How is this done? Yes, I am second

[tdangelo]

Originally Posted by talldude20

How is the background so purely black? What does the lighting need to be in order to achieve that? What do the camera settings need to be?

Another key to this "look" is that it is under exposed. Notice how the white chair does not come close to normal levels. In fact, it is just a touch brighter than the subjects face. This can only be done with a lot of control over the lighting, OR underexposing. As the wide shot shows there is a single Kinoflo overhead (and possibly some fill off camera, but not a lot as eye sockets were dark on the clip I saw), they were not going for a controlled look, but an underexposed look. I would guess that they had quite a bit of Nuetral Density dialed in on the camera or as a filter in front of the lens. It also looks like they were shooting wide open, F1.8, F2, etc. (assuming video), to achieve a shallow depth of field. Lastly, if I were creating this look, I would also crush the blacks in the camera or in post.

- Tom D'Angelo

[rlahoda]

The video appears to have been shot with a single primary light source directly above and just in front of the subject. It looks like a softbox on a single spotlight adjusted to minimize spill so that the light is shining down the subject's face. Having the spotlight bright enough will allow you to compensate with the exposure of the camera so that the background goes completely black while the face is properly exposed.

[rlahoda]

Actually the Shannon Culpepper video shows the lighting they did.
iamsecond.com/#/seconds/Shannon_Culpepper/

[Corban]

Another possible method is just to film on a greenscreen and chroma key the green to black....in this way you can execellent lighting and yet a jet black background. This is how I personally would achive this effect

[DTV-Engineer]

This is called a "limbo" background, and it's very easy to achieve with traditional methods. Use a very dark non-reflective background -- navy blue, dark grey, black -- in the studio, it would be a black cyc. Don't light the cyc at all, and have the talent far enough away from the background that the key and fill lighting doesn't hit the cyc (they are typically 45 degrees to either side of the lens axis, and 45 degrees above horizontal, so for a six foot tall person standing, they would be at least ten feet out. Adding a back light (about 22 degrees off vertical) will give the head and shoulders a bright rim that accentuates the foreground - background separation. (Yes, I just described classic three-point lighting.)

Here's the important thing: you will need to override the automatic iris setting to stop down, because your scene will be well below the mid-grey average the servo is calibrated for. Otherwise, skin tones will be grossly overexposed and the background becomes visible. A waveform monitor is very useful for getting this right. It also helps if the subject's clothing is mid-range, so it neither competes with facial features nor melts into the background.

If you're after an edgier look, reducing or eliminating the fill and back lights will greatly accentuate the shadows, as will moving the key farther off-axis.

Incidentally, the opposite technique is used for "anonymous talking head" shots: use a very light background and light it thoroughly, especially directly behind the subject. Make sure the person is completely unlit, and set iris to properly expose the background.

JLHyde touches on depth of field... newer cameras are sensitive enough that you might need to add a neutral density filter in order to get the iris open sufficiently.

Both effects rely on the relatively limited dynamic range of video (or film) compared to the human eye. As I recall, a person with average vision can resolve about a 16-stop range; film, around 10-12; and video, about 8 stops.

-- Jeff

[DTV-Engineer]

Originally Posted by Corban

Another possible method is just to film on a greenscreen and chroma key the green to black....in this way you can execellent lighting and yet a jet black background. This is how I personally would achive this effect

Good chromakey requires careful lighting of both the foreground and background; even so, you're likely to get a green halo, especially if the subject has thin hair. "Limbo" lighting is actually much easier to achieve, eliminates the halo, and poses no restrictions on the colors the subject can wear. Also handy if you ever interview a martian.

-- Jeff

[tdangelo]

Originally Posted by DTV-Engineer

... film, around 10-12; and video, about 8 stops.

Jeff, There are many pro-HD cameras capable of 10+ to 12+ stops of usable latitude.

- Tom D'Angelo

[DTV-Engineer]

Originally Posted by tdangelo

Jeff, There are many pro-HD cameras capable of 10+ to 12+ stops of usable latitude.

- Tom D'Angelo

This is true... but I'm considering the entire system as a whole, including the display device.

-- Jeff

[turbomitch]

You can achieve this look even with a low-end camera like the JVC Everio that I have to use and a very small budget. You just need a large space (I used out sanctuary and cleared the background behind the subject), your camera, and decent lighting. The lighting is VERY crucial. We can't afford a professional light so I built one from WalMart parts (ask if you want details).

You can see an example of the first video I made in this style after building the video light on our Vimeo account at vimeo.com/hcmedia .
You can also see an example of what it can look like without proper lighting (before I built the light).
The latest video in this style turned out even better but I haven't uploaded it. Instead of only using the key light (front main light) I also used a backlight to give the subject a more distinct outline.

[TSA AV Crew]

Also, you can go into any prosumer editing application and using a levels or exposure effect "crush the black levels" in it.

[forty31]

I've followed this thread for awhile now, so I thought I would thrown in my attempt at achieving "iamsecond-ness". I used a large room with a single light source from above. He was far enough away from the things in the room that I didn't need to use a backdrop. It was pretty simple to achieve just using the aperture on my camera (Canon xh-a1). It's the testimony listed here...www.vimeo.com/user1245518

[frokey]

Looks great! How did you mic him?