Natural sunlight is used to light film sets and subjects. However, strong, direct sunlight complicates filming, since it produces dark shadows and bright highlights. Ideally, for filming purposes, quality natural light is sunlight that is diffused or reflected. Diffused or reflected light includes sunlight filtered through haze, mist or pollution in the air, which is reflected to produce weak, soft shadows and dull highlights. Photographers and filming professionals refer to this kind of light as "flat" lighting because of the fine details and well-saturated colors that it produces.
Frontlined light t is created when the sun or artificial lamp is behind the camera, angled at the subject (or set) from one side or the other. This type of lighting provides an impression of depth, rather than flattening the subjects, which direct, over-the-shoulder sunlight tends to do. It It is ideal for photographs and films, which are two-dimensional.
Side lighting is light (whether natural or artificial) that approaches the subject from the side (either the left or the right), casting shadows on the subject's other side. Both the light and the shadows are within the camera's purview. The purpose of side lighting is to emphasize texture and detail. It is especially used in black and white filming, which relies on gray tones to create dimension, and to film scenes in which you want the viewer to observe textures, such as the ripples of waves in the ocean or of sand on the beach.
Backlighting occurs when the light (whether natural or artificial) is in front of the photographer, shining directly at the camera. Backlighting is so named because the subject is backlit. This kind of lighting is often used when the sun is very bright, since it prevents the subject from having to squint his eyes and since the subject's silhouette blocks some of the penetrating rays. When backlighting is used, the camera lens is typically covered with a hood, which shades the lens from the direct rays of sun.
Fluorescent lighting is artificial light, which is used to supplement or replace natural sunlight. Fluorescent light emits blue and green light and is deficient of red light. This combination of colors, in fact, creates very realistic, natural looking images. When it comes to artificial lighting, fluorescent lighting is the preferred kind, since the lamps are bright and illuminate the subject evenly. Fluorescent light often supplements natural light to record details that would otherwise be lost in shadows. Importantly, fluorescent lamps can be arranged and angled to achieve frontlined light, side lighting and backlighting.