subject: Hot Tips For Shooting Videos In Poor Lightning Conditions [print this page] Shooting videos is all about lighting, and being caught up with low light is probably the worst thing that can happen to a camera guy. But you must be ready for everything, including poor weather conditions or other factors that can affect the lighting; moreover, such circumstances can really surprise you sometimes by praising you with interesting and unusual shots. Nevertheless, it can result in under-saturated, poor and ugly shots. Unfortunately, regular cameras are merely incapable of detecting the light as good as a human eye does. Lets skip straight to the point and name the most efficient techniques that can help you shoot better videos even without proper lighting.
Using artificial sources of lighting is the first thing that crosses the mind. Feel free to use every single opportunity to make the place lighter, such as: open both blinds, switch the lamps on, open the windows and so on. Its easy to fix the lights when you are at home and have some tools to handle, but outdoor shooting isnt that easy; anyways, you can cheat and use cars floodlights, moonlight and street lights to improve your shots. As you see, a little thought and creativity will go a long way toward metamorphosing dull shots into fancy masterpieces.
Your camera itself has tons of options to offer, so lets consider wide angle shooting first. Wide angle lens allows more light and thus help you to keep the image brighter. Using diffusion lens can also aid you tremendously, so dont forget to add it on the list of your camera man tools.
A good fisherman knows whats in his toolbox, and so does a good camera man. Your ability to extemporize and find unusual solutions are highly appreciated, but very often you just dont need to do that as long as your tool can do it better. For instance, such simple option as built-in light can solve the problem in 80% of cases. Dont overegg the pudding though because it is fraught with consequences such as the loss of sound and other issues.
Like it or not, low-light shooting is always a matter of choice between two evils. Choosing between quality of the frame and its visibility is always a compromise, but thats how it works. But still, there are some tough restrictions that you should always remember. For example, your cameras zoom option can play a dirty trick when used in low light. The point is zooming-in absorbs the light, so the image is becoming darker and darker. As you probably know, boosting one function oftentimes leads to the loss of another, for example volume, brightness, definition, etc.
Being a professional in any field requires training, learning and looking for the new ways and decisions, and videography is not an exception. By the way, even if your attempts to shoot in low light have failed, you can use some specific software to edit your videos and add some points to lighting. Quality tips, thoughtful approach and some skill will make the deal.
