Lighting Stands P.1

What is the difference between a premie and a baby stand? In what situation would you use each of them?

A premie stand tends to be shorter and stronger than traditional stands. Additionally, they are constructed using aluminum, making them less susceptible to damage. These can be used to create a slider shot by placing the ends of the slider onto two stands. The baby stands can rise up to 12 feet and has a "rocky mountain" ability that allows the stand to be placed on uneven surfaces. Both of these stands are extremely lightweight, which can be a great help when carrying a significant amount of equipment. 

CTO and CTB gels

What are CTO and CTB gels? What are they used for? What are two practical or artistic uses for these in your films?

CTO is considered Tungsten and is often associated with an orange undertone. CTB is known as daylight and is associated with a blue undertone. Gels can change the color temperature of a certain light. For example, if two lights unintentionally have different color temperatures, these gels can be clipped in front of the light to match the color. These two different color temperature gels can be used to intentionally create a mismatching color temperatures. For example, a CTO gel can be placed in front of the subject while a CTB gel is used to create a colder background.

Baby Plate and Scissor Clips

What are scissor clips used for? What are baby plates used for? How could these be used your productions?

Scissor clips can be used to mount a light on the ceiling using the baby pin. However, one downside is that only light-weight lights can be used when mounting on a normal ceiling. A baby plate can be screwed onto a wall or a piece of wood using screws. This also has a baby pin attached so that lights can be attached wherever there is a wall. These two can be useful in mounting lights when in an inconvenient or small location.

Clamps P.2

What are bounce boards and duck clamps used for? Whats the difference between a square and circular bounce? How could you begin using them with your productions asap?

Bounce boards are used to reflect light from a stronger source of light. They are normally used to fill in harsh shadows to create a softer look. Duck lamps are often used to holds these bounce boards in place. This can easily be done by attaching the clamp onto a C-stand and then clamping the board in place. A square bounce and a circular bounce can have different reflections in the eye. A circular bounce looks more natural in comparison to a square bounce when reflected in the eye. These bounce boards can be used to fill in shadows on set for the next project.

Paper Amps

In a detailed paragraph answer the following:

What is the concept of paper amps? Why is it so important to keep in mind when you are lighting on set?

You are lighting a scene and using the following lights:

1000w tungsten fresnel
750w open faced tungsten light
650w tungsten fresnel
2 - 300w tungsten fresnel's

How many amps would this setup draw? If you had to use this inside a house, how would you go about safely setting this up?

Paper amps refers to the total wattage divided by 100. When amps are not kept in mind, the breaker can pop resulting in a power outage. If the circuit is able to withstand the wattage, then it will safely conduct electricity. The wattage of the light is usually listed on the side of the light when calculating whether or not there is sufficient space for the electricity. Keep in mind that paper amps are usually higher than the actual amp measurement. In the end, the best of thumb is one light per wall. In the given example, the lights will draw a total of 30 paper amps. Regarding how most houses have a capacity of 15 to 20 amps. Therefore, it will be the safest to plug in one light per wall if possible, or two low-energy lights per wall.

Using Solids on Set

What does a toper and a bottomer do? What are cutters used for? Whats a lenser? What is a courtesy?

A toper cuts light from the top, while a bottomer cuts the light from the bottom. Cutters are 2 inches by 6 inch floppies that can be flopped down into a 4 by 6 inch. This can be used to cut the light spill often shown in the background. A lenser is used to shade the light and can be done by many different kinds of flags. The courtesy is a type of flag that is used to help the filmmaker see the screen in a bright scenario. If it is windy outside, it is effective to clip the ends of the flag or to pull a heavy piece of metal through the bottom.

Cookies, Nets, and Solids

What are the differences between a cookie, a net and a solid? What are 2 different uses for them on set? If you had to ask someone to go grab a net or a flag out of the cart, how would you describe the difference to them?

Cookies are cut out in a way that creates patterns of with lights and shadows. A net, on the other hand, cuts the amount of light through wired frames. A solid, also known as a flag, completely cuts out light to specifically caste a shadow on certain parts of the scene. Cookies can add interesting patterns to a bland background. A net can create a much softer shadow in comparison to a solid flag. The main difference between these is the patterns it creates and the harshness of the shadows.