How To Light Car in ShowRoom?

[Peter Dmitriyev]

Hi guys shooting a car dealership commercial where one car at a time will be presented and well lit in the showroom while a spokesman talks about it.

What is the best way on a lower budget to light the car, give it good highlights and not ugly spotty glares like which would presumably occur if you blasted it with multiple fresnels from various angles.

Have budget to rent lights etc just nothing over the top like renting entire studio with those gigantic ceiling long soft boxes.
Is there anything available I can rent such as soft box etc that can cover the length of the car and rigged above it or what else on the cheaper side would you recommend?

Thanks

 

[JanneJansson]

Hehe to proper light a car is a very well guarded secret ..but the main idea is -never- to point a light directly at the car. Use large white surfaces and new painted floor. Hide lights behind white/black surfaces. Build "horizon" using black cloth. Have a black studio behind camera, if nessesary hang black cloth behind camera so no reflection is visible.

 

[Hans von Sonntag]

Janne, don't give away your valuable secretes!

Seriously, if you think deeper what the car's paint actually is you come to the conclusion that a car's paint works similar to a mirror. The reason why experienced commercial directors shoot beauty shots of cars often just before the magic hour and very early in the morning has to do with the fact that the landscape is reflecting its shapes and colours in the car's paint. The nicer the sky and the surrounding shapes are the better looks the car's paint.

Now the task is to transfer these insights to your showroom.

BTW, cars tend to look better when lowering the chassis. Depending on the car's size put 200 kilos in the trunk and the same amount in the cabin. Also it's a good idea to shoot cars with a medium wide angle lens.

Hans

 

[Edward Blythe]

Same principle as this:

http://www.google.com/products/cata...=X&ei=k1VOT5eDOafs0gHKtZi_Ag&ved=0CMsBEPMCMAc

 

[Edward Blythe]

10' muslin rolls are not a bad low-end option and can maybe affix to showroom ceiling.

 

[albert rudnicki]

To go lower budget
The light at the dealer is usually day light with large windows.
If you use available Showroom light,
Plan ahead so you don't fight the exterior light .
Get plenty of sound blankets to cover some windows and cut the noise and echo. Get some large diffusion for the windows
Rent large butterfly with thick muslim and bounce 2 X5K HMI of it.
Have another 2k and bounce it of the floor or use it as a back light.



at 1000 ISO you should get at least 5.6-8 on your lens.
Hope it helps.

It should give you planty nice fill that

 

[Michael Panfeld]

Join two sheets of 4 x 8 bead board to form an 8 x 8. attach a 1 x 2 wooden frame. Affix 30 - 40 Kino single 4' harnesses using the lamp clips. Insert 4' Kino tubes. hang a 8 x 8 frame under that, skirt it, place some diff material in the frame. Hang the whole thing over the car. Kinda like a giant chicken coop. Chimera actually makes a product like this (minus the light source) but its not cheap.

Others have used the Airstar Cloud to diffuse natural daylight or to bounce some HMI's.

I generally agree with the other posters in terms of a very large diffused light source. Size matters.