lighting black and white

[el don]

i want too shoot an indoor short movie, using black and white plus-X or Tri-X.
What's the difference between lighting with K-40 and PLus-X? Will i see some difference between tungsten light, quartz light and daylight, like if i was using some color super8? Should i let my 85b filter in? Thank you for helping.

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[mattias]

first of all, don't use the filter. second, the difference between light sources is that the film is less sensitive to tungsten light than to sunlight. if you lit one side of the subject with an hmi and the other with a tungsten bulb, measured the same level on both sides, and shot, the hmi side would be brighter. i wouldn't worry about it much though. just rate the film for the temperature of the major light source.

/matt

[el don]

thank you

my problem is that i actually just have a 1000W lamp, you know, those you could get with your old super8 camera. So this lamp is very old, with no indications and no manual, and i don't know if it's a tungsten or a quartz lamp. I would like to find a cheap quartz kit, but in Europe we can only find Lowel and Desisti kits, and it's too expensive. The best for me would be to find a smith victor quartz kit. But do you think i can just light with tungsten lamps?

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[eddie]

you can light with anything!
Ive shot perfect animation stuff with a couple of 100Watt standard lamps
and Ive shot using just one theatre light.
It all comes out fine in black and white.
Ive even filmed using 50 ASA black and white film, a friend in a dark cabin lit only with a big torch pointed at his face (which was OK, but Id recommend more than that - it was a bit gloomy)
If you are shooting in b/w then I wouldnt worry about lighting temperatures and the like. just get enough light to get a good exposure.

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[eddie]

by 'good' I mean something that gives you a bit of leeway, so you arent stuck on f16 all the time. Try and get enough light in the right places to get an f stop of at least f8 - so you can darken it if you want to by going to f16 without totally loosing your picture.
Just give it a shot!
good luck

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[Big Ted]

I have a Canon 314XL. No adjustable F-Stop. Just an indoor and and outdoor filter. Would a 100watt house bulb be enough to light anything? Is it even possible with K40, Plus-X or Tri-X?

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[eddie]

probably not plus x ot k40, but you might get something.
I found I needed at least 2 x 100 watt house bulbs (actually one was probably a 150 Watt) to get a decent exposure on Tri X. Mind you this was using models, and not people.
Models are easier because the lamps can be closer to them, the further away the lamp the more dispersed the light becomes.
Just keep adding more lamps until you get the light you need!

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[el don]

thank you eddie

i have the same problem, my camera is an elmo super 108 without f-stop. I guess my 1000W torch would be enough for an indoor B/W shot,especially in a small room, but i would like to know if you can find cheap quartz kit in UK.

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[chas_ucla]

E-bay has those Super-8 650 W lights for sale all of the time for cheap, like $5-$20.00! Get a couple of those and shop around for the cheapest bulb (topbulb.com or one of the other lighting dot commers) and you are set for under $50.00...

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[mattias]

consider renting your lights. i get mine for 20 euros per day for a complete kit with three redheads or arri fresnels, stands, gels, frost, blackwrap and all. and if you pick them up on a friday, you can keep them until monday morning, enought time to get a complete short or music video in the can, and only pay for one day. i'm sure there is a place close to where you live that can give you a similar deal.