Techie Andy Posted January 18, 2004 Share Posted January 18, 2004 Hello everyone! I am a final year University student who is undertaking a project on lighting. At the moment I am trying to investigate the techniques used and the differences between stage lighting and studio (TV and video production) lighting. I am particularly interested in the way the stage is lit for the audience in the theatre, and the studio has to be lit for the camera first, then the audience at home.I am also interested in live stage lighting but know nothing about it yet. Can anybody recommend any previous work/books/videos on these subjects, or does anybody have any information they would like to share through this board, e-mails or any other means. I have chosen this as my project as this is hopefully my future career area, so any help would be greatly appreciated!! Thankyou Andrew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gareth Posted January 18, 2004 Share Posted January 18, 2004 Good books for theatre lighting :"The Stage Lighting Handbook" - Francis Reid"Stage Lighting Design" - Richard Pilbrow Good books for TV/video lighting :"Lighting for TV and Film" and "Lighting for Video" - Gerald Millerson Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SamW Posted January 19, 2004 Share Posted January 19, 2004 try Richard Pillbrows new book call Stage Lighting Design that helped me all the way through college Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Posted January 19, 2004 Share Posted January 19, 2004 ...and the studio has to be lit for the camera first, then the audience at home...Just to pick up one point, the camera and the audience at home are one and the same. They share the same view, the viewer cannot see anything that the camera does not pick up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Techie Andy Posted January 19, 2004 Author Share Posted January 19, 2004 but surely you have to consider the limitations of the camera before trying to create a mood/atmosphere for the audience? I understand what you mean though, that the audience only sees what the camera sees. p.s. thanks for all the replies so far! keep 'em coming!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Posted January 19, 2004 Share Posted January 19, 2004 but surely you have to consider the limitations of the camera before trying to create a mood/atmosphere for the audience? I understand what you mean though, that the audience only sees what the camera sees.absolutely, a camera will only ever 'see' a subset of what we can see. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andystone Posted January 19, 2004 Share Posted January 19, 2004 I'm sorry, but I don't agree with Brian's comment at all. Having worked in TV studios for years and currently on Top of the Pops, the lighting requirement for the audience and the camera in a TV studio are completely different, basically because as you say the camera sees a subset of what the audience sees. Therefore what might look great for the audience because they are seeing the whole stage, looks terrible on the camera as it is only seeing one small part. In addition to this you have to take into account that the sensitivity to light and colour on the camera is completely different, so there are only certain colours and light levels that work well on TV, whereas for theatre you can use a much wider range. There is some useful information on the Society of Television Lighting Directors web site at www.stld.org.uk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andystone Posted January 19, 2004 Share Posted January 19, 2004 Sorry Brian, I have to apologise, I just re-read your posting again and see you were referring to the camera and the audience at home and, of course, you are quite right. My reply was intended to explain the differences between what the camera sees and the audience in the studio! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Posted January 20, 2004 Share Posted January 20, 2004 Sorry Brian, I have to apologise, I just re-read your posting again and see you were referring to the camera and the audience at home and, of course, you are quite right. My reply was intended to explain the differences between what the camera sees and the audience in the studio!Hi Andy no problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Helyer Posted January 20, 2004 Share Posted January 20, 2004 Just a suggestion, There is a company in Elstree and Borehamwood called Elstree Light and Power, I don't know the number but they have a web site. They surply lighting and other equipment for film, tv and other events, I am sure someone there will be happy to help. ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gareth Posted January 20, 2004 Share Posted January 20, 2004 Andy's already mentioned the Society of Television Lighting Directors, and they have a theatrical counterpart called the Association of Lighting Designers - perhaps you could get in touch with them both, and ask about putting a small entry in their next newsletter/mailshot asking members to complete a short survey/questionnaire type thing which you could either e-mail to them or put up on a website somewhere ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Techie Andy Posted January 21, 2004 Author Share Posted January 21, 2004 Thanks for all the help guys...really appreciated! Any more ideas...do keep them coming! I think 'andystone' managed to put what I was trying to say in much better words. This is one of the main points I want to investigate. To see if the audience at home will ever be able to experience the moods and atmospheres created by lighting as they do in a theatre or live stage show. Also, could anyone help me with this one question? If a stage show, for example Kylie performing at the MEN area, is intended to be recorded and released on DVD, would I be seeing a different show (in terms of lighting) than if there were no cameras there?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu Posted January 21, 2004 Share Posted January 21, 2004 If a stage show, for example Kylie performing at the MEN area, is intended to be recorded and released on DVD, would I be seeing a different show (in terms of lighting) than if there were no cameras there??You might see a slightly different light show yes - some shows (I'm talking mostly from a Theatre POV here) will have a one-off video performance where they will light it for the camera as well, I think there was an example of this on another thread over in Lighting but I can't remember which one it was. Coldplay on the their last tour were also keylight with Source Fours so they could be filmed for the video screens which littered their set, so I would presume that some sort of keylighting would be needed to tape a concert for future DVD release too. Stu Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andystone Posted January 21, 2004 Share Posted January 21, 2004 There are pros and cons to both live shows and shows filmed for TV. If you watch a live show you see the whole picture from just one angle and get the atmosphere of the venue, however watching on the box you get shots from lots of different angles and both close up and far away shots. In most cases live shows that are filmed for TV are lit differently to cater for the different camera angles and the sensitivity of the cameras. With a show in a TV studio no consideration is usually given to the audience, they are just there to provide atmosphere. Hope this helps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Techie Andy Posted January 29, 2004 Author Share Posted January 29, 2004 Keep em coming guys! Just another thing, If I wanted to get some practical experience of how a live stage/theatre/studio is lit, how do I go about it?? I just keep thinking if I get in touch with anyone they are going to think I just want to watch the show for free!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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