Creating a soft image with the book light

Cinematographer Shane Hurlbut A.S.C. has worked on some films such as Need for Speed, Act of Valor, and Semi-Pro. In which he uses a lighting technique that he describes on his blog as a "Book Light." This configuration and purpose is definitely interesting way to light a scene. Essentially, a book light is any light source which is first bounced creating a soft effect, and then diffused even more through diffusion material such as bleached or unbleached muslin. When positioned the bounce and diff will look like that of a book. Also, now the bounce has become the source of light, making it so that moving the diffusion closer or further away from your subject can change the softness of this light. One last thing to mention is that in most locations this bounce source will probably have light spill everywhere, leading to light bouncing off the walls in many directions. To combat this, having a few flags or draping a large piece of duvetyne fabric in order to block off this light will be extremely useful in order to make the scene have an even look.

Go over and check out Shane's useful blog:
http://www.hurlbutvisuals.com/blog/2012/11/creating-a-beauty-light-with-a-book-light/