Backlighting is one of the terms aspiring filmmakers learn early on in their education. And not only them. Recently, I heard a podcast where a guest – an expert on communication – recommended that listeners set up three-point lighting for important Zoom calls in order to stand out from their peers. Yet, the backlight in film goes beyond creating depth and separating the objects in a frame. It is a known tool that can steer the viewer’s attention, create a specific atmosphere, and aid the story. How? Let’s analyze. As the name suggests, backlighting is a lighting technique where a light source is placed behind a subject and is facing the camera. There are variations to this setup: Sometimes, the backlight can come slightly from above, and other times – it is placed at eye level. If you move it a bit to the side, it becomes a “kicker,” and we’ll talk about this term further below. The general principle stays the same, though: we have light rays wrapping the object or subject from behind and heading in the direction of the camera. Why backlighting? What is backlight good for? Several things. Above all, by illuminating the subject from behind, the backlight creates a rim of light that outlines its edges. This outline defines the subject’s shape and separates it from the background. In our MZed course “Introduction to Lighting,” seasoned filmmaker Ollie Kenchington demonstrates how little it actually takes to make a big difference. Images source: Ollie Kenchington /...
Published By: CineD - Yesterday