Lighting Campfire Scene ...

[Rhomboid]

Hi All!

I'm looking to light a campfire sequence (at night) outside on location. The usual challenges apply, i.e. low budget, available household power etc. I was thinking the fire should be kept small to avoid excessive smoke and heat - this should also give all the suggestions of a campfire without having to rely on the fire itself (whose flickering can cause problems perhaps?) for lighting. I thought if I use some small lights to fill in the faces (with CTO maybe?) it might do the trick.

If any of you have any suggestions or tips (or if what I'm thinking is completely off), any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Thank you all in advance!

 

[drcheese]

I personally like adding the flicker of a campfire to the key light when I create these scenes. What I do is bounce a tungsten light gelled orange-ish (either light amber, CTO/Salmon, some mix to get it right) off of a bounce board with mylar attached to it. I then have the grip give a slight bend/shake to the bounce light during the shot to generate the flicker. I also use another light gelled with steel as an edge light motivated by the moon. This works great for the Mediums and CUs, but going wide might be more of a challenge. Also depending on how the scene fits in the script, you may want to have some light in the background to establish depth.

 

[Jordan Scott Price]

Get a Harbor Freight dimmer and have someone work the dial during the shot. It would also work if the light is bounced. Get a couple dimmers for a few fixtures and one person per fixture working them. You could get very specific there.

Else, buy/rent a flicker box.

 

[nwstudios]

buy/rent a flicker box.

They are pretty easy DIY project.

 

[Paul Hudson]

Here you go: http://www.filmandvideolighting.com/magashflbox.html

If you just need it once I am sure your local rental house has it.