Reading your question I got a lovely NYC flashback when we at StudentFilmmakers hosted a workshop with Peter Stein, ASC. He was the director of photography for the horror film classic, Friday the 13th, Part 2, the second largest grossing film in 1981 for Paramount. He covered SO MANY THINGS.
In reply to your post above, you mentioned lighting actors, how to do this cheap, and with no editing/post-production. The first thing that pops in my mind, coming from that lighting workshop we did with Peter...
Peter gave an example referencing a scene from Jurassic Park where the characters in the story are walking by foot in the dark at nighttime and, of course, any characters walking in the dark at nighttime would most likely be holding some kind of light to light their path in the dark, so they can see where they're going. (Nobody sane would walk in pitch black outside at night, right?) So, Peter, referenced scenes in Jurassic Park, for example, where the characters were holding and lighting their paths with handheld flashlights. Peter pointed out that the actors' flashlights can also be used to light their faces.
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