lighting for green screen studio

[mactas]

I am currently researching into what equipment to purchase to build a small (approx 5m x 3m x 3m) studio that will have green screen setup. I was just wondering what lighting people would suggest for a studio of this size. I have used Photon beard dimmable fluorescents and arri fresnels in a studio of this size that work well but they are very expensive.

[birdcat]

D. Eric Franks has a great tut on inexpensive lighting (he talks about white but green can be though of too).

http://videopia.org/watch/learn-mainmenu-231/103?task=view

[D0n]

Your biggest problem is going to be having enough room to get your subject away from the green screen. the easiest way to control light spill is with distance. simple clamp lights with cfls or halogen bulbs (which ever color balance matches your main subjects lighting) will do nicely. six with 60-100 watt equivelent bulbs will work cfls are softer light easier to work with.)

I am trying an experiment this week using a green slide from a digital projector on white seemless paper as a green screen will let you know later, here if that works for me.

[Luis Maymi Lopez]

I wrote an article in my blog “Lighting a Greenscreen a la Guerrilla Style”. Is about setting up a greenscreen studio with cheap equipment. I also suggest you attend Videomaker Greenscreen and Special Effects Webinar. Here is another forum discussion that you may find useful “My First Chromakey Studio Setup”

[casey]

To get the idea of right equipment and to buy them, visit the link given. It will be helpful for you. Good luck.

____________________

miami film studios

[Brian]

DOn is spot on, controlling spill is going to be tough in that small space but it is quite doable.  I've shot pleanty of green in spaces that size and smaller.  I did a series of walk and talk virtual set spots for a national client in a room just about that size.  

I'd go with flourecent fixtures for heat, spread and spectrum.  I own Kinoflo Divas and use them green screen work.  A cheaper solution would be coollights.biz.  For back, I prefer a bit harder edge and typically use an LED.  I absolutely would go daylight balance lamps the keys always seem cleaner.

In really small spaces, I've had GREAT results bouncing an HMI off the rear wall or ceiling of the room to establish a nice overall level on talent and green and then filling in as needed with flouros, LEDs and reflectors.  It sounds like overkill but a Joker 400 or 800 can be awesome in really tight spaces.  Plus, HMIs make skin look AMAZING.   

The big thing is to play with it.  Buy the best tools you can afford and get creative.

 

 

[Mark]

I have had great resullts by putting a green gel on the screen lights  Lee Filters: Gel Sheet 738 JAS Green  

 

[paulears]

There's very little point in putting a green gel in because green paint only refects green light, and the gel only allows through green light – so pretty much the same thing?

[Mark]

I thought that too until I tried it and it makes a huge difference! It seems to even out any hotspots. Here is were I first saw the idea: http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/digital-compositing-effects/109135-filters-greenscreen-lighting.html

 

 

[Cartouche]

What do you guys think of this green screen light kit like this one, seems too cheap to be good?

 

http://www.amazon.com/ePhoto-H9004SB-69BWG-Photography-Chromakey-Background/dp/B0054K9138/ref=sr_1_13?ie=UTF8&qid=1366664347&sr=8-13&keywords=green+screen

 

http://www.amazon.com/CowboyStudio-Photography-Lighting-Backdrops-Background/dp/B003G9DRPC/ref=pd_cp_p_3#productDescription

[Mark]

I have 2 cowboy studio lights with softboxes that work great. They are 3 years old and never a problem.

[Mark]

I have a Civichrome 10' x 12' with stands and a 5' x 7' pop up 

my basement also has 2 walls painted in chroma green 5 x 7 / 12 x 7 (home depot paint)

 

 

 

[Mark]

 

Well they can mix any color, I just had picked the most florescent green I could find!

 

The Bammo guys did a comparison and came up with a formula for Sherwin -williams paint

 

Yes two people fit great!

[youtubeforbusiness.tv]

For Green screen what works best for me is lots of 3 foot fluorescent tubes with electronic balast, I have six of them – two on the left & two on the right vertical on a drop pole, and two along the ceiling about 6 foot back from the Green screen,  and there are flagged off with cardboard so that the camera does not see this spill.  Then a further meter and a half (4-5ft ) forward from that truss of lights is where I place the talent with a 800 watt hair light 4-5ft back and two front stand  in each with 7×85w compact fluros normally with one side or the other turned down to approximately 50%.

I find the Key points you need to get right is (1) hanging the curtain evenly I have a normal houseplant spray bottle with pure filtered water that I spray 35 minutes before the talent arrives it seems to pull all of the wrinkles out and get a nice flat surface (2)  even green screen lighting it's made easier by just moving the lights a little further back (3) by far the most important point for pulling a good key is the hair light A nice punchy light on the head and shoulders will mean that you will pull are strong key with out any Jagger and lastly (4) in sure your depth of field gives the talent room to move often with DSLR's and shooting lower light green means dropping the F stop and that  shallow depth of field means that over a one hour take your subject may move in and out of focus

 

I built/bought the 3 foot fluoro tubes, hair light & green screen for under $500

[Cartouche]

Mark, how big is your green screen and what framing size does it allow you to use? CUs? MS? LS?

[Cartouche]

Home Depot sells chroma green?  Didn't know that.  so with at 10×12, you can manage 2 people talking in MS?

[Author]

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