Shooting in the day for NIGHT

[Fred Potts]

Not sure if this is the right place to post this but HAS anyone shot in the day for night scenes? I have a night scene coming up. THANKS for any feedback

 

[M Harvey]

Yes, it’s not uncommon to shoot day for night, and so there are common conventions (that change over the years with fashion and tech) and techniques to achieve those conventions. These range from using tinted filters outdoors (pretty old school) to simply tenting windows and perhaps creating “moon light” for interior scenes.

So: we can probably help, but what very specifically are you trying to do? Since the day for night look you want to achieve is an artistic choice, it’s also useful to find references in films/TV for what you want your day for night to look like.

 

[PatrickWebb]

I agree with Harvey. There are some good techniques by using heavy IRND filters and also in post with the grading.

I put a link below of a good video showing you a little in depth and some explanations.

Hope it helps and good luck!

 

[Fred Potts]

Thanks guys. I'm shooting a scene that takes place in the forest behind a shed. my thoughts was if I could shoot that during the late afternoon we wouldn't have to get GEN to power up the lights or have rolls and rolls of power cable running to the house for power.

 

[M Harvey]

Open shade with soft, directionless light is often a good place to start for day-for-night—and maybe your trees and shed provide that. If it’s dappled light, can it be sold as moonlight? That is often a question of the contrast ratio between highlights and fill.

Also, a hot sky in late afternoon can give it away quickly. So it’s often best to take a look at a sun map, and also if possible to scout at the time of day you’d like to shoot.

I’ll bet David Mullen has answered questions about this on his thread—worth searching.

 

[Fred Potts]

thanks

 

[James Darren]

As you can see by the above YouTube video, shooting day for night often looks bad. There are some exceptions to this but I think it's quite rare. Most DP's cringe at the suggestion.

It's why we as crew members often have to work at night (and often complain about it as it messes with our sleep schedule). I can't even remember the last time I was on a show that we shot day for night. The only times I've been on a day for night or night for day exterior shoot is when we've been forced to do so by location or actor scheduling, or we run out of time in the day/night. It's pretty rare though.

If there's anyway you can shoot your scene at night, do it - you'll be glad you did.

 

[Fred Potts]

I have a lighting guy coming out on set on Tuesday to see what the best way for him to setup lights for night filming.