Green Screen Tutorial

Today we had a very quick session on how to use green screens, which I found to be really interesting. We ran over the basics of how green screens work and how they were used. I also discovered that green screens are green (or blue) because this colour isn't a common colour found in skin tones. Who knew?

We were shown how to set up the light stands and LED lights, and I found that you would have a number of different lights to do different things. You even have to have a separate light - or lights - to light up the green screen, which I did not know. I also learnt the standard way for lighting up your subject.

My Beautiful Diagrams

The diagrams that I have created outline a standard set up for using a green screen. The Edge light imitates the sun and will shine on the object, in this case, from behind. The Key light is set up opposite the Edge light to act as light that will be bouncing from other objects onto the main object, IE reflections from the sun/indirect lighting. This is usually not as bright as the Edge light, and you can actually replace this light with a reflector, but sometimes it's better to be able to have the control over the intensity of the light if you have the option to. Lastly, the Fill light is simply there to get rid of any unwanted shadows that are created by the first two lights. This light will definitely not be that bright and it is usually just a subtle addition to make the aesthetic of the shot nicer. Having said this, it all depends on what kind of mood or look you're trying to create. If you're wanting to have a shot that is reproducing the effect of the moonlight on a scary setting, you might only want to use the Edge light. For instance, Sin City is a film that used Edge lighting for almost 100% of their shots, as that was the look they were striving for, so it all depends on preference. What is important to remember however is to light your object first, no matter what set up of lights you are wanting to use, as well as trying to not let the light for the green screen interfere with the lighting for your subject. Above this you also have to consider the space you have to work with, and the size of the object/subject that you're photographing.

Using a green screen is not something that I had even thought about using before now, but I would definitely like to give it ago, whether it be for a future project or just something I experiment with.