The Importance of Lighting Your Web Video

Have you ever sat down and watched a web video, only to find that it is a huge disappointment.  While there are many reasons why a web video can be disappointing, not enough information, didn't clearly explain the point, there is one major cause for individuals to not watch a web video.  This cause is from bad lighting.  Did you know that bad lighting can seriously alter the way your video looks, feels and is responded to?

Lighting for web videos isn't exactly different from lighting for actual films; however, it does take an understanding of how the Internet will show your video.  There are several tips that if you follow, you will have a beautifully lit web video.  

The first tip in lighting your web video is understanding what type of lights to actually use.  While many people 

that are filming their very web video simply use their house lights, some understand the need for extra lighting; however, they usually go too far.  You may notice that many web videos look washed out, or are too bright to see the details of the video.  This is because the individual used harsh light.  The key to having perfect lighting for web video is by using soft-light.  But what exactly is soft light?

This phrase is easy to define, basically in order to have soft light; you want to defuse the light as much as possible.  You can do so by detracting the light from directly hitting where your camera is filming.  You want to have a glow, instead of a harsh beam.  These harsh light beams are called hotspots, and they are the enemy to have a beautifully lit shot.  

When you are filming inside, it is easy to go overboard and have too much light.  The key to softening the light is to deter it through several methods.  Some individuals simply put a thin sheet over the light in order to defuse it enough to get rid of hot spots, but still let enough light to go through to give the shooting area a soft, yet bright, glow.  By pointing a light directly at the subject that you are filming, you are going to drain them out and create shadows and various hot spots.  Remember, hot spots and shadows, or any other type of contrasting light is not cohesive to a great web video shot.  Always look through your camera's viewfinder and try to point out any shadows and extra-bright areas.  By doing so, you will have a finished product that looks professional and clean. 

Filming outside can sometimes be a difficult task because you have an ever-changing source of light, when you are filming during the daytime.  Instead of putting your subjects directly under the sun, which will cause them to squint and look washed out; set them back to where the sun's rays are not directly in their faces.

You can defuse the light by using reflectors, which will allow you to sit in the shade while still obtaining enough light to clearly see the subjects.  One of the biggest tricks of the trade is to lay down a white sheet directly in front of the subject that you are filming.  This will reflect the light, as well as giving the shot a nice glow.