Hod do you shoot on a foggy morning outdoors? Do you use some special gear? Is natural morning/day light enough? Do we need extra lighting? Do we get clear image of a character standing in a fog...say 2 meters from a camera?
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How wold you shoot on a foggy morning?
- Thread starter Katie. A
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Zakaree Sandberg
Well-known member
not enough info provided.
how much is too much fog? morning fog has many levels
what kind of story is it? who are the characters, why are they there.. what are they doing.. where are they going...
the DPs job is to tell the story with visuals.. its not all about how much light.. but what kind of light. how much of it.. so on..
generally a big blanket of fog is going to provide a very soft all around light.. if its completely socked in.. then the visibility really ranges.. sometimes you cant see your own hand in front of you.
you can do a few things to help control the image.. you can do a large neg fill..
you can hit them with backlight to help separate them from the flat foggy background...
how much is too much fog? morning fog has many levels
what kind of story is it? who are the characters, why are they there.. what are they doing.. where are they going...
the DPs job is to tell the story with visuals.. its not all about how much light.. but what kind of light. how much of it.. so on..
generally a big blanket of fog is going to provide a very soft all around light.. if its completely socked in.. then the visibility really ranges.. sometimes you cant see your own hand in front of you.
you can do a few things to help control the image.. you can do a large neg fill..
you can hit them with backlight to help separate them from the flat foggy background...
David Bounds
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The best answer I think you're going to get to most of those questions is - it depends.
At least in my experience, natural foggy mornings are fleeting things. On most days when there is any fog, it's usually gone within the first 30 minutes of sunrise. Unless you can move quickly and/or only need a shot or two, I'd say your biggest issue is going to be maintaining the look you want. There's also of course the question of whether it will even be foggy on the day you want to shoot in the first place. That said, to answer your questions -
Given the problems I outlined above with using a naturally foggy morning, a fog machine would be a safe bet. Even with natural fog around, it can be handy to boost the ambiance directly around the camera/in the shot, if desired. Something to fan the artificial fog around with as well.
Natural light can be enough, but it depends on the shot, the look you're going for, overhead vegetation (e.g. trees), etc. At the least you'd want some flags/scrims/bounce to control the light that exists naturally. Depending on look, camera sensitivity, lens speed, density of natural and/or artificial fog, etc, you may want more light.
Maybe. Maybe not. Depends on the density of the fog and where the light is coming from. Probably, in most naturally foggy mornings I've seen (though your location could be vastly different than what I'm used to). You may even find that at two meters it's not dense enough, which is where a fog machine of some ilk would come in handy for enhancing the existing fog if you want.
Sorry I can't be more specific, but more specific answers are very dependent on location, desired look, and circumstance.
At least in my experience, natural foggy mornings are fleeting things. On most days when there is any fog, it's usually gone within the first 30 minutes of sunrise. Unless you can move quickly and/or only need a shot or two, I'd say your biggest issue is going to be maintaining the look you want. There's also of course the question of whether it will even be foggy on the day you want to shoot in the first place. That said, to answer your questions -
Given the problems I outlined above with using a naturally foggy morning, a fog machine would be a safe bet. Even with natural fog around, it can be handy to boost the ambiance directly around the camera/in the shot, if desired. Something to fan the artificial fog around with as well.
Natural light can be enough, but it depends on the shot, the look you're going for, overhead vegetation (e.g. trees), etc. At the least you'd want some flags/scrims/bounce to control the light that exists naturally. Depending on look, camera sensitivity, lens speed, density of natural and/or artificial fog, etc, you may want more light.
Maybe. Maybe not. Depends on the density of the fog and where the light is coming from. Probably, in most naturally foggy mornings I've seen (though your location could be vastly different than what I'm used to). You may even find that at two meters it's not dense enough, which is where a fog machine of some ilk would come in handy for enhancing the existing fog if you want.
Sorry I can't be more specific, but more specific answers are very dependent on location, desired look, and circumstance.
Zeb B
Well-known member
Eric M Hurt
Well-known member
Find a good foggy morning and roll the camera...
If you find a place that has 365 days of foggy mornings then please let me know! ;-)
If you find a place that has 365 days of foggy mornings then please let me know! ;-)
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