Real jobs, real budgets, every decision explained. Watch on YouTube, listen to the podcast and put the free Framework to work on your next shoot.
FrameEpisode 168 · Daylight without lighting fixtures
Original episode ↗Recent jobs · every frame is a real breakdown
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HOW YOU’LL SEE ITHOW YOU SEE IT NOW
Everything comes from real jobs I shot. Start with the free Framework and the podcast. For more lighting studies and lessons, see what’s available on Patreon.
The six principles I light by, with real frames and the decisions behind them. 25 pages, free by email.
Episode #401 · The Sound of LightingThe curtains run into yellow and red, the top of the scale. The walls sit on 18% grey. That’s where the Framework starts: choose what you can’t change, set its exposure, then balance the rest of the frame around it.
Three pages from the 25-page guide. Select any page to view it full size.
Film and TV lighting studies, the Roadmap series and lessons from my work as a commercial DP.
See Patreon for the membership options and access available today.
Four courses you can start today, from $399: the commercial job from booking to set, exposure, and my Playbook system.
Looking for film or TV lighting breakdowns? Browse film and TV collections in the Shop, no membership needed.
Watch the decisions in the video, then listen to the original episode and read the show notes.
Episode 452 · The Look Comes Before the Shoot
Watch on YouTube ↗
Episode #452 · original podcast and show notes
Three real frames. Make your call, and my original notes draw over the picture. Hear more about each job in the original podcast.
Reviews from cinematographers who took Commercial Cinematography: The Foundation, as published on the course page.
This isn’t just a brilliant and truthfully legitimate course by Patrick, it is the absolute fundamental information one would ever want to know in pursuing a career in cinematography.
It has actionable lessons that will never become dated and provides such valuable insights into industry workflow.
Commercial Cinematography: The Foundation really hits the nail on the head with an easy-to-follow, no-nonsense approach to get work in the Commercial Cinematography world.
Commercial DP. Every breakdown here comes from a job I shot: the schedule we had, the space we got and the kit we could afford.
I teach the order the calls get made in. What gets decided first, what that choice makes harder later, and what you give up to get the frame. You won’t find recipes. You’ll find the decision and the reason for it.
The Framework connects exposure, camera position and the light you add or take away. Start with the biggest constraint. The shot decides how much each principle matters.
01 · Exposure
Choose what you can’t change, like the sky or a bright window. Set its exposure, then balance the rest of the frame around it.
“The more shade in the frame the easier it is to sell lower levels of ambient in the foreground.”
Episode #448 write-up
02 · Direction
Put the camera and key on opposite sides of the action line. Light the far side of the face and let the near side fall away.
03 · Shape
Shape with an upstage key, camera-side negative fill and an edge when it helps. The plus one is ambient light.
04 · Ambient
Set the ambient level through the space. Keep detail in the shadows while preserving the contrast on the face.
05 · Composition
Look along the long wall, ideally the window wall, into the corner. That gives you depth and somewhere for the light to fall off.
06 · Separation
Place bright subjects against darker areas and dark edges against lighter ones. Build separation into the frame.
Monitor wall6 cams
Frames are finished stills from my own jobs. Rig notes come from the original breakdowns; readings are labelled as readings.
In hindsight I should have cut the key light more on camera right to add shape to her face
I should have moved that flag over. Just softened it off a little bit more. It adds a nice edge, but it looks like it’s about a stop too much.
The more shade in the frame the easier it is to sell lower levels of ambient in the foreground.
A free visual field guide. Six principles, real frames and the decisions behind them.
Three pages from the 25-page guide. Select any page to view it full size.
Six principles, a lab to try them in, and a way to find the job that matches your next shoot. Go as deep as you like. For more lighting studies, see Wandering DP on Patreon.
A plaster head, one key, a black flag, an edge light and the room. Drag the key around the plan. Put it on the far side of the eyeline and the face gets shape. Swing it to the camera side and it flattens. Make the source bigger and the shadow edge softens.
Drag the sun around the talent. I’ll show you a real job I lit in that light, with my notes and what’s in the breakdown.
Real planning from recent breakdowns: drone scouts marked up with the rig, viewfinder stills with the lens and angle, and the boards the day was built on.
The Method shows how I think. The original podcast takes you through the job.
A frame gives you plenty to work through: where the light comes from, how the scene is blocked and what makes the coverage hold together. That’s what we study on Patreon.
| Sc. 1 | Film and TV lighting studies |
|---|---|
| Sc. 2 | The Roadmap series |
| Sc. 3 | Lessons from my commercial work |
| Crew | 3,100+ members |
| Wrap | Cancel anytime |
Patreon has the current membership options and the details of what each includes.
Six lighting principles, real frames and diagrams from my commercial work. A free 25-page guide to keep beside you during prep.
Film and TV lighting studies, each set built around a recurring problem. Buy one on Patreon, no membership needed.
Start Here: 8 Essential Narrative Lighting Studies$69 $120 separatelyBuy on Patreon →
The Scene Rolodex: 24 Setups for Real Jobs$129 $216 separatelyBuy on Patreon →
Block and Light Ensemble Coverage: 8 Film Studies$69 $96 separatelyBuy on Patreon →Dark Frames That Hold Detail: 8 Lighting Studies$69 $96 separatelyBuy on Patreon →
Shape Natural Light for Faces: 8 Film Studies$69 $96 separatelyBuy on Patreon →
Make Colour and Design Pull Together: 8 Film Studies$69 $96 separatelyBuy on Patreon →
Build Scale with Motivated Light: 8 Sci-Fi Studies$69 $96 separatelyBuy on Patreon →
Sell the Period Through Light and Location: 8 Film Studies$69 $96 separatelyBuy on Patreon →Fixed collections of film and TV lighting breakdowns on Patreon, plus the downloads I use on jobs. Choose your downloads below.
Each set is built around a recurring problem. Paid members already have them.
Add your downloads to the bag, then continue to our shop to pay.
Each one is a complete path through one part of the job, taken at your own pace.
How commercial jobs actually work, from finding the work to walking on to set: the key players, pre-production and what’s expected of the DP before the shoot.
The approach to exposure that changed my career: measuring values on set and off, building pattern recognition, and a workflow you can run on every job.
The system I built from years of trial and error: which decisions matter most to the look, and how to work so the crew around you can do their best work.
All four Playbook courses: The Playbook Approach, Volume II on blocking and coverage, Volume III on BODVO and The Vehicle Series on shooting in cars. BODVO is bar, office, dining table, vehicle, other. Every two-person scene you’ll shoot fits one of them.
Reviews from cinematographers who took Commercial Cinematography: The Foundation, as published on the course page.
This isn’t just a brilliant and truthfully legitimate course by Patrick, it is the absolute fundamental information one would ever want to know in pursuing a career in cinematography.
It has actionable lessons that will never become dated and provides such valuable insights into industry workflow.
Commercial Cinematography: The Foundation really hits the nail on the head with an easy-to-follow, no-nonsense approach to get work in the Commercial Cinematography world.
Keep studying the light. See Wandering DP on Patreon.
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