The Series Every Photographer Should Be Watching

Ripley, streaming on Netflix, is a high-contrast film noir. It is filmed in such a beautiful and meticulous way that I find myself rewinding scenes just to study everything that is going on visually and why. Lighting, camera angles and objects in a scene can tell a story without using words.

In the video, Tatiana Hopper goes into great detail to explain the purpose behind shooting in a film noir style and what is being said visually. Every scene is very intentional, from the way it’s lit to the use of shadows and composition. Each scene could be a photograph and stand on its own. The director, Steven Zailian and cinematographer, Robert Elswit wanted to shoot in a film noir style and make everything very intentional. Every person and object is placed just right and in many scenes only one key light is used to highlight whats important in the scene, whether it’s the actor or an important object in the room. The amount of time it takes to set up and light each scene and the attention to detail are extensive and impressive.

Hopper points out that the lighting in Ripley is reflective of historic paintings, how Zailian and Elswit pay homage to the painter Caravaggio, and why lighting is important to tell the story.

This is a must-watch series for anyone looking to improve their own lighting in photography and how to tell a story with light and shadows, and how to use camera angles to tell a story.