Lighting Your Independent Movie for Pennies
Using Your Hardware Store to Achieve Professional Lighting Results
May 25, 2009
It doesn't need to cost a lot to achieve professional lighting results for your movie. If you're trying to stretch every dollar you have in order to just get your movie made, spending money on lighting can seem like a luxury that you just can't afford. The good news is that with a few simple items that can be easily found at a hardware store, you can be up and running with a lighting kit that will rival a professional kit, for just pennies.
Let There Be Light!
The first thing you'll need are some actual lights, and for powerful lighting and cheap prices, nothing will give you a bang-for-your-buck like construction-site work lights. When shopping the sales, or with coupons it is often possible to get 1500 watts of halogen lighting for less than $20, and that includes a tripod stand to put your light on. To put that in perspective, 1500 watts of 'pro' halogen lighting can cost between $150 and $600 depending on the unit purchased, for just the lighting fixture and another $100 to $400 for the tripod stand to put your lights on. That's just crazy!
There are a couple things that you need to know about work lights before you start to use them. The first thing to know is that halogen lights will get very hot when you've had them on for a while. Because of this there are some safety considerations that you'll want to take into account when using them:
- Don't put them next to anything flammable- they'll catch fabric on fire and can even singe walls if too close
- Don't put them where they'll be easy to bump into- they'll burn exposed skin in a heartbeat
- Follow all instructions from the manufacturer- some lights must be allowed to cool down before they can be turned back on once they've been turned off.
Additionally, it's important to take the heat that will be generated into account because it has the potential to heat up your set. Depending on your location you may need to plan for turning off the lights between setups, or have fans on-hand during your shoot in order to counter the heat.
Now Let's Change That Light
Work lights produce a lot of light, and they produce it harshly. It's important to understand that work lights aren't designed to produce 'pretty looking' light, which is what you're going to want for your movie. Fortunately there are a lots of easy ways to alter the harshness of these work lights, and it won't cost much to do.
One of the most common things that is used in Hollywood to change the lighting is called a diffuser. This is, in effect, a large opaque sheet on a frame which the lights get pointed at. As the name suggests, this diffuses the harsh light that is produced with a halogen lamp and changes it into a soft light which washes over the scene and dissipates any harsh shadows that might be caused by a direct light.
As with lights, these diffusers come in more shapes and styles than you'd care to count. The only common denominator between them is that they are expensive! Fortunately we can create something that will work just as well, again, for a fraction of the cost using PVC pipe and a cheap white bed sheet. Dean Collins calls this system of using PVC to build diffusers 'Tinker Tubes,' and he has published a free eBook on how to simply and easily build several different custom diffusers at his site: Software Cinema.
Just the Tip of the Iceberg
Using these simple substitutes for 'pro' equipment, you will easily be able to replicate the lighting that is used on any big-budget Hollywood movie. The home improvement store and a dash of creativity can be the difference between having to spend thousands of dollars buying or renting equipment, and spending next-to-nothing to get the same thing. Hopefully this article has jump-started your imagination... Your production will be all the better for the work you put in to building your lighting equipment!
