Leo
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Bob, I’m with you all the way.
I rarely use a kick light these days unless I think the shot really needs it for separation or it’s motivated by widows or practical sources. Love a FlexFill because it’s so easy to use and acoustically transparent.
To my taste, overuse of a kick can give your shots a “mall photo studio” look; too predictable and ho-hum.
I don’t have a “standard” fixture for the BG; often I use nothing at all if the ambient looks good and is at such a level that I can adjust the key for compatibility. For other backgrounds, I use everything on the truck!
I tend to prefer very dramatic portrait lighting, with a nice darker band on the face between the key and fill; it’s very three-dimensional and reveals the character of the subject. I like to key pretty high too, to fill the neck with soft shadow.
Perhaps I go too far; many people prefer a flat look. I guess that’s why the ice cream store has so many flavors, but I’d rather be a CPA than shoot that way unless the story really demands it. When the client demands it contrary to the way it should be, life is not a fun as it should be.
Sigh.
Good shooting!
Leo
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I’ve done tons of jewelry spots; it’s not too hard but takes patience to get right.
I’ve typically used a combination of large reflective surfaces for the precious metal settings and small hard sources for the sparkles. Some people use a single source and several mirrors to reflect into the facets.
You can try star filters, but they can get cheesy very quickly.
One note, most turntables are not smooth enough when you are shooting such extreme close ups; a lead screw is often necessary to reduce the screen bounce. Many rental facilities have them.
Good shooting!
Leo
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Good morning, Bob!
I don’t know whether you made a typo or the ultimate put-down of poor Ty! Still trying to figure this one out, “as a shooter he’s the ultimate sound man.” I’m sure you didn’t mean it the way it sounded, but I do plan to use it in my bag of jokes!
My own purchasing philosophy has been to buy only professional equipment or rent until I could. The few times I’ve violated this rule have had less than satisfactory results. Generally speaking, cheap equipment doesn’t perform as well, doesn’t hold up, and ends it’s life in the dumpster.
I realize it’s a dilemma; when the budget won’t allow what’s needed for the job, but we tend to be a resourceful bunch in this business, and we usually find a way. Sometimes it’s changing the demands of the job rather than approaching it ill-equipped.
Of course a head-shot kit is so fundamentally necessary, we’ve got to purchase something that works for us and there are many, many solutions ranging from open-faced lights bouncing off cards or umbrellas to giant Kino Wall o Lights.
When I recommend to someone developing their first kit, I suggest lamps that are safe, produce beautiful results, are flexible, easy, and fast to employ, and have lasting value. That’s why I recommend Mole Richardson and Kino Flo. Doubtless there are others, but these I know and trust; they have performed well for me for many years.
Ty, if you can rent or borrow a kit, or better yet, work with someone proficient with the lamps, you’ll be able to find the system that works best for you. If you are in my area, you’re welcome to come to my studio and play to your heart’s content. Surely others at the Cow would be glad to help you.
Good shooting!
Leo
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Hi Nick,
Your experience exactly matches mine. Let’s remember that the first “HD” lenses were nothing more than SD lenses that tested at the top of their model and were slapped with an “HD” label.
I like to think about cinematographers who carefully select the most perfect lenses and then put a silk stocking in front of the glass! Crazy. Of course starting with the best glass is important, but, truthfully, on television it’s hard to distinguish one lens from another. Without a side by side, it may well be impossible.
I have my very own “secret” lens, and I’m not telling what it is, but it helps me make very pretty pictures.
Good shooting!
Leo
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Obviously, throwing a black cloth over a window won’t work when the window is in the shot! I very much like to motivate my light and windows look good. At least they do to me.
My understanding of light must be different from yours. In my experience, equal sized fixture apertures of equal intensity have identical fall-off, following the law of squares. At least in my little Newtonian world, the laws of physics don’t bend more than the vagaries of imprecise measurement allow.
I do like the easier to achieve spill control of a closed softbox; the Mole Richardson Biax 8 is the same, with no place for light to leak from open sides, so they are equal in spill control.
If you are not getting enough level, you are either using too dense diffusion or starting with too weak a source. A diffused two-tube fluorescent is just too weak for keying unless the shot is so tight it can be placed very close to the subject.
I prefer to not suffer the limitations of 3200
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I’ve not used Lowel gear for a long time, but my previous experience with them was that their equipment was not as robust as I would like. It seemed aimed at those just entering the business, with fairly attractive prices and some innovative equipment.
I tend to stick to the category leaders, with more rugged equipment that will last for a very long time. For that reason, I would go with the likes of Mole Richardson or Kino Flo for fixtures and Mathews or similar for stands and grip.
On the other hand, the Lowel kit seems like a well thought out solution, with the built-in storage.
Either solution should give you good results with your key lighting.
Good shooting!
Leo
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Of course we all have our favorite ways of working, but I think the negatives of tungsten quartz lights are considerable.
The color temperature problem is really unsolvable by any practical means. Gelling the windows is far too time-consuming and very difficult to do transparently enough so that it does not show. Gelling the lamp with full blue knocks the output down to a meager level even with a 1000W lamp. There is no way include a day-lit window in the shot without profound blowout. If this is your artistic preference, fine; if not, it’s not acceptable.
I think most of us have to shoot people in offices with large exposures of windows and the only viable options are HMI or beefy fluorescent fixtures.
With the hot quartz fixtures, you are forced to make compromises about where you shoot and the time of day, unless you use a really big lamp, such as a 5K. Then, of course, you’re faced with power problems; you haven’t lived on the edge until you’re forced to explain how you knocked out a floor of computers. Undoubtedly a punchy daylight-balanced fixture is far more flexible.
As for the issue of the softness of the light, the softness of the light is directly proportional to the relative size of the aperture of the light to the subject. A diffusion of the same size as a Chimera in front of a Kino Flo 400 will produce the same degree of softness. An egg-crate has no effect on softness, just control of spill.
As we all know, fluorescent fixtures have color temperature characteristics just as do all lamps; they are widely used world-wide by accomplished cinematographers. I have no problems with either my Mole Richardson or Kino Flo fixtures.
At the end, the perfect kit contains the lighting fixtures and grip equipment necessary to achieve the results desired at a cost the cinematographer & client can afford. For me, look comes first, quickly followed by speed and flexibility. When I have a larger area for the key, I’ll use an HMI behind a huge Chimera; for tighter locations, the larger fluorescent fixtures are wonderful. They have the punch, low-power draw, and they are talent-friendly – nice and cool burning.
If something else works better for you, you’re wise to use it.
Good shooting!
Leo