When I began my series on lighting angles I was exploring the idea of how one may find almost limitless options with regards to problem solving. As I expanded the discussion with an examination of backlight followed by sidelight and finally frontlight I did a return to basics. Now it is time to put those basics aside in order to delve into the world of conceptual thinking.
As I outlined in the first four segments of this series there are three primary angles of lighting. But the larger point to be made is not that we have a limited palette to work from. Instead quite the opposite is true. While we can essentialize light down to these fundamentals the reality is that there are limitless possibilities in terms of lighting angles and certainly combinations of angles. The very conceptual approach that one would take to think in terms of angles as outlined in those essays is its own fundamental that must be put aside.
Learning the basic angles of light is a useful exercise when first learning the medium. It is akin to those first exploring color theory creating a color wheel to examine the six basic colors and relationships contained therein. While a useful exercise and certainly information every lighting designer must have stored in their memory, it is not as if we sit around thinking, “Gee, that scene would certainly benefit from sidelight, with some assistance from a bit of backlight and a breath of frontlight.”
What we do is explore the conceptual space within which the piece occurs. This leads us to an exploration of the physical space, the environment, in which the performance happens. What we are first concerned with is the “How.” How does light move in this space? How can light naturally flow into this space? How is the light blocked from various directions? How may we create an authentic understanding of this space with light?
Our job is to bring light into a dark volume of space. Every space is unique and the manner in which light moves into and through a given environment will vary tremendously depending upon what that space is. Having the fundamentals of what lighting can be and can do is necessary to free us from that mode of thinking and simply see where lighting can go.
I have seen far too many designers force a particular vision upon a space and quite literally force the lighting to move in a way counter to the natural flow of the environment. Or worse, hear them say that such and such a space is “unlightable” because it does not conform to their preconceived notions of how light must move. Too often beginning from either of these premises will result in failure. The light in these cases does not flow with the architecture. Rather it exists on a discrete plane of conceptual understanding. While this would probably not be noticed by the majority of the audience it none the less detracts from the experience. When the lighting and the physical environment are moving in a harmonious manner the effect is quite stunning.
Architects design buildings paying very close attention to the orientation of the structure and how it relates to the passage of the sun throughout the day. Windows, awnings and so forth are all designed and oriented to maximize the functionality and aesthetic possibilities of the building. Working as a lighting designer we must reverse engineer this process and looking at the scenery, determine what manner of light would best show off the various structures.
This conceptual approach ties in to the notion of visual translation that I outlined a few weeks ago. More precisely it is a visual analog to the textual archaeology I discussed last week. While not applied to text, it is the same mode of thinking put to work to understand a physical space.
Approaching a space as something to be engaged as opposed to something that must merely be dealt with is necessary for a deep visual reading of an environment. We must take that environment on its own terms and listen to what it has to say with regards to how lighting may move through it. Knowing the many possible lighting angles available allows the designer to approach a space with limitless possibilities in terms of how to fill it. At the same time the designer must not let that knowledge prevent them from seeing possibilities built into the very structure of the space itself. Being receptive to the needs of the space is the true test of ones understanding of these fundamental concepts.
Tags: angle, backlight, frontlight, lighting, sidelight
this is also relevant to inner designing, now does it? i often see light and shadows are important features when designers design rooms and make inner designing, and it’s interesting because a house without proper sun lighting is not a good house to live in.