American Cinematographer - March 2008 - (Page 51)

touch” is how cinematographer Lowell Peterson, ASC describes the primetime soap opera, now in its fourth season on ABC. Peterson reveres Sirk, whose classical Hollywood melodramas were as much ironic social critiques as they were arch romances about misguided — or, better yet, forbidden — love. Although Desperate Housewives is played primarily for comedy, it, too, carries a healthy dose of social commentary. In lighting the show’s leading ladies, Peterson draws inspiration from Russell Metty, ASC, Sirk’s longtime cameraman, whose luminous close-ups captured what Peterson calls “the inner life of women.” A longtime fan of classic cinematography, with its emphasis on the human face, Peterson was a perfect fit for ABC’s hit show. “In TV in general, the close-up is the money shot,” he notes. His approach includes large, broad sources placed close to the actresses, wraparound lighting tailored to each face, plus contrast and highlights in other parts of the frame. The drawback to big-source soft lighting is, of course, that “it tends to slobber all over the place,” laughs Peterson, who sat down with AC while waiting for the Hollywood writers’ strike to be resolved. “You can’t control it with flags; you can’t cut a big 8-by source; but you can grid it so it concentrates on what you want to light. And because it’s soft, you can bring it around and it’s still flattering on the face. Instead of front-lighting an actress with a big grid [that would] destroy the back wall, I’ll bring it around so it’s lighting the side wall you can’t see. The grid keeps it off the wall you do see.” Barger-Baglites, which were already in use on the set when Peterson joined the show, prove quite useful. “I’d never seen them before and instantly fell in love with them,” says the cinematographer. “They aren’t very deep; they have either three bulbs or six bulbs; and we put big Chimeras on them, 3 feet across for the 3-Lite and 4 feet across for the 6-Lite. We put metal grids on the front of that to direct the light.” Peterson was pleased to “inherit” another asset that was already in place when he came aboard the show, gaffer Lon Thompson. “Lon is wonderful, very innovative, and as soon as he saw that I was into big, broad sourcelighting, he found all these great tools. One was the Litepanels Mini, which makes an exceptionally nice eyelight; you can dial it up and down and it won’t change color. “Litepanels also manufactures 1-by-1-foot panels, and we use a large number of them for key light on interiors,” he continues. “They’re very thin, about an inch thick, and we use 2-by-2 frames so we can put four of them together. You can hang them, stick them on a Baby stand, or attach them to a wall with Velcro. They dim with no color shift. We carry both tungsten and daylight varieties.” A favorite unit for exteriors is the SoftSun 3.5K Soft Par, a soft daylight source that serves as fill, liner and even key light. The fixture is light enough to sit on a Junior stand. The crew has nicknamed it “Jiffy Pop” because it resembles a fully popped bag of the microwave popcorn. Peterson says the show’s generous lighting package, provided by Desperate Housewives photos by Ron Tom and David Grossman, courtesy of ABC. Frame grabs courtesy of Modern VideoFilm. Universal Electric, is larger than anything he worked with on previous shows. (His credits include Six Feet Under, Star Trek: The Next Generation and Profiler.) “I still try to use less expensive stuff when possible,” he notes. “For example, I use chicken coops on stage exteriors rather than space lights.” Desperate Housewives is Top (from left): Bree (Marcia Cross), Gabrielle (Eva Longoria), Susan (Teri Hatcher) and Lynette (Felicity Huffman) keep an eye on their neighbors in Desperate Housewives. Below: Cinematographer Lowell Peterson, ASC, who alternates episodes with Eric Van Haren Noman, ASC, prepares to use a “Fly Swatter” on Wisteria Lane. American Cinematographer 51

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of American Cinematographer - March 2008

American Cinematographer - March 2008 Contents Editor’s Note Short Takes: Bill Viola’s Ocean Without a Shore Production Slate: 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days Production Slate: Chantal: A Night at the Pyramids Magical Mystery Tour Some Kind of Monster Tantalizing Television Making Sitcoms “Sexy” Post Focus: Mega Playground Helps Set Look for Sibling Post Focus: Visual Effects Society Launches White Paper New Products & Services International Marketplace Classified Ads Ad Index In Memoriam: John McPherson, ASC ASC Membership Roster Clubhouse News ASC Close-Up: Wayne Kennan

American Cinematographer - March 2008

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