Lighting A White Cyc Wall

Commercial advertising photographers use a cyc wall for professional lighting and no horizon line.

Lighting a white cyc wall.

There you are surrounded by white with no horizon in sight. This article is about how to build a commercial photography studio cyclorama. Through trial and error you can find the perfect way to create the best lighting for your next production. In theater and film a cyclorama abbreviated cyc in the united states is a large curtain or wall often concave positioned at the back of the apse it often encircles or partially encloses the stage to form a background.

Imagine being inside an empty egg. If the background is too close to the subject your hard direct lighting will spill over onto the background and will show. Cyclorama lights while very similar to borderlights produce a very broad asymmetrical wash of light used to light cycs and scenery from as high as 25 feet. The concept is that the talent is performing yoga in the middle of a white sweep.

Cyclorama lighting is used either from the ground ground cycs or from fly pipes sky cycs and for better uniformity both types may be used. It was popularized in the german theater of the 19th century and continues in common usage today in theaters throughout the world. I want to bring the entire background and floor to a nice white and light the talent in a high key type way. Hi everyone i am going to be filming a white cyc wall and am doing full body shots.

A multitude of car commercials come to mind as well all shot against a seamless cyclorama background. Overall lighting a white cyc wall or backdrop is an exciting and fun part of the filmmaking process. Then by incorporating shape and contrast you can take your project to the next level. You want sharp crisp lighting on her and her partner.

I am trying to achieve the look of the mac vs pc commericals with possibly the lighting on the talent a little more on the contrasty side. I am shooting a yoga video and need some advice on how to light a white cyc wall. Why build a studio cyc wall. I have a 2k a 1k 2 tweenies and 2 teenies.

Your cyc is white and want a nice smooth transition on the horizon that gradually fades from white where they are standing to a 30 grey at the top of the set.