Diffusing the Scene Week: 30th March - 5th April

This week in cinematography we did a class exercise in diffusion. We experimented with a small diffuse screen and then a large diffuse screen set up on the butterfly frame. We used a Rifa light as a backing light and a Fren-L as the key light. 

We started off with the small diffuse screen and had it an even distance between the subject and the key light. We did a take with the diffuse screen closer to the key light and then one closer to the subject. The further the diffuse screen was from the subject, the darker the footage appeared. We then pulled the key light closer and did the same experiments with the diffuse screen - putting the diffuse screen at an even distance between the key light and subject, then moving the diffuse closer to the light and then closer to the subject. Again the footage became darker when the diffuse screen was moved closer to the light. When the diffusion screen was closer, it acted as another light source because it became a medium  for transferring the original light source.

We took the small diffuse screen and put the large diffuse screen into position. We did the same experiments with the large diffuse as we did with the small diffuse.. When the light was at a further distance and the diffuse screen was closer to the light, the shadows were softer but when the diffuse was closer to the subject than the key light, the light was more intense but focused more in one spot. The diffuse in these experiments needed to be moved back from the subject to spread the light source and make the light softer. This makes the subject look more flattering. Here is an example (below) that I found on the internet, that shows the difference between harsh and soft light and how much more flattering soft light is compared to harsh light.

Example of harsh versus soft light

Here is the link to a YouTube video that I found that talks about diffusion: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4z5Py1GHU9c 

I have been researching the inverse square law and it is frying my brain. It is such a confusing topic but I am determined to understand it and put the information into a presentation that is coherent for everybody to understand!