Lighting for Super 8 weddings

[brightlight]

I have just filmed my third wedding on Tri-X super 8, and I am thinking about adding some lighting for indoor/low light situations. Up until now, I have only shot daytime/outdoor weddings, but this past weekend the bride really wanted some footage of their reception (indoor-at night-candle light), and I had to explain that I couldn't get any shots because it was way too dark.

If anyone currently shooting weddings or other events could help that would be great. I work solo and am mostly getting candid on the fly type shots, so I am not interested in an entire lighting package, but maybe something I can strap to my camera that won't blind anyone just by looking at it, or be too intrusive.

Thanks.

[jpolzfuss]

Hi,

in the past Super8-filmers simply used one (or two) 500W- or 1000W-halogen-lamp(s) that looked more or less all like this one: http://img1.classistatic.com/cps/bln/11 ... kg_23.jpeg They came with a "metal bar" that screwed into the camera's tripod mount on one end and into the lamp's tripod mount on the other end. So the result looked like this: http://www.pearl.de/a-NC1134-1123.shtml
If you don't want to rely on used lamps, you can still get similar new lamps (intended for construction sites): http://www.elektrotools.de/Produkt/Bach ... 72b0af459f (even though most will claim that they're even less suited than those "1000W-super8-lamps").

Pro: Those lamps provide a lot of light - enough to film indoors with K40, ... So you'll only need a single lamp in most situations. And now those lamps only cost a few cents on eBay (normally the shipping costs are much higher than the winning bid).
Contra: Those lamps don't work with batteries, so you'll need a lot of extension cords (tripping hazard, ...). And they get very hot (hence some of the better models do have a fan). And they provide a lot of light - most "actors" will think that they're too bright and hence will close their eyes. And as they produce "non-diffuse" light, they cause some harsh shadows.

You can get similar halogen-lamps with less Watt as video-lights, e.g.: http://www.kaiser-fototechnik.de/de/pro ... p?nr=93339
Most of them are battery-operated and are less bright (which is an advantage for the eyes of the "actors", but a disadvantage in low-light situations).

Similar video-lights are now also available with LEDs (e.g. see my above link to pearl.de). However -unless you spend a fortune- most of them produce nearly no light, so they wouldn't have any effect when positioned more than 2m away from the "actors". And they (at least the cheaper ones) also only produce light in a very limited spectrum, which is okay for most video-cameras (with automated white balance, ...) but will cause "false colours" when used with film. (Not sure if this is also true for b&w-film.)

Jörg

[grainy]

If you can go with negative film (which works just as well if you're only transferring to DVD and NOT making prints to project), than consider shooting with Kodak vision 3 500 T color super 8 film, and then knocking it over to b/w in Final Cut or whatever you use to edit before you go to DVD.
You'd want to test a roll first, but 500 T really does a nice job in low light situations, maybe you could manage with a lot less artificial lights, a small camera-mounted one (+ duct tape) like they sell for video cameras, or POSSIBLY none at all.
Also if you can pick up a camera with a fast lens, such as one of the sankyo XL models, that'll help a lot too.
But don't be lazy -- test first!
best of luck
G

[Uppsala BildTeknik]

I´d say shoot with 500T when shooting lowlight. If you want to mix it with Tri-X, just desaturate it in post.

/EDIT: Ah, grainy just beat me my 500T suggestion with a few seconds...

[grainy]

I´d say shoot with 500T when shooting lowlight. If you want to mix it with Tri-X, just desaturate it in post.

/EDIT: Ah, grainy just beat me my 500T suggestion with a few seconds...

-- Must've been my super fast sankyo lens... ;)
G

[aj]

Do these color-negatives still go as classic looking Super-8? These didn't exist at the time when S8 was king

These 1000 Watt wide-beam halogens are going to spoil all ambience.
Possibly Video halogen spotbeams (20,40,60 watt) of recent yesteryear may work with Tri-X and using an XL camera. The lamps cost barely a thing now and the NiCd batteries are the costly part of them.
There are some LED options too. Video LED light sources (and others) are plentiful on ebay.com The construction-tool-market has cheap things too. These are more likely to operate from net-current and their non-spectral neutrality may be a problem



Here is some interesting S8 wedding stuff to view:

http://motion.kodak.com/motion/Products ... /index.htm

We here at Kodak would like to take this opportunity to introduce you to just
a handful of the brilliant artists who choose to capture wedding memories on Super 8mm film,
and to celebrate the unique work that brides and grooms the world over will treasure for a lifetime.

Meet Nazar Melconian, Wedding Cinematographer
Meet Lola Video, Wedding Cinematographers
Meet Forever Films, Wedding Cinematographers
Meet Megan Hill, Wedding Cinematographer
Meet Joel Serrato, Wedding Cinematographer
See them all on The Storyboard!

[jpolzfuss]

Of course you could also try to push the Tri-X to 400 or 800 ASA... combined with a Canon 310XL and 1 or 2 portable battery-operated halogen or LED lamps, this might be enough to film indoors.

[71er]

Last Christmas I put one of those 1000W halogen lights in the corner of the room and pointed it to the ceiling (which is white!). I used Vision 200T and a XL camera. Nobody was blinded or disturbed by the light; the outcome on the positive print was very good.

[woods01]

If you're doing paid gigs you should be going over a shot list with the client and what sort of lighting conditions to expect at the venue.You should also find out what things are being covered by their photographer as having a camera mounted light will be sourcey and spoil the lighting for the stills.

While a 310XL and a roll or two of 500t in your bag is a great backup, if you have poor light levels you'll get an ugly grainy image. You don't need a bright room to get good shots, but if you can create some bright areas in a room you can get some visually interesting shots.

The ceiling bounce is a good trick, as it increases the overall light level of the room unobtrusively. You could also try bouncing a light off a wall. This too will make the room brighter but also make the wall very bright that could be used to get a silhouette of the couple.

You could also see about getting candles on tables, or having paper lanterns or white Christmas lights hung around a room to increase light levels. This may not make the overall light level that much brighter but having a variety of light sources around a room will make your shots more interesting and dazzlling. This is a standard hollywood technique. Off the top of my head the opening party scene in Eyes Wide Shut uses BG Christmas lights to great effect.

Often weddings are taking place at a hall and if you're lucky that might already have some existing theatre lights you could take advantage of. It might also be possible to get a spotlight rented and have a friend of the couple do a follow spot for key events like the dance and cake cutting.

If all that is impossible/unaffordable at least try to get the client to stage events near light sources.