Lighting suggestions for moody Macro shots

[Joe Cage]

Hello,

I am planning to shoot some macro shots of a guy circeling job ads in the news paper. The guy will not be shown in the image, only the marker and the newspaper. And I want it to be really moody and dark. So I was thinking about lighting it with just candle light. So I have slightly moving lights. Couldnt find any references so far. But any idea is welcome here as I am still looking for inspiration for this one. (the feeling of the shot should portray him beeing broke, and he wants to find a job.)


I own a quasar science 4 ft, a aputure ls1s, Big reflector, softbox with grid and some unbleached muslin. So those can be thrown into the mix as well.

Thanks,

 

[Zeb B]

Light it normal, then fool with 'looks' in post. Seems like an easy shot to run tests first. My approach would be to test camera movement, focus and POV to add first person feel and viewer engagement. Trying to express anxiety can be done with a film study of his hands and how he is circling the ads and the nervous tension in his movements. The lighting is secondary from this performance and edit

 

[Karim D. Ghantous]

I am no lighting expert, but maybe: light softly from one direction, have lots of negative fill near and above the camera, get the neg fill as close to the paper as you can, and then take it back until you find the right balance. You won't need negative fill though if you start with a dark room, or if you're in a space that can be light-proofed.