THE TH-cam ALGORITHM MADE ME MAKE THAT TITLE In cinema, we want our images to look three dimensional and upstage, or short lighting, is a great way to do this. But does upstage always make a "cinematic" image? Not necessarily. There are other lighting techniques - like broad lighting - which we can use to tell a story. And once we make the connection between story, emotion and lighting, the cinematic feeling will take care of itself. This is just one aspect of what can contribute toward a cinematic feeling - check out the other episodes in the Lighting for Cinema A - Z series to learn more about what makes cinema feel a certain way. Color Grading - www.dehancer.com - get 10% off Dehancer using ROBELLIS at checkout GRAB MY BRAND NEW LIGHTING COURSE "RECREATING DAYLIGHT" ON SHOP MOMENT - www.shopmoment.com/course/recreating-daylight www.patreon.com/robelliscinematography - support me on Patreon for early, extended, ad-free TH-cam videos + message board - including the entire Lighting with Colour mini course available to stream now!
Rob KNOWS... there's no way of denying that. I always ''like'' your new videos before even watching them, cause I know it will be GOLD as always. From my perspective, I know for sure that you're the kind of guy who is constantly in his own head, analyzing everything and it makes you achieve incredible things all by yourself. That's why I can totally relate to you (without even knowing you personnally). You're definitely the one that inspired me to finally come out of the shadows (stop creating stuff only for myself) and start my own TH-cam channel. PLEASE continue this path... it's absolute GREATNESS!
would be great to see about corridor with 2 people having confrontation in it separated with depth of corridor and with a light, when one of the actors bharrasing another
My jaw dropped the moment you revealed the close up window scene was recreated without the actual window light. And can't express how much I appreciate you showing before-after switching the light right in the shot without any cuts
Thank you so much! I find watching the lights switching on in the shot satisfying to watch myself haha, so it's fun to be able to do, as well as hopefully being a good demonstration of how lights change the scene. I appreciate the kind words!! :)
You are such an inspiring cinematographer to me! I’m going to make my admission film for film school soon. This video is therefore very educational! Thank you!
Always happy to hear my videos have inspired, I’m very thankful for it and appreciate your kind words! Good luck with film school, I hope it goes well!! :)
It's easy to praise your actual technique and creativity, but I just want to applaud the writing for your videos. I can't overstate how illuminating it is to hear a well-articulated explanation for each decision (e.g. using broad lighting to express "vulnerability").
I think it's worth to point out that even though minimal, your acting is excellent. It brings your explanations to another level when the suspense of disbelief is there. your lighting creates the space and your subtle acting brings us inside it.
Thank you so much for your kind words! I'm no actor, so I don't think I'd be good at anything beyond the moody looks I've been doing for the past few years - but I'm super happy I've been able to further add to the cohesive feeling in the work with those looks. I massively appreciate it, thank you!
Absolute madness. The first scene looks gorgeous. I've just bought my first light and tried to light a scene with. Instantly noticed an increase in production value. I did notice that while one light is far better than nothing, it really limits what you can do. Whatever the case I thank you for posting these videos here. You've put me that much closer to my dream
Thank you so much! I massively appreciate your kind words and I'm happy my videos are proving helpful! I actually have a couple of videos on lighting with just 1 light I uploaded a few years ago, it's still on the channel - hopefully that may be useful to you also!
Omg thank you for explaining when broad lighting is appropriate! I was confused for a while watching movies like Top Gun Maverick where there’s lots of shots that are technically broad lighting until I realised short side lighting wasn’t perfect for every scenario. It can be story or location based and sometimes technically isn’t the best choice to make for the scene.
Absolutely! Short lighting is used a lot for it's shaping, contrast, mood - but sometimes you have no choice but to light the broad side - and you might actually want to use it for a scene for a specific feeling you're trying to create in the image. Just another tool in the toolbox!
Amazing channel, I'm bing watching it all and I just can't wait to try some of these techniques. Also the sound design is really good, you don't talk about it, but it really adds a lot to the scenes, especially on the scene with the key. Great work!
I spoke a little bit about it on the Patreon version, but I'm very proud of this one, as the first video that really got a big audience on my channel was a "simple cinematic lighting technique" video about upstage lighting about 3 and a half years ago - so I feel like I've come full circle back to a simple lighting technique with an antithesis that has improved on every aspect of that initial video. So I appreciate your kind words massively - thank you!
I think it’s very easy to get wrapped up purely in the technicalities and trying to give an image as much depth as possible, that we forget a “cinematic” image is one that conveys a feeling, not just a look!
I subscribed to your channel so long ago. All your videos are incredible and it's insane the amount of effort you put into them! ❤ As a "youtuber" myself, I totally feel the pain of having to play with titles to please the algorithm... 😅 I LOVE all your videos, thank you!
Thank you so much Laura, I appreciate you watching for so long and for the kind words you’ve shared! ❤️ Haha yeah the algorithm isn’t fun and I try to avoid appeasing it where possible, but sometimes you gotta 🤣 thank you so much!!
A much needed video, indeed. You always deliver top quality videos with high-end information. All that while being 100% entertaining! Still waiting for that film of yours, but enjoyed the small parts you showed here!
What a wonderful video! Thank you for sharing it. Could you make a video about how you measure your lights? I often find it difficult to determine the correct exposure and ratios in a scene and frequently end up with unintended results.
Thank you so much, happy you enjoyed it! :) I made a video about lighting and exposing for darkness a while back, although it’s more focused on the darkness element, it shows the processes you’re asking about - th-cam.com/video/AVGx-LCvSFE/w-d-xo.html - hope that helps!!
Thanks rob for the tips! I filmed some stuff inspired by many of the techniques in your other videos the other day that you might be into! I’ll send a link when I finish editing it!
@@RobEllisCinematographer Here’s a link to a couple test shots I filmed with some friends! th-cam.com/video/vRMwXlTINfE/w-d-xo.htmlsi=srLkH0T5eWjwXSne Any critiques you have would be great! I sometimes find it hard to objectively look at my own work and see the flaws. I can feel that something’s not quite there yet, but I can’t really figure out what specifically yet.
Those 60C's sure are handy! I might need to add one to my kit cause having something like that on location which can be powered by battery is super useful as I've found with my Pavotube 30X kit. Plus I love the high CRI so it can be used as a keylight
Absolutely, they've been the primary workhouse for this series as they're tiny, have a decent amount of output for indoor scenarios and CCT range is big (plus they've got that fancy RGBLAC chip). Great all rounder really!
Even though this comment is late (compared to when this dropped) I learned so much in this video! You've easily earned my sub. I watched 1 video of yours before this and I was sold even then.
1:42 keep hearing "on boat", then cut. Lol, anyways, I also feel like if you short lit the drinking table scene, it would have felt like the conflict was between the two characters rather than conflict with the situation. Love the simplicity in the scene and still conveying such a strong emotion! Great video, as always! :D
Haha it's "on both" but I like boat much better 🤣 and absolutely, that's a great way to look at it! Appreciate the kind words and I'm glad you enjoyed the video - thank you so much!!
Hey Rob. Thanks for the tutorial. It's awesome. As your videos usually are 😊 I have a question though. I often see your under expose your camera for a natural light and then you add a lot of artificial light you need food the mood. That looks great. But isn't it really hard to work for your actors there? I mean the camera is one thing but how do humans react to the light being that bright?
Thank you so much for your kind words! :) I think it's dependant on the situation - a lot of the underexposing the ambient I've done on here has primarily been for the "why you need powerful lights" videos to demonstrate their output. And if you want to replicate the sun, you want that light to be bright, as long as no one is looking directly into it! I don't usually light in a way where things are unbearably bright though, besides maybe those few examples - especially since I get migraines all the time haha!
bro thanks for your videos. I was watching your video and my dad was walking past me and said "Are you watching a film?" lol your videos truly are movies
I love that, thank you so much! And thank you to your Dad for the accidental compliment haha! I’m glad you’re enjoying the videos also, I appreciate it massively :)
This video was so detailed and full of useful informations . Thanks a lot .🙏🏻🤘😊 I would like to request you to make a video about how to light up a moonlit exterior scenario.
This is amazing! You keep talking about light when talking about cinematography, when you should be talking about your cinematographic frowning 😆😆😆 Thnank you so much for this content, so knowldgable, well presented, intense and short. Great job! Good teaching.
Haha the Rob Ellis frown has been going strong for about 3 and a half years now! Thank you so much, I'm very happy you're finding my videos enjoyable and helpful - I appreciate it! :)
I’m an aspiring cinematographer/filmmaker and I aspire to create my own web series very soon. As an absolute beginner, what do you suggest I focus on first and foremost? Appreciate your hard work and quality breakdowns Rob.
I usually use false colour, sometimes use a light meter, but this I shot by eye - if I want something dark I'll usually go for a lower ISO as I'll be able to light it by eye and be relatively safe in terms of noise!
Thank you so much! Camera was at 5600k, you can roughly figure this out if camera white balance isn’t stated, by looking at how cool or warm a scene appears! So the first scene at 7000k looks cool, so we must be below 7000k on the camera - the second scene at 3200k looks warm, so we must be above 3200k on the camera. Hope that helps!! :)
Thank you for your message. If you ever decide to offer live workshops or group/1:1 training, please inform us. I am based in the UK, and it would be an honor to learn from you.
5600k on the camera in both shots (I may have tweaked it slightly in post on the shots in the front room, but I couldn’t tell you without the project open) - you’d be able to tell if I shot at the same colour temperature as the lights as it would look much more neutral in both scenes!
@@RobEllisCinematographer thanks for the reply. Great to learn from people who clearly know what they’re doing as I try to figure this stuff out for my own videos little by little. I only have a Sony A7iii currently and I find that the low data rate and codec just doesn’t allow for this kind of clean, robust image that you get in your footage. What camera do you use?
@@SenthilSukumaran it can be more difficult to work with lower data rates but learning with them and figuring out how to get the best image out of what you have will definitely help in the long run! I use the Blackmagic Pocket 6k Pro and the original Panasonic Lumix S5 - primarily the Pocket recently, with the S5 shooting BTS!
@@RobEllisCinematographer I have been gradually walking that exact path. Learning as I go. Every time I see Blackmagic Pocket footage in the hands of someone who knows what he's doing I am always taken with how good it looks. It appears to be my favourite colour science and overall look. When the time comes for my upgrade I am leaning towards getting into the Blackmagic ecosystem. For my channel it mainly involves me as the subject talking to camera. Is that a workable solution in spite of the lack of continuous autofocus on the BMPCC's ?
I have no idea! I did this it by eye rather than metering/false color, which was a little careless of me since I was matching it to the previous shot - so I couldn't give you a specific contrast ratio for it!
Nice one Rob, Are you going to move to the Blackmagic full frame? How do you find the internal ND on the 6k pro? Some people have been complaining about them. I am on the fence whether to get the fx3 or the Blackmagic. Cheers from Los Angeles.
Thanks Peter! Probably not, I've got the S5 for full frame (minus internal BRAW and anamorphic modes) - if I can afford it in the near future I'm more so looking at the Ursa 12k, as the body is a lot more efficient for the way I use the camera, and it produces a beautiful image! The internal NDs on the 6k pro do suffer from a bit of IR contamination in the shadows, I just use a Hoya UV/IR cut filter on my lenses which gets rid of it. Besides that, they're fine! Cheers from the UK! :)
Both! You get slightly different looks depending on what your start point is - I often transform to Davinci Wide Gamut or ACES for Dehancer, but I also check if I like the look of the straight camera profile better. The differences can be subtle but it’s all dependent on the scene and what feels best!
@@RobEllisCinematographer thanks for the quick reply! I’ve been using Dehancer pro for quite some time and I’ll get in kicks where all I use is the DWG and CST and then I’ll have kicks where I like the camera profile more. In my experience I seem to get a better result with the camera profile, I feel like I can get more headroom and for whatever reason tbe grain looks more pleasing and what I’m used to getting with my film photography. The camera profile can be a little un-wieldy at times though. But that’s just my experience. And my process is always changing lol.
Hello ! What a lesson of Lightning Thank you very much It could be very interesting to share your raw shots to see how you expose your image on Davinci. Thanks for your work
Thank you so much, happy you enjoyed it! I have a previous video about exposing and lighting for darker shots here - th-cam.com/video/AVGx-LCvSFE/w-d-xo.html
Great vid. How did u know the exact temperature of 7000k that comes from outside the window? Just experience or using a light meter? Also if a light meter is used, any cheap alternatives ? There are some mobile apps , are they accurate? Lastly in all those clips the white balance was 5600? And not 7000 and 3200 later, right?
We matched it using a light meter yes - it’s this one - www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1522352-REG/illuminati_instrument_im150_light_and_color.html - in terms of measuring color I think that’s probably the cheapest you can really go! Everything shot at 5600 in camera yes, I may have cooled off the front room shots a little further in post, I graded it a while ago!
i am a 3d artist and i really need to make all this kind of lighting. Only i have one question do you change light setup in every different angle or you stick with the same
in the first scene ,you could have had the subject facing the other way round , so even when he looks to see the person coming into the room , its still far side lighting .
Hey man ! Love the videos i sent u an email yesterday. I bought ur product but when u downloaded the files the movie wouldn't play and i tired to trouble shoot it myself. I was wondering if you could help? Ive also been having trouble playing footage off my new sony 7cii - cleo
@@RobEllisCinematographer very well. Today was the Day I actually understood White balance and color temperature 🤒 and I am just seeing urs. Your made use of 7000k I was just thinking your camera settings will be lower that 7000k to achieve the warm look 👀😎
I don't think there's anything wrong with people learning and replicating a certain technique, especially something like upstage/short lighting as it gives a base understanding of creating mood and dimensionality in an image - I've learned and replicated it too! But I do find it hard to discover on platforms like this, the possibilities of what light can really do for an image in a more nuanced way. Maybe I'm just not looking hard enough haha!
Rob, I know you're not gonna respond to this most likely. And that's fine, but I'm gonna leave it here anyway. Your videos have made a topic. That was incredibly confusing to me less confusing. They haven't fully unconfused it if I'm gonna be honest. But channels like yours are the. Reason that I was comfortable. With jumping into cinematography without ever going to school. And I don't know if you understand how big of a deal that is but for me, if I would have went to school here in the u. SI would have been looking at 20 or $30000 instead of spending that on schooling. And knowledge that you now provide for free. I was able to purchase a camera and a good one at that lights. I'm about to get a new tripod to replace my old one. And for the past. 4 weeks I've been watching a ton of your videos and I made a short film myself on a different channel And I made it in 3 hours. What I did was for most of the shots. I just did it the way I thought would look good without implementing any of your teachings. And then for 2 of the shots, which turned out to be of course, the best shots in the Whole short film. I implemented what you teach here and the night and day difference is astounding. I cannot tell you how much I appreciate what you have done and how much I will continue to appreciate what you do you have also? Made videos that show people with less money like me. How to light scenes with one light and still make it look phenomenal. How to use reflectors and how they affect the image? All of these things that you have done have significantly lowered the barrier of entry into this world and. For that alone, you have made a larger contribution to the world of cinematography than most can ever claim. Thank you.
@@RobEllisCinematographer Hello Rob, just want to tell you that you have no idea how much you’ve inspired me and changed my perspectives on lighting, I’ve learned a lot, genuinely appreciate your videos🫶🏼🤝🏼
@@CultivateZhihui I am super happy to hear that and I appreciate your kind words massively - it's always amazing to know that I've inspired someone through these videos and I'm very thankful for it. I hope you continue to find them helpful - thank you so much!
THE TH-cam ALGORITHM MADE ME MAKE THAT TITLE
In cinema, we want our images to look three dimensional and upstage, or short lighting, is a great way to do this. But does upstage always make a "cinematic" image? Not necessarily. There are other lighting techniques - like broad lighting - which we can use to tell a story. And once we make the connection between story, emotion and lighting, the cinematic feeling will take care of itself.
This is just one aspect of what can contribute toward a cinematic feeling - check out the other episodes in the Lighting for Cinema A - Z series to learn more about what makes cinema feel a certain way.
Color Grading - www.dehancer.com - get 10% off Dehancer using ROBELLIS at checkout
GRAB MY BRAND NEW LIGHTING COURSE "RECREATING DAYLIGHT" ON SHOP MOMENT - www.shopmoment.com/course/recreating-daylight
www.patreon.com/robelliscinematography - support me on Patreon for early, extended, ad-free TH-cam videos + message board - including the entire Lighting with Colour mini course available to stream now!
Rob KNOWS... there's no way of denying that. I always ''like'' your new videos before even watching them, cause I know it will be GOLD as always. From my perspective, I know for sure that you're the kind of guy who is constantly in his own head, analyzing everything and it makes you achieve incredible things all by yourself. That's why I can totally relate to you (without even knowing you personnally). You're definitely the one that inspired me to finally come out of the shadows (stop creating stuff only for myself) and start my own TH-cam channel. PLEASE continue this path... it's absolute GREATNESS!
would be great to see about corridor with 2 people having confrontation in it separated with depth of corridor and with a light, when one of the actors bharrasing another
My jaw dropped the moment you revealed the close up window scene was recreated without the actual window light.
And can't express how much I appreciate you showing before-after switching the light right in the shot without any cuts
Thank you so much! I find watching the lights switching on in the shot satisfying to watch myself haha, so it's fun to be able to do, as well as hopefully being a good demonstration of how lights change the scene. I appreciate the kind words!! :)
Is the window light not enough for the closeup scene?
@@faizanuddin. the daylight had gone, I mentioned it in the video! Otherwise it may have been!
@@RobEllisCinematographer ohh okaayy your work is ❤️🔥
@@faizanuddin. thank you so much! 😊
Watching a Rob Ellis video is like waking up for work and then remembering it's your day off
Haha thank you Ernesto, the highest compliment!! I appreciate it! :)
You are such an inspiring cinematographer to me! I’m going to make my admission film for film school soon. This video is therefore very educational! Thank you!
Always happy to hear my videos have inspired, I’m very thankful for it and appreciate your kind words! Good luck with film school, I hope it goes well!! :)
It's easy to praise your actual technique and creativity, but I just want to applaud the writing for your videos. I can't overstate how illuminating it is to hear a well-articulated explanation for each decision (e.g. using broad lighting to express "vulnerability").
I think it's worth to point out that even though minimal, your acting is excellent. It brings your explanations to another level when the suspense of disbelief is there. your lighting creates the space and your subtle acting brings us inside it.
Thank you so much for your kind words! I'm no actor, so I don't think I'd be good at anything beyond the moody looks I've been doing for the past few years - but I'm super happy I've been able to further add to the cohesive feeling in the work with those looks. I massively appreciate it, thank you!
I always think it's funny how grumpy he looks in the examples. He should do a video on cinematic brooding 😂
Absolute madness. The first scene looks gorgeous. I've just bought my first light and tried to light a scene with. Instantly noticed an increase in production value. I did notice that while one light is far better than nothing, it really limits what you can do.
Whatever the case I thank you for posting these videos here. You've put me that much closer to my dream
Thank you so much! I massively appreciate your kind words and I'm happy my videos are proving helpful! I actually have a couple of videos on lighting with just 1 light I uploaded a few years ago, it's still on the channel - hopefully that may be useful to you also!
May I ask what light you bought?
@@sebastianholmes1753 Used Godox sl60. Thinking about buying a Nanlite fs-300B .
@@RobEllisCinematographer i'll definetly watch it!
@@shueibdahir wonderful to know, thank you!
Omg thank you for explaining when broad lighting is appropriate! I was confused for a while watching movies like Top Gun Maverick where there’s lots of shots that are technically broad lighting until I realised short side lighting wasn’t perfect for every scenario. It can be story or location based and sometimes technically isn’t the best choice to make for the scene.
Absolutely! Short lighting is used a lot for it's shaping, contrast, mood - but sometimes you have no choice but to light the broad side - and you might actually want to use it for a scene for a specific feeling you're trying to create in the image. Just another tool in the toolbox!
Amazing channel, I'm bing watching it all and I just can't wait to try some of these techniques. Also the sound design is really good, you don't talk about it, but it really adds a lot to the scenes, especially on the scene with the key. Great work!
Yet again challenging the trends of “cinematic lighting” and making us think differently about it. Thanks for another great video Rob 🙏🏼
Thank you Daniel, glad to hear you enjoyed it! :)
Another inspirational lighting lesson. Just watching this actually gave me ideas for stories as I watched. Thanks so much.
That is a huge compliment - thank YOU so much for your kind words!
The value you provide is utterly amazing
Happy to hear it! Thank you so much! :)
Topped yourself with this one. Lots of great videos on lighting, but I'd say this is probably the best I've seen.
I spoke a little bit about it on the Patreon version, but I'm very proud of this one, as the first video that really got a big audience on my channel was a "simple cinematic lighting technique" video about upstage lighting about 3 and a half years ago - so I feel like I've come full circle back to a simple lighting technique with an antithesis that has improved on every aspect of that initial video. So I appreciate your kind words massively - thank you!
“We’ve not made our scene look cinematic… we’ve made it feel cinematic.” Wow that’s a powerful line!
I think it’s very easy to get wrapped up purely in the technicalities and trying to give an image as much depth as possible, that we forget a “cinematic” image is one that conveys a feeling, not just a look!
I subscribed to your channel so long ago. All your videos are incredible and it's insane the amount of effort you put into them! ❤ As a "youtuber" myself, I totally feel the pain of having to play with titles to please the algorithm... 😅 I LOVE all your videos, thank you!
Thank you so much Laura, I appreciate you watching for so long and for the kind words you’ve shared! ❤️ Haha yeah the algorithm isn’t fun and I try to avoid appeasing it where possible, but sometimes you gotta 🤣 thank you so much!!
A much needed video, indeed. You always deliver top quality videos with high-end information. All that while being 100% entertaining! Still waiting for that film of yours, but enjoyed the small parts you showed here!
And you always deliver such kind words - I always appreciate it! Haha, we're building it up to it!
Great video and even better advice. Thank you as always for what you do Rob!
Always good to hear you're still finding these useful! Thank you for always having kind words to share, I appreciate it! :)
Thank you so much! Great Video as always. At 8:49 Can you please tell us, which CT the camera was set to? 4500? or even higher?
Thanks David! I believe it was at 5600 to keep things nice and warm - may have cooled it down very slightly!
Great mix of dialogue and image, thanks!
What a wonderful video! Thank you for sharing it. Could you make a video about how you measure your lights? I often find it difficult to determine the correct exposure and ratios in a scene and frequently end up with unintended results.
Thank you so much, happy you enjoyed it! :) I made a video about lighting and exposing for darkness a while back, although it’s more focused on the darkness element, it shows the processes you’re asking about -
th-cam.com/video/AVGx-LCvSFE/w-d-xo.html - hope that helps!!
@@RobEllisCinematographer Thank you very much!
Thanks rob for the tips! I filmed some stuff inspired by many of the techniques in your other videos the other day that you might be into! I’ll send a link when I finish editing it!
Hope you found them useful Ezra! Sure thing!
@@RobEllisCinematographer Here’s a link to a couple test shots I filmed with some friends!
th-cam.com/video/vRMwXlTINfE/w-d-xo.htmlsi=srLkH0T5eWjwXSne
Any critiques you have would be great! I sometimes find it hard to objectively look at my own work and see the flaws. I can feel that something’s not quite there yet, but I can’t really figure out what specifically yet.
A great fan of your Lighting videos brother, lots of Love and appreciation from India for the hard work that went into creating these quality lessons.
And love and gratitude from the UK for your kind words and appreciation - thank you so much! Happy to hear you’re enjoying the videos :)
love the emphasis on story, nice work
Those 60C's sure are handy! I might need to add one to my kit cause having something like that on location which can be powered by battery is super useful as I've found with my Pavotube 30X kit. Plus I love the high CRI so it can be used as a keylight
Absolutely, they've been the primary workhouse for this series as they're tiny, have a decent amount of output for indoor scenarios and CCT range is big (plus they've got that fancy RGBLAC chip). Great all rounder really!
I think 8:19 looked much nicer than when you added the light! Shadows and darkness would of been better for the narrative
Even though this comment is late (compared to when this dropped) I learned so much in this video! You've easily earned my sub. I watched 1 video of yours before this and I was sold even then.
1:42 keep hearing "on boat", then cut. Lol, anyways, I also feel like if you short lit the drinking table scene, it would have felt like the conflict was between the two characters rather than conflict with the situation. Love the simplicity in the scene and still conveying such a strong emotion! Great video, as always! :D
Haha it's "on both" but I like boat much better 🤣 and absolutely, that's a great way to look at it! Appreciate the kind words and I'm glad you enjoyed the video - thank you so much!!
Hey Rob. Thanks for the tutorial. It's awesome. As your videos usually are 😊
I have a question though. I often see your under expose your camera for a natural light and then you add a lot of artificial light you need food the mood. That looks great. But isn't it really hard to work for your actors there? I mean the camera is one thing but how do humans react to the light being that bright?
Thank you so much for your kind words! :) I think it's dependant on the situation - a lot of the underexposing the ambient I've done on here has primarily been for the "why you need powerful lights" videos to demonstrate their output. And if you want to replicate the sun, you want that light to be bright, as long as no one is looking directly into it! I don't usually light in a way where things are unbearably bright though, besides maybe those few examples - especially since I get migraines all the time haha!
1:53 this by far my favorite shot. this is the most cinematic out of all of them imo
I absolutely love the colour of those walls, helps carry that moody tone!
This was super helpful thank you.
Very happy to hear it! :)
Thankyou for the amazing demonstration.
Happy you enjoyed it! :)
Yet again another amazing video...man everytime your video pops up I get excited cause I know I'm gonna learn something new and valuable
I'm super happy to hear you're still finding value in my videos and I hope you can continue to! Thank you so much!!
bro thanks for your videos. I was watching your video and my dad was walking past me and said "Are you watching a film?" lol your videos truly are movies
I love that, thank you so much! And thank you to your Dad for the accidental compliment haha! I’m glad you’re enjoying the videos also, I appreciate it massively :)
WOW! Great video! You really understand lighting, and how to shape it to the story.
Thank you so much, happy you enjoyed it!! There's always more to learn! :)
Images were beautiful. Loved the setups.
Thank you Austin!
I think the clothing foley while sitting at the table was too much, and a bit mismatched.
Outstandingly informative video as always - learned a lot as always
Glad to hear it Dan, I hope you can continue to find my videos informative! :)
This video was so detailed and full of useful informations . Thanks a lot .🙏🏻🤘😊
I would like to request you to make a video about how to light up a moonlit exterior scenario.
Thank you so much for this, hope to be able to get your course soon. ❤
I hope you found it useful - and I hope you find the course useful also, thank you so much for your support! ❤️
This series just continues to INSPIRE😎🤟💯🔥
Very happy to hear it - and I hope it can continue to do so! Thank you so much!
This is so good. It's like watching Netflix but actually learning something.
Thank you so much! Super happy you found it educational :)
Rob posted. Today is going to be a beautiful day.
I massively appreciate the kind words - and I hope you enjoyed the video!
Incredible videos. Super useful content for the community. Thank you very much!🙂
Thank you so much - happy you're finding them useful! :)
Great stuff man.
Thank you!
This is amazing! You keep talking about light when talking about cinematography, when you should be talking about your cinematographic frowning 😆😆😆 Thnank you so much for this content, so knowldgable, well presented, intense and short. Great job! Good teaching.
Haha the Rob Ellis frown has been going strong for about 3 and a half years now! Thank you so much, I'm very happy you're finding my videos enjoyable and helpful - I appreciate it! :)
Thanks again Rob :) Another great one
Thank you Geir, glad you enjoyed this one! :)
Thanks for the work you put in, i really appreciate that. 🔥🔥
Thanks for all of these!
Absolutely - happy you're enjoying the series! :)
I’m an aspiring cinematographer/filmmaker and I aspire to create my own web series very soon. As an absolute beginner, what do you suggest I focus on first and foremost? Appreciate your hard work and quality breakdowns Rob.
You're the man Rob! A true lighting wizard🧙♂
Thanks Jordan! I hope this one was useful in some way! :)
Very cool. How do you expose for such low fill? False colors or do you use a light meter?
I usually use false colour, sometimes use a light meter, but this I shot by eye - if I want something dark I'll usually go for a lower ISO as I'll be able to light it by eye and be relatively safe in terms of noise!
@@RobEllisCinematographer thx!
3:09 the realization that he forgot to turn off the stove.
Hahaha he's always forgotten something
Such a great content! I have a question: You give us the color temp für the lights, but what was the color temp setting of the camera?
Thank you so much! Camera was at 5600k, you can roughly figure this out if camera white balance isn’t stated, by looking at how cool or warm a scene appears! So the first scene at 7000k looks cool, so we must be below 7000k on the camera - the second scene at 3200k looks warm, so we must be above 3200k on the camera. Hope that helps!! :)
Yes, Thank you verry much for your answer! I guessed around 5000k, so I was not far from it. @@RobEllisCinematographer
Thank you for your message. If you ever decide to offer live workshops or group/1:1 training, please inform us. I am based in the UK, and it would be an honor to learn from you.
Thanks Michal!! It’s not something I’m looking at doing anytime soon but if I did, I would be sure to advertise it! I appreciate it massively :)
It’s helpful! Thanks a lot
Happy to hear it!! :)
Excellent content as always, thanks for doing this
Happy you're enjoying my videos - thank you for the kind words! :)
Thank you for these videos, always learning a ton from you!❤
Glad and happy to hear it Dasha, thank you so much! ❤️
This video was lit! 😎
Literally! Hope you found it useful in some way! :)
Really good and helpful video. Did you adjust the white balance to the colour temperature of the lights used or keep it at 5600K?
5600k on the camera in both shots (I may have tweaked it slightly in post on the shots in the front room, but I couldn’t tell you without the project open) - you’d be able to tell if I shot at the same colour temperature as the lights as it would look much more neutral in both scenes!
@@RobEllisCinematographer thanks for the reply. Great to learn from people who clearly know what they’re doing as I try to figure this stuff out for my own videos little by little. I only have a Sony A7iii currently and I find that the low data rate and codec just doesn’t allow for this kind of clean, robust image that you get in your footage. What camera do you use?
@@SenthilSukumaran it can be more difficult to work with lower data rates but learning with them and figuring out how to get the best image out of what you have will definitely help in the long run! I use the Blackmagic Pocket 6k Pro and the original Panasonic Lumix S5 - primarily the Pocket recently, with the S5 shooting BTS!
@@RobEllisCinematographer I have been gradually walking that exact path. Learning as I go. Every time I see Blackmagic Pocket footage in the hands of someone who knows what he's doing I am always taken with how good it looks. It appears to be my favourite colour science and overall look.
When the time comes for my upgrade I am leaning towards getting into the Blackmagic ecosystem. For my channel it mainly involves me as the subject talking to camera. Is that a workable solution in spite of the lack of continuous autofocus on the BMPCC's ?
This has such a Deakins-esque look. He does a good amount of broad lighting like this also. Very naturalistic.
Thank you so much!! I believe he sometimes uses practicals to light when possible too which might add to that feeling!
Thanks for the video rob! Mind sharing the song in the beginning?
Metro by Johnny Fiasco, found on Audiosocket!
@@RobEllisCinematographer thank you!
Sick. What was the key light & fill light power in the living room scene?
I have no idea! I did this it by eye rather than metering/false color, which was a little careless of me since I was matching it to the previous shot - so I couldn't give you a specific contrast ratio for it!
Thanks for this, bro!
Absolutely - hope you enjoyed this one! :)
Nice one Rob,
Are you going to move to the Blackmagic full frame?
How do you find the internal ND on the 6k pro? Some people have been complaining about them. I am on the fence whether to get the fx3 or the Blackmagic.
Cheers from Los Angeles.
Thanks Peter!
Probably not, I've got the S5 for full frame (minus internal BRAW and anamorphic modes) - if I can afford it in the near future I'm more so looking at the Ursa 12k, as the body is a lot more efficient for the way I use the camera, and it produces a beautiful image!
The internal NDs on the 6k pro do suffer from a bit of IR contamination in the shadows, I just use a Hoya UV/IR cut filter on my lenses which gets rid of it. Besides that, they're fine!
Cheers from the UK! :)
Whohoo let‘s gooo!🎉
Hope you enjoy this one!! :)
@@RobEllisCinematographer I did and i really enjoy the deeper look into why we light scenes a certain way.
Really apreciate the work❤
@@The_Daliban happy to hear it! And I appreciate your kind words on these videos - thank you! ❤
Hey Rob, how to do you have Dehancer Pro set up? Are you using the dehancer camera profile or color managed with CST's? thanks!
Both! You get slightly different looks depending on what your start point is - I often transform to Davinci Wide Gamut or ACES for Dehancer, but I also check if I like the look of the straight camera profile better. The differences can be subtle but it’s all dependent on the scene and what feels best!
@@RobEllisCinematographer thanks for the quick reply! I’ve been using Dehancer pro for quite some time and I’ll get in kicks where all I use is the DWG and CST and then I’ll have kicks where I like the camera profile more. In my experience I seem to get a better result with the camera profile, I feel like I can get more headroom and for whatever reason tbe grain looks more pleasing and what I’m used to getting with my film photography. The camera profile can be a little un-wieldy at times though. But that’s just my experience. And my process is always changing lol.
Great video. But do you ever talk about camera settings? Like what WB you use? Or is this going based of off always keeping it at 5,600k Kelvin
Hello ! What a lesson of Lightning
Thank you very much
It could be very interesting to share your raw shots to see how you expose your image on Davinci.
Thanks for your work
Thank you so much, happy you enjoyed it! I have a previous video about exposing and lighting for darker shots here - th-cam.com/video/AVGx-LCvSFE/w-d-xo.html
When you guys sitting on the table you looked down to pull focus right? 2 man crew. Let's go.
Absolutely loved this
Always happy to hear it! Thank you!!
Great vid. How did u know the exact temperature of 7000k that comes from outside the window? Just experience or using a light meter? Also if a light meter is used, any cheap alternatives ? There are some mobile apps , are they accurate?
Lastly in all those clips the white balance was 5600? And not 7000 and 3200 later, right?
We matched it using a light meter yes - it’s this one - www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1522352-REG/illuminati_instrument_im150_light_and_color.html - in terms of measuring color I think that’s probably the cheapest you can really go! Everything shot at 5600 in camera yes, I may have cooled off the front room shots a little further in post, I graded it a while ago!
@@RobEllisCinematographer thanks mate!
i am a 3d artist and i really need to make all this kind of lighting. Only i have one question do you change light setup in every different angle or you stick with the same
That is entirely dependent on the setup/time/budget!
Hey Rob what wb was your camera set at for the table scene? Was it 5600? Great video thanks!
You are right on with that estimate! 5600, yes! Thank you so much!
in the first scene ,you could have had the subject facing the other way round , so even when he looks to see the person coming into the room , its still far side lighting .
You could move things around to suit a particular technique, but sometimes you can’t, and in this case, it worked out better to not do that!
Hey man ! Love the videos i sent u an email yesterday. I bought ur product but when u downloaded the files the movie wouldn't play and i tired to trouble shoot it myself. I was wondering if you could help? Ive also been having trouble playing footage off my new sony 7cii - cleo
Thanks Cleo! I'm just getting to emails from the weekend now, expect a reply shortly! :)
I miss you my great friend Rob ❤
Hope you enjoyed this one Muhtada! ❤️
@@RobEllisCinematographer I enjoyed and learned, thank you ..
This is amazing ❤
Thank you so much! I hope you enjoy it! ❤
@@RobEllisCinematographer very well. Today was the Day I actually understood White balance and color temperature 🤒 and I am just seeing urs. Your made use of 7000k I was just thinking your camera settings will be lower that 7000k to achieve the warm look 👀😎
ROB!
IT'S ME!
Finally someone not aping the same technique
I don't think there's anything wrong with people learning and replicating a certain technique, especially something like upstage/short lighting as it gives a base understanding of creating mood and dimensionality in an image - I've learned and replicated it too! But I do find it hard to discover on platforms like this, the possibilities of what light can really do for an image in a more nuanced way. Maybe I'm just not looking hard enough haha!
What Tripod?
Benro BV8 I believe
Love it
Glad to hear it - thank you so much!
great stuff
Thanks Kalle!
Rob, I know you're not gonna respond to this most likely. And that's fine, but I'm gonna leave it here anyway. Your videos have made a topic. That was incredibly confusing to me less confusing. They haven't fully unconfused it if I'm gonna be honest. But channels like yours are the. Reason that I was comfortable. With jumping into cinematography without ever going to school. And I don't know if you understand how big of a deal that is but for me, if I would have went to school here in the u. SI would have been looking at 20 or $30000 instead of spending that on schooling. And knowledge that you now provide for free. I was able to purchase a camera and a good one at that lights. I'm about to get a new tripod to replace my old one.
And for the past. 4 weeks I've been watching a ton of your videos and
I made a short film myself on a different channel And I made it in 3 hours. What I did was for most of the shots. I just did it the way I thought would look good without implementing any of your teachings. And then for 2 of the shots, which turned out to be of course, the best shots in the Whole short film. I implemented what you teach here and the night and day difference is astounding. I cannot tell you how much I appreciate what you have done and how much I will continue to appreciate what you do you have also? Made videos that show people with less money like me. How to light scenes with one light and still make it look phenomenal. How to use reflectors and how they affect the image? All of these things that you have done have significantly lowered the barrier of entry into this world and. For that alone, you have made a larger contribution to the world of cinematography than most can ever claim. Thank you.
First one✌🏼
Hello!
@@RobEllisCinematographer Hello Rob, just want to tell you that you have no idea how much you’ve inspired me and changed my perspectives on lighting, I’ve learned a lot, genuinely appreciate your videos🫶🏼🤝🏼
@@CultivateZhihui I am super happy to hear that and I appreciate your kind words massively - it's always amazing to know that I've inspired someone through these videos and I'm very thankful for it. I hope you continue to find them helpful - thank you so much!
I love the shots bro, I'm looking forward to see a movies or a short film, filmed by you,
Allah (god) bless you, for the knowlage you give us
Thank you so much - something may be in the works at some point down the line! Bless you right back, I appreciate the kind words! :)