Whyisbacklighting used in films

One side will be more strongly illuminated than the other (the contrast will be greater the harder the light is but the principle holds true even for softer light). One solution is to use a reflector or supplementary light to gently illuminate the shadow side (the key is to lighten the shadows without overpowering them).

Silhouettes look flat, almost like a cardboard cut-out. If the shape of your subject is strong this can be very effective.

However, it tends to flatten a subject. The shadows cast by frontal light are behind the subject, out of sight from the camera’s point of view. Shadows help to give a sense of shape and form to a subject.

Low keylighting

Bias lights with a color temperature of 6,500 K match the temperature of most monitors' white color, which is derived from the CIE standard illuminant D65.[1] They are used in professional editing environments and are recommended to maximize the fidelity of the perceived image.[1][2] In home cinema, bias lighting that is no brighter than 10% of the display's brightest spot[2] and with a color rendering index of at least 90 is recommended.[1][2] There is some debate about the proper brightness levels of bias lighting for HDR content, with SMPTE recommending 4.5 nits and the Imaging Science Foundation recommending 10%, but sometimes as high as 15%.

Bias lighting has been used since the early days of television in the form of "TV lamps", often taking the shape of an animal, that were set atop television sets and projected light onto the wall behind the set.[2] In 2002, Philips Consumer Electronics developed and patented[3] a lighting system that allowed the background illumination to follow the brightness and color of the TV image. In addition to reducing the brightness-contrast of the image with the background, this also extended the image across the wall, making it appear larger. This system was integrated into a flat TV and introduced to the market in 2004 under the name “Ambilight”. As of the 2000s, bias lights often use LEDs, attach to the backside of flat-panel displays, and draw power from a USB port.[2] Some bias lighting kits even use a webcam pointed at a TV or monitor screen to read colors and change television backlights accordingly.[4]

What issidelighting

Without shadows a subject’s shape becomes more ambiguous. Shadows can also add drama to a photo. Frontal light lacks drama, making a photo look more like a record shot and be less interesting for this reason.

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Of the three directions, side lighting creates the strongest sense that a subject has three dimensions. There’s always a catch however. The catch in this instance is contrast. Side lighting doesn’t evenly illuminate your subject.

Backlighting examples

However, that doesn’t mean that that’s all there is to photography. You need light, but to make a successful photo you also need to understand the qualities of light and how these affect your images.

The three directions have a different effect on how three-dimensional your subject appears to be due to the that shadows are cast. Let’s go through the three directions in order.

Although this lamb is backlit there was enough ambient light to ensure that contrast wasn't too high. Note the attractive rim lighting around the back of the lamb.

Examples of backlighting in film

In home cinema and video editing technology, bias lighting is a weak light source on the backside of a screen or monitor that illuminates the wall or surface behind and just around the display.[1][2]

The purpose of bias lighting is to reduce the perceived brightness of the display as a result of the contrast with the slightly illuminated area around it.[1] This reduces the eye strain and fatigue that occurs when viewing a bright display against a very dark background for an extended time,[1] and increases the perceived blackness, perceived highlights, and overall contrast of the display.[1][2]

Back lightingin film

What is back lightingin photography

Flash is one of the easiest way to do this, a technique known as fill-in flash. The strength of the flash will determine the balance between the exposure for the background and your subject. Less is often more. Too much flash and you run the risk of losing the sense that there’s any backlighting at all.

The simplest of light’s qualities is its direction relative to your camera. There are essentially three directions: frontal, side and backlighting.

Frontal lighting is lighting that emanates either from behind the camera or from the camera itself. Built-in or on-camera flash is a frontal light. Frontal lighting has one big advantage. It evenly illuminates your subject so metering is fairly straightforward.

Backlighting is caused when the light source is behind the subject shining towards the camera. If your subject obscures the light source - and if you expose for the background rather that your subject – the result will be a silhouette.

Strong backlighting usually results in a silhouette. However, it’s less so when your subject’s shape is more ambiguous. If you don’t want to create a silhouette then you’ll need to also illuminate your subject.

Side lighting is light that falls on a subject at roughly ninety degrees to the camera. This means that one side of a subject will be lit and the other side will be in shadow. In terms of helping to convey a subject’s shape and form this is ideal.