A Gathering of Light

Let me speak not as Uncle Louie, but as a DP (Director of Photography) here. Most certainly what I'm about to say has to do with Uncle Louie, or any film, or for that matter, life itself. I have talked about film lighting before, but now if you'll pardon me I'm going to get a little philosophical on you.

Close your eyes. What do you see? Nothing? Open your eyes, and now you see everything around you- unless your sitting in a room with absolutely no light. It doesn't matter if your eyes are open or closed, if there is no light, there is no image. Try it. Go into a pitch black room or maybe a closet, and keep your eyes open. You see nothing- or as Uncle Louie would say- you see "ugots".
Why? Unless we have the horrible and sad handicap of blindness, you won't see anything without light. Not your lovers face, your child's smile, not a flower or a tree- nothing. No light, no image even if you have 20/20 vision. Even an owl, whose vision is acute in dark situations needs a little light.

Light only comes from two sources- it is created artificially with electricity, or phosphorus chemicals, or from nature- sunlight, moonlight, or an astronomical event such as the Northern Lights. That's it. Without one, or a combination of them, you see nothing- and neither does the camera.

Now being a DP allows me to play with light. Light will allow you to do this, except it won't let you bend it. You amateur physicists are probably saying, "Wait can't you bend light with fiber optics, or a prism? No. You are reflecting it, not bending it. Plain and simple light can't be bent. Check Einstein out on this. But play with it- oh yeah! I can color it, reflect it, intensify it, dim it, aim it, and turn it on and off. Not the natural light of course, or can't turn it on or off, that happens when it wants to. But I can block it, or it let it through. It can't defeat me, for I am the controller, shaper, and stylist of light. Sounds heady, but that's what a DP does; or any one else that wants to try. Here's a little light trick- take a bottle of water and shine a light through the bottom. The water seems to glow. Add some colored plating or gels to it and have some blue water or red water. Did you know that in a larger body of water like a pool or pond, red lights under the water turn it black on the surface? Yep, there are all kinds of tricks light will let you play on it. Look at the scenes in Uncle Louie where the light created a mood, or a visual effect, like the Louie/Lester garage scene, or the light reflecting off the flowers in the Pinto Lake scene.

So next time you curse your electric bill, or the brightness of the sun, remember, without them, you see nothing. The camera doesn't see either, so no films or TV. As a man who has studied, works with, and makes a living off light, no light means no life. By the way its that light off your computer screen that's letting you read this.