American cinematographer (Jan-Dec 1963)

INTERVIEW I know that all the television film I shoot is going to he reviewed by projection on a conventional the¬ atre screen by studio production heads, and 1 want them to see the best possible photographic result. Producers and directors invariably check their T\ film productions in this manner; many of them sel¬ dom see the same picture televised. If the photog¬ raphy looks good on a theatre screen, it follows that it also will look good when televised — assuming that transmission conditions and the viewer’s set are functioning properly. Q — This matter of good picture results suggests that lighting praetiee and the lighting equipment used play a major role, lias the photography of TV films brought about the use of any new lighting equipment ? A — Our basic set lighting hasn’t changed much. There have been some improvements made in exist¬ ing equipment such as high-intensity arc lamps, also some re-designing of conventional lamp housings and accessories. Also, there have been significant improvements made in so-called “boosted-voltage” lighting equipment such as the ColorTrans and Masterlites. The recently-introduced quartz-iodine lamps hold some promise for lighting small sets. More recently, some manufacturers have developed radically new housings to employ this illumination unit, enabling it to produce a variety of light patterns. The March issue of American Cinematographer featured an article describing the new quartz-iodine photo lamps developed by ColorTran, which utilizes this efficient light source in a reflector that affords a range of beam configurations and illumination volume. How¬ ever, no one to date has successfully combined the QI lamp with a lens-reflector combination that will provide positive beam control similar to our present standard spotlights. Still another advancement in lighting equipment that has seen little application in film studios is the solid-state dimmer. This is a silicon-controlled recti¬ fier now popular in theatres and some television studios. It requires alternating current whereas most Hollywood film studios utilize direct current for set lighting — chiefly because of the large number of arc lamps used in set lighting. The new silicon rec¬ tifier-dimmers are remarkably compact and offer simplified remote and pre-set advantages. Q — Do you use much arc lighting today in set illu¬ mination for TV films? A — I often use arcs for lighting large sets, but rarely for small interiors. When working on exterior sets, arcs are used to enhance sharpness of detail. Out¬ doors, arcs are also used for booster light and for illuminating some night scenes. One thing about TV filming, you shoot hot or cold, rain or shine. I have shot scenes in pouring rain and the rain didn’t show up on the screen. In one se¬ quence, the rain became so heavy that it began to show on the actors’ clothes. The script was quickly re-written to coincide with the rain. But before we could finish the sequence, the rain stopped and we had to move rain-making equipment to the location to complete the sequence with photographic uni¬ formity. It is often surprising how difficult it is to make falling rain visible in exterior scenes, especially when the set is not rigged for backlighting or cross¬ lighting. Here arc lighting is essential to highlight the rain effect and give the scene a little “snap.” (J — Have the faster B&W film emulsions been help¬ ful in photographing television films? A — Yes. Emulsions like Eastman’s Double-X — per¬ haps the most important film improvement in recent years — enable me to get good quality plus all the advantages of a high-speed film. Some cameramen believed that when negatives of higher speed became available they would be able to use less light and the studios would consequently save money on lighting bills. But what actually happened is that many cameramen simply stopped down the lens, say from f/4 to f/6.3, and used the same volume of light. I prefer to flood the existing lights or add diffu¬ sion and thus be able to work at the same f/ stop as before. If I need the advantage of the extra stopdown the fast emulsion affords, I can remove the diffusers from the lamps or make the set illumina¬ tion “hotter.” Q — Does this mean that you generally avoid detail that is too sharp? A — There are often situations where I prefer to keep background detail soft, but the sharpness in the over¬ all picture depends on the magnification relative to audience viewpoint. When we see a picture on the television screen, the reduction in size of the picture in effect increases the depth of field. Q— it would seem advantageous as well as a means of saving time where a cameraman is shooting a TV series, to have much of the set lighting ‘‘fixed’’ or permanently rigged so that it is more or less ready for instant use when he returns to the set each week. What are your views on this? A — Where a cameraman is permanently assigned to a TV series there could be advantages in having certain basic backgrounds pre-lit in permanent sets. It happens, however, that in some studios the camera¬ men shooting established TV series are rotated in their assignments so that a different one shoots a given show each week. And each one, being some¬ what of an individualist, has his own ideas how these shows should be lit. There never has been any fixed Continued on Page 295 280 AMERICAN CINEMATOGRAPHER, MAY, 1963