10Yetis Insight - Three point lighting in video production

All you video and film masterminds out there won’t need this blog, but it’d still be nice if you read it. All you video and film beginners, this is most definitely for you.

When film making or shooting a video there are two major areas which can often let you down and ruin the overall quality of the piece. These are sound and lighting. Poor lighting can make a video unpleasant to watch and unengaging. Poor sound does the same, it makes it inaudible to watchers who will soon get bored and switch off. In this blog we’re covering the basics of lighting a typical talking-head style video, or any video where one actor is the main focus. This style of lighting is known as three-point-lighting.

Unsurprisingly in three point lighting there are three lights used. The key light, the fill light and the back light. The key light is, as the name suggests, is the main light which is front facing, or sometimes at a slight angle so that it is not too harsh.

(This image shows key light only)

The fill light comes in from a side angle to soften any hard shadows and light the entire face. The fill light is often a lot softer than the key light would be, this is achieved by using a diffusing cover (a soft box), or by bouncing the light off another surface; often know as a bounce board.

(This image show key and fill light)

The back light is added in to give more of a 3D feeling of space and to separate the person from the background. Without the back light the talking head can appear very flat which looks uninspiring on camera. This light bounces off the back of the head or hair and is positioned at the back of the room. The back light can also be achieved with natural light if the interview is conducted in a room with windows. Just position the interviewee in front of the windows but ensure that the window doesn’t blow out or overexpose if in shot.

(This image shows all three lights, key, fill and back)

Using this simple lighting set up for your online video production will help to give a professional look to your videos. Once you’ve mastered this three-point set up then you can play around with other set ups of the lights to give different feels for your video. For example increasing the brightness of your key light and lowering the brightness of your back and fill lights will give a more intense facial shadow and therefore gives an angry or strong feel to your video.

If you are using a more creative set up for your video you may want to experiment with four point lighting. The fourth light can be used to light the background or backdrop. This can help to draw attention to the background. So if you are shooting in a particularly interesting location this fourth light may be a good idea.

Talking head videos are a big part of what we do here and so it’s always important to get lighting for these spot on. The more you use the set up the easier it is to know what will work best in each location. Initially though, lighting is very much trial and error. Moving lights around and checking through the camera is the best way to determine if your shot is lit correctly. Look out for any harsh shadows on the face as well as any distracting shadows in the background. Also, it might seem obvious but ensure that your fill and backlights are out of shot. We’ve seen it happen before so it’s something to consider!

Lots of recent cameras capture light so well, that lighting is becoming less and less of an important need in online video production. Though using a three lamp set up will ensure that you get a professional and polished finish to your videos. When shooting outside in the day time it is not necessary to have this set up as it will appear false and may be distracting if it is too heavily lit outdoors.

Here we have a simple example of three point lighting in one of our videos. This was shot as a small intro/promo video and shows the polished lighting look off perfectly.

If you’re interested in online video production for your company we’re more than happy to have a chat about your requirements and put together a tailored quote for you. Also, in case you hadn’t noticed we’re a full service Digital PR agency so we can help out with any online outreach that you may want for your finished video!