August 24, 2009
For
a recent episode of Without a Trace
underwater cinematographer Pete Romano, ASC needed to make sure that the
audience could see one of the show’s regulars, even though he was underwater.
“We were at the underwater studio, Tank One, in Signal Hill, Long Beach,” he
explains
. “I needed to pull out the details in the actor’s face and get a nice
soft fill that wouldn’t overpower the shot.
“The
Litepanels MicroPro in the SeaSun housing allowed me to pull a rabbit out of
a hat. When shooting underwater, you are working in a three-dimensional water
column,” Romano explains. “Depending on the scene or the subject, the camera
and lighting are usually in constant motion trying to get the shot.
“For
this episode I simply put the Litepanels MicroPro into a special water-tight housing
that also allows for color correction or diffusion units to be slid into the
front. The combination is so small and close to neutral buoyancy in the water,
it’s very easy to move as you follow the action. And, because the Litepanels
LEDs require less than 1/10th the amount of power as traditional
underwater lighting sources, the batteries run ten times longer than old-style
underwater fixtures. For this shot I used Energizer E2 Lithium ion AA
batteries, allowing for the MicroPro to run for over five hours if needed.”
This
isn’t the first time Romano used Litepanels in the specially designed SeaSun
housing (created by Romano through his company Hydroflex). “I’ve used the
MicroPro in several different venues, including a commercial in the Bahamas for
Southwest Airlines, where we had a similar problem. The light on the actor’s
face inside the mask was way down. By using a Litepanels MicroPro off camera,
we were able to get enough light inside the mask to match the light level
outside the mask. It really made a
difference.”
“This
is an extremely simple and easy approach to fill lighting underwater,” he adds.
“It's a soft light with no cables and it’s neutral in the water. Plus you get
the ability to gel or diffuse when needed.
“I
always take a MicroPro in the SeaSun housing with me no matter where I go now.”
www.litepanels.com
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