As some of you know, in addition to running this blog and shooting/directing my own films I also have worked extensively as a colorist. More so than anything else that I do day to day, color grading has helped to improve my understanding and approach to cinematography immensely – and one of the biggest lessons I’ve learned over the years is that you shouldn’t always protect your highlights. What Do I Mean By Protecting The Highlights? Essentially what I’m referring to is the practice of exposing your image for the highlights (or hotspots) in the frame to ensure nothing clips. In a scenario where you have an actor standing in front of a bright window, exposing for the highlights would mean that you bring your exposure down low enough that the window isn’t blown out … Continue reading Cinematography Rant: Why Protecting Your Highlights Is Killing Your Footage