Use of Natural Lighting in features

 Lighting is the basis for any film's visual aesthetics. The image becomes overexposed when there is too much light, making it difficult to see properly. However, if there isn't enough light, it will be difficult to imagine characters against a fixed backdrop. With the correct amount of light, you may create stunning images that will capture your audience. When working with natural light, you have far less control over lighting placement, but there are steps you may do to improve the aesthetic impression of natural lighting.

When shooting inside with lighted windows, consider which angles are preferable to avoid allowing much more light into the frames, that will result in an overexposed shot. In this scenario, however, the problem can be solved by employing a normal reflector to direct the light to the desired location. 

Filming one hour before or within one hour of sunset is not always doable. Understand how light is naturally filtered and diffused to your advantage when photographing in the middle of the day, or at any time of day. Clouds are a natural diffuser that is constantly changing. Filming
under the clouds, shadows will be cast around the scenery. Use shadows to generate visual effects that would otherwise need complex lighting settings. Furthermore, shooting next to buildings and trees can help to diffuse the sun's rays.  Instead of risking overexposure, take advantage of these factors to create correctly exposed footage that captures the genuine beauty of the filming site.

On a sunny or partly overcast day, the actor can be placed in front of the sun to act as a natural backlight, providing a lovely rim around the actor and preventing direct sunlight from beaming in the actor's eyes. Based on where you're shooting, the weather will change swiftly. Always Ensure that you're prepared to use natural light as much as possible when filming, but have a good back up plan if the natural light options don't work out. Nothing is more aggravating than arriving at a shoot unprepared.

Reference : Lamphere, M., 2021. Effect of Natural Lighting in Film | Beverly Boy Productions. [online] Beverly Boy Productions. Available at: <https://beverlyboy.com/cinematography/effect-of-natural-lighting-in-film/> [Accessed 2nd June 2022].