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Film & Television vocabulary · Lighting

Three-point lighting

Meaning in film & television, with examples

nounCommon term

In film & television, three-point lighting means: A basic lighting method that uses three lights: a key light for the main light, a fill light to soften shadows and a backlight to separate the subject from the background.

In Turkish: üç nokta aydınlatma, üç noktalı ışık düzeni

How it is used

Taught in every film school and used daily for interviews, corporate videos and talk shows. Cinematographers often start from three-point lighting and then break the rules for a more dramatic or natural look.

Example sentences

  1. For the interviews we'll use simple three-point lighting with LED panels.

  2. Three-point lighting looks clean, but for this thriller we want darker shadows.

Common collocations

  • basic three-point lighting
  • set up three-point lighting
  • classic three-point lighting
  • key lightThe main and strongest light on a subject, which sets the overall brightness and direction of light in a shot.
  • lightingThe use and arrangement of light sources on set to show the action clearly and to create the mood and look of a scene.
  • low-key lightingA lighting style with strong contrast, deep shadows and large dark areas, used to create mystery, tension or fear.
  • gafferThe head of the electrical and lighting crew on a film set, who carries out the cinematographer's lighting plan.

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