• KEY LIGHT: The principal light on a subject.

• FILL LIGHT: The light that lightens shadows created by the main (key) light.

• BACKGROUND LIGHT: A light splashed on a wall or other backing to lighten it and add visual interest.

• HIGH KEY: Lighting in which much of the image is light, with darker accents.

• LOW KEY: Lighting in which much of the image is dark, with lighter accents.

• MEDIUM KEY: Lighting in which neither light nor dark tones dominate the image.

• EXPRESSIONISM: A lighting style that adds a heightened emotional effect, without regard for lighting motivation.

• MAGIC REALISM: A lighting style that creates a strange or unearthly effect, often enhanced digitally in postproduction.

• MOTIVATED LIGHTING: Lighting that imitates real-world light sources at a location.

• LARGE SOURCE LIGHT: A lighting instrument, such as a scoop or other floodlight, with a big front area from which light is emitted. Light from large-source instruments is relatively soft and diffuse.

• GAFFER: The chief lighting technician on a shoot.

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