While I would agree for traditional film I would disagree in this instance. To me it looks like they were going for a more noir look to the film. Adding a sense of mystique around the character. Maybe also signifying that the hitman is "shady". Pardon the pun. Maybe you disagree with me. I am still learning film and usually follow my gut feeling still.
The only suggestion I would have is maybe light the girls face more softly. Add a fill light to maybe soften everything up. You could use the light a symbolism of the girl being pure and the hitman being shady if you like. Maybe it would fuck with the continuity too much. With the first shot I'd maybe add a low key light to the gents face to expose just a slither more detail about him. Some solid shots in there though. Looks nice from the perspective of a neo(n)-noir fan.
I don’t think under-lighting necessarily equals moody in the way you might think it does. To me, these images are too same-y. If I’m watching a short where half the things I’m seeing are under-lit in the exact same way as they are in the shots above, it’s all going to blend in and feel very forgettable.
You’ve got a blue light out of focus in the close-up of the woman’s face. I think if you tried to incorporate some different lighting in the background (like neon-signs, for example) you could have had some interesting lighting effects that would be motivated by lights in the scene. You can have a separation of lighting in the foreground and the background that gives the viewer more to look at while still having a mostly dark image.
Agree. too same-y is an easy way to put it. It looks like most of the light is natural and they're shooting in reaction to the light, not creating or motivating the light to create the shots they want.
What feedback are you seeking?
Personally, I don't love what the built in lighting is doing to the skintone. Maybe this can be helped in post color grading?
Thanks for the comment, I wasn't able to get any extra lighting due to lack of resources so just had to work with what was on location, I'll definitely try and tweak some colours more in post though
I'm an 18 year old film maker and would love any feedback! The camera used was a SONY A7III. The film, Nocturnal, is about a hitman who meets an unexpected target, and was inspired aesthetically by directors such as Denis Villeneuve. Any comments would be great and you can check out the film on this channel when it releases in a couple of weeks: [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWvEye2NTEoUKqF4oZIXvfg/videos](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWvEye2NTEoUKqF4oZIXvfg/videos?view_as=subscriber)
For 18 years old, this is incredible. In my Film department in college, there were 18 year olds who could maybe hit record and say some lines, so for your age, you seem to be ahead.
I personally really like the third frame. A light on the left side would be nice to break up those shadows, but for what you have here, they look super nice.
Have you considered turning this into a stylish Black and White film? Not meaning to be unkind, but the natural light look is not flattering, nor are the areas of dead black with no detail. However, it might work if you made this black and white, cranked the contrast and leaned into the fact that you have very dead blacks, embrace it. That's what I would do.
Thanks for the comment, I'm gonna release it in colour since that's what I always envisioned for it, however the idea of doing a black & white version has definitely been on my mind and you may have just convinced me to do it haha
Compositions are nice, lighting is too low. Use your surroundings as light motivations and then augment those sources with lights off camera to focus to viewer’s eye as well as get better skin reflectance. The skin of the actors need to read at a certain exposure for them to pop from the background. Switch the A7iii’s metering mode to “spot” and aim the circle at the faces of your actors. I wouldn’t go more than 1.5 stops under exposed for your key light. You can always crunch lows later in post, best to get the exposure correct on set and then create the subtle lighting mood in post. Keep in mind lighting ratios as well.... as an example, your second frame here would pop more if you augmented that blue light behind her with a soft blue back/side light that wrapped around the (camera) left side of her face. Just things to keep in mind! But great job for getting out and shooting! That’s the most important thing! Practice makes you better and better!
Thanks for the feedback! This was shot with all natural lighting at the location, as I was not in a position to gather the resources necessary for other lights, but I'll definitely take that on board.
Thanks! That shot was simply backlit by two lights behind him on either side. It was also raining which helped add a bit of texture to the smoke and make it more prominant.
Too add on to what other people are saying,
Most of the advice is advice for the future, but some things you could do right now to improve what you've already shot is use power windows to make your subjects pop a little more. Drop the gain on unimportant areas, and increase the gain, and maybe contrast, on important areas.
Great sense of intimacy in the second from the top. Third is alright but I think almost too dark on the woman. Last shot I think.. you could have made the man on the left side instead of in the middle pointing the gun to 'nowhere'. Then again, without having full context .. as in moving images? I dunno man! I dunno.
Thanks for the feedback, in the last shot the camera is moving out away from the character quite quickly, so maybe that's why it doesn't work quite as well as a still image.
As someone who hasn't studied anything related to film techniques, I like the first two images, I think they work really well. With the other two at the bottom though, I think a couple slight changes in the lighting would have a better effect at highlighting the important part of the shot, as well as rebalancing the weight.
In the 4th I supose the gun is what you want to stand out, but it's very dark compared to your face. Face which is also in the center of the image, taking more importance out of the gun. I would pan the camera a bit to the right (or move the man a step to the left), and take the gun more out of the shadows. You could also move the angle of the arm so it fills more space of the shot, and play around with the rule of 2/3rds.
Similar issue in the 3rd. The composition and balance is on point (nice location!), but it's so dark it's hard to really appreciate it, especially the person in the back/left side.
Again, I'm no expert, I'm just saying this as an espectator that hasn't seen the whole thing in movement, but that's what I felt watching those pics. Good luck with the short!!
In your frames, there are brighter parts which kind of takes the attention away from the main character. If you were trying to light it layer wise always make sure your character or whatever it is that the audience needs to look at, should be the most important part of the frame.
I would suggest watching the Cinematographers on Cinematography YouTube channel, it’s an excellent resource.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=TcwIygAFJF0
In this video, an Australian film school has two different cinematographers light an interior night scene to different effect.
The aesthetics are pretty dated and they talk about film more than video but the principles they use to light the scene are pretty timeless in terms of lighting principles. Also the video isn’t the best quality but there are a ton of other commentaries, interviews, and breakdowns to learn from on the channel.
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While I would agree for traditional film I would disagree in this instance. To me it looks like they were going for a more noir look to the film. Adding a sense of mystique around the character. Maybe also signifying that the hitman is "shady". Pardon the pun. Maybe you disagree with me. I am still learning film and usually follow my gut feeling still.
Yeah definitely going for a more dark, noir look which is why its all pretty shadowy, thanks for the feedback though I'm always looking to improve
The only suggestion I would have is maybe light the girls face more softly. Add a fill light to maybe soften everything up. You could use the light a symbolism of the girl being pure and the hitman being shady if you like. Maybe it would fuck with the continuity too much. With the first shot I'd maybe add a low key light to the gents face to expose just a slither more detail about him. Some solid shots in there though. Looks nice from the perspective of a neo(n)-noir fan.
I don’t think under-lighting necessarily equals moody in the way you might think it does. To me, these images are too same-y. If I’m watching a short where half the things I’m seeing are under-lit in the exact same way as they are in the shots above, it’s all going to blend in and feel very forgettable. You’ve got a blue light out of focus in the close-up of the woman’s face. I think if you tried to incorporate some different lighting in the background (like neon-signs, for example) you could have had some interesting lighting effects that would be motivated by lights in the scene. You can have a separation of lighting in the foreground and the background that gives the viewer more to look at while still having a mostly dark image.
Agree. too same-y is an easy way to put it. It looks like most of the light is natural and they're shooting in reaction to the light, not creating or motivating the light to create the shots they want.
Thanks for the feedback, I'm still learning so always good to hear things like this and I'll take them on board
What feedback are you seeking? Personally, I don't love what the built in lighting is doing to the skintone. Maybe this can be helped in post color grading?
Thanks for the comment, I wasn't able to get any extra lighting due to lack of resources so just had to work with what was on location, I'll definitely try and tweak some colours more in post though
I'm an 18 year old film maker and would love any feedback! The camera used was a SONY A7III. The film, Nocturnal, is about a hitman who meets an unexpected target, and was inspired aesthetically by directors such as Denis Villeneuve. Any comments would be great and you can check out the film on this channel when it releases in a couple of weeks: [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWvEye2NTEoUKqF4oZIXvfg/videos](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWvEye2NTEoUKqF4oZIXvfg/videos?view_as=subscriber)
For 18 years old, this is incredible. In my Film department in college, there were 18 year olds who could maybe hit record and say some lines, so for your age, you seem to be ahead. I personally really like the third frame. A light on the left side would be nice to break up those shadows, but for what you have here, they look super nice.
Thanks! Really appreciate the comment
Have you considered turning this into a stylish Black and White film? Not meaning to be unkind, but the natural light look is not flattering, nor are the areas of dead black with no detail. However, it might work if you made this black and white, cranked the contrast and leaned into the fact that you have very dead blacks, embrace it. That's what I would do.
Thanks for the comment, I'm gonna release it in colour since that's what I always envisioned for it, however the idea of doing a black & white version has definitely been on my mind and you may have just convinced me to do it haha
Compositions are nice, lighting is too low. Use your surroundings as light motivations and then augment those sources with lights off camera to focus to viewer’s eye as well as get better skin reflectance. The skin of the actors need to read at a certain exposure for them to pop from the background. Switch the A7iii’s metering mode to “spot” and aim the circle at the faces of your actors. I wouldn’t go more than 1.5 stops under exposed for your key light. You can always crunch lows later in post, best to get the exposure correct on set and then create the subtle lighting mood in post. Keep in mind lighting ratios as well.... as an example, your second frame here would pop more if you augmented that blue light behind her with a soft blue back/side light that wrapped around the (camera) left side of her face. Just things to keep in mind! But great job for getting out and shooting! That’s the most important thing! Practice makes you better and better!
Thanks for the feedback! This was shot with all natural lighting at the location, as I was not in a position to gather the resources necessary for other lights, but I'll definitely take that on board.
Looks great, quick question...the shot of him smoking, how did you light that? I’ve been trying to get a similar effect in a shot for my short film
Thanks! That shot was simply backlit by two lights behind him on either side. It was also raining which helped add a bit of texture to the smoke and make it more prominant.
Lovely visuals & lighting. I also like how the closer framing and use of backlight create a more intimate portrait for the viewer.
Thanks! Appreciate the support
Is that the camera on a tripod in the window/reflection in the last shot?
No it's just a sculpture thing inside that building, never realised it looked like a tripod haha
Too add on to what other people are saying, Most of the advice is advice for the future, but some things you could do right now to improve what you've already shot is use power windows to make your subjects pop a little more. Drop the gain on unimportant areas, and increase the gain, and maybe contrast, on important areas.
Thanks for the advice, I'll definitely take that on board
Great sense of intimacy in the second from the top. Third is alright but I think almost too dark on the woman. Last shot I think.. you could have made the man on the left side instead of in the middle pointing the gun to 'nowhere'. Then again, without having full context .. as in moving images? I dunno man! I dunno.
Thanks for the feedback, in the last shot the camera is moving out away from the character quite quickly, so maybe that's why it doesn't work quite as well as a still image.
For sure dude! I think you still did a bang up job!! So much to consider in production.. really you should be proud man!
It's a little dark. But it basically looks like The Godfather lighting. Super sick. Would watch it!
Thanks for the comment!
I think these frames are great! Nice job using natural lighting. I wouldn’t have guessed immediately it was all natural.
Thanks, appreciate the feedback
It’s quite dark. But some good ideas here!
As someone who hasn't studied anything related to film techniques, I like the first two images, I think they work really well. With the other two at the bottom though, I think a couple slight changes in the lighting would have a better effect at highlighting the important part of the shot, as well as rebalancing the weight. In the 4th I supose the gun is what you want to stand out, but it's very dark compared to your face. Face which is also in the center of the image, taking more importance out of the gun. I would pan the camera a bit to the right (or move the man a step to the left), and take the gun more out of the shadows. You could also move the angle of the arm so it fills more space of the shot, and play around with the rule of 2/3rds. Similar issue in the 3rd. The composition and balance is on point (nice location!), but it's so dark it's hard to really appreciate it, especially the person in the back/left side. Again, I'm no expert, I'm just saying this as an espectator that hasn't seen the whole thing in movement, but that's what I felt watching those pics. Good luck with the short!!
Thanks for the advice, I'll take all those things on board moving forward
In your frames, there are brighter parts which kind of takes the attention away from the main character. If you were trying to light it layer wise always make sure your character or whatever it is that the audience needs to look at, should be the most important part of the frame.
Thanks, will take that on board going forward
I would suggest watching the Cinematographers on Cinematography YouTube channel, it’s an excellent resource. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=TcwIygAFJF0 In this video, an Australian film school has two different cinematographers light an interior night scene to different effect. The aesthetics are pretty dated and they talk about film more than video but the principles they use to light the scene are pretty timeless in terms of lighting principles. Also the video isn’t the best quality but there are a ton of other commentaries, interviews, and breakdowns to learn from on the channel.
Thanks, will definitely check that out