Photography has undergone various phases since the time we remember and even before that. Initially we use to see the black and white pictures of our parents, a little blur, acceptable level of clarity and we were happy with the fact that at least those memorable moments were captured. But now, things are changed. Special effects in photography are becoming a trend with the advancement in technology. These days, it is no more difficult to get the picture of extreme clarity and of your own specifications.
When we talk of all the advancements and conveniences, the lighting and meters and lighting support and accessories immediately come to mind. The most common of these wonderful equipments is gobo. Gobo is light blocking device that falls under the category of “Grip equipment”. It is generally used in the studio to prevent the portion of scene from illumination of the studio light. Gobos are made up of simple piece of opaque cardboard or a sophisticated material in a specific shape that is normally a square or a rectangle. Gobos are used to give special effects like making light fades gradually from one corner to the opposite one, but sizes and settings vary from effects to effects.
Gobos are available in several forms. One of the leading manufacturers of gobos has offerings that serve gobos as an artistic tool that add structure and depth to the gobo pattern. The offerings are as follows:
- Metal gobos
- Textured gobos
- Lithographic gobos
- Single color dichroic gobos
- Fused gobos
- Animation wheels
Apart from the available ones, custom made gobos can also be acquired. These custom made gobos are plastic gobos and are required when a pattern is needed in a color and the glass is not sufficient. However, plastic gobos are used with special cooling elements so as to prevent them from melting. A laspse of even few seconds of cooling elements can result in the loss of these expensive films.
Theatrical gobos are a little complex. They are made up of either sheet metal or borosilicate glass, depending upon the complexity of design. The low budget theatre use gobos made up of discarded soda cans or pie plates. But these gobos are not able to resist the heat of stage lightening instrument.
Photographers use gobos to play with shapes of shadows. They can be as simple as a single card shaping an area in a photograph or any shaped area created by several cards. A remarkable type of gobo is a cukaloris. It is an opaque or sometimes a translucent card with not any particular shape. Rather it is an irregular cut out piece. Such type of gobo can easily be made by anyone simply from the foamcore. It was used initially in movies to simulate the pattern of light passing through tree leaves. Various household objects can be used to make interesting gobos. Window shutters, lace curtains and blinds are a couple of examples.
Barndoors are a form of gobo. Gobo is known as gobo for the reason that it “goes between the light and subject”. It is placed between the subject and light. However, the barndoors normally create too gradual or subtle fall-off as it is placed to close to the light itself.
Barn doors or a set of barn doors can be used together with honeycomb grids to restrict and control the light generated by the softbox. These are also attached at the front of Fresnel lantern. Fresnel lantern is a kind of spotlight utilized in films, theatres and television. These barn doors have four leaves; one pair is larger than the other one and is larger and widening on the outside. The other pair is smaller and narrows towards the outside. They are used to control, direct and shape the beam of light and prevent the light from scattering. Those who have ever visited a television studio must have observed these strategically placed at multiple locations.
