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Dumbo Brooklyn - filming location in New York

SCENE 01 / GAFFER LIGHTING TEAM

Gaffer & Lighting Services New York

Professional gaffers and lighting crews with expertise in LED, HMI, and tungsten systems. From intimate interviews to large-scale nighttime shoots across New York.

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Here is how this works in practice. The gaffer and lighting team translate the Director of Photography's vision into practical lighting setups on set. In New York, gaffers work at Steiner Studios Brooklyn, Silvercup Studios Queens, and Kaufman Astoria Studios, as well as on the streets of Manhattan — making NYC one of the world's most demanding and rewarding lighting environments.

Here is the short of it. We assemble skilled gaffer and lighting teams matched to your production's scale, style, and tech needs. With gear sourced through rental houses like TCS (The Camera Service) and ARRI Rental NYC, our team sets up crew availability, gear sourcing, and IATSE Local 52 logistics so your lighting team arrives fully prepared.

Capabilities

Lighting Department Solutions

From intimate interview setups to large-scale feature productions, we provide experienced gaffers and complete electric crews tailored to your project's needs.

01

Feature & TV

  • Cinematic lighting design
  • Large-scale set lighting
  • Night exterior setups
  • Practical integration
  • Period and stylized looks

Narrative Excellence

02

Commercial

  • Product lighting
  • Tabletop photography
  • Beauty and fashion
  • Food cinematography
  • High-key brand looks

Brand Impact

03

Live Events

  • Concert and performance
  • Corporate presentations
  • Award ceremonies
  • Fashion shows
  • Live broadcast lighting

Event Production

04

Corporate

  • Interview setups
  • Office and facility
  • Training videos
  • Webinar production
  • Executive portraits

Professional Content

On Location

IATSE Local 52 gaffers and electric crews built for NYC dense-build shooting

Here is how the work lines up. New York lighting departments run under IATSE Local 52 regions — the Theatrical Stage Staff Studio Mechanics covering set lighting, rigging electrics, power packs ops, and best boy electrics across the Tri-State — and our gaffers come up through Steiner Studios at Brooklyn Navy Yard, Silvercup Queens, Kaufman Astoria, York Studios Bronx, JC Studios Brooklyn, and Broadway Stages with credits stretching across HBO, Apple TV+, Netflix New York, Amazon, and A24 features. Crews carry experience on Severance, Mrs.

Here is what that looks like on the ground. Maisel, Stranger Things New York blocks, The Deuce, Boardwalk Empire, Succession, and the Adam McKay, Noah Baumbach, and Greta Gerwig features that pull all the time from the East Coast bench, plus the Madison Avenue and Brooklyn brand-commercial economy out of Eastern Effects in Gowanus, Stockwell New York, and Hello Bro Rentals. Department structure pairs the gaffer with a best boy electric, rigging gaffer on larger setups, and a graduated team of Local 52 electricians handling set lighting, power packs operation, dimmer-board management, and on-set adjustments.

Here is how the picture comes together. Gear is named through Eastern Effects, TCS, ARRI Rental NYC, Stockwell, Hello Bro, and LMG. ARRI SkyPanel S60 and S360 plus M-Series HMI as principal sources, Aputure 1200d and 600x COB for fast-deploy work, Mole-Richardson tungsten where period demands it, Litepanels Gemini and Kino Diva-Lite for soft sources, and Astera Titan and Helios tubes for practicals and pixel-mapped looks.

Here is what we have to work with. Crew matching is driven by format and creative reach rather than a generic day rate. Prestige drama in the Bradford Young, Sean Bobbitt, and Andrij Parekh tradition calls for gaffers who can build a SkyPanel and HMI plan supporting the long takes East Coast DPs favour through Brooklyn brownstone interiors and Manhattan loft windows, while Madison Avenue and DUMBO commercial campaigns want fast-turnover gaffers delivering beauty, tabletop, food, and edit looks against agency colour decks and brand timelines.

Here is the layout. NYC's dense-build settings demands high-rise rooftop access agreements, Manhattan streetscape balloon lighting permits, Brooklyn loft window flagging, and condenser-quiet Honda EU and Multiquip silent-power packs rentals for ZTL-matching residential block shoots. Pre-production has lighting plots, power assessments built against NYC 120/208V three-phase and 480V tie-ins, FDNY film safety officer sign-off where pyro or open flame is on the call sheet, and tech scouts across studio stages and exterior locations.

Here is how the work shapes up. Crews are bilingual where global DPs are in the chair, MOME Made in NY permits and NYPD Movie & TV Unit planning are built into the schedule, and NYS Film Tax Credit forms at 30%-plus-10% NYC uplift is prepared wherever the production qualifies under one Local 52 contract.

FAQ

Our Lighting Network

What does a gaffer do on set?

Here is the breakdown. The gaffer is the head of the electrical/lighting department, responsible for executing the DP's lighting vision. They design lighting setups, manage the electric crew, set up gear, and make sure safe power distribution across the production.

What crew positions are in a lighting department?

A full lighting department has: Gaffer (department head), Best Boy Electric (gaffer's assistant, manages crew and gear), Electricians/Sparks (set up and operate lights), and on larger shoots, Rigging Gaffers and Generator Operators.

Do your lighting crews bring their own equipment?

Crew and gear are mostly separate. We can set up gear packages from New York rental houses to complement your crew booking. Some gaffers have personal gear for smaller shoots.

How many electricians do I need for my production?

Crew size depends on production scale: small shoots may need just a gaffer, medium shoots mostly need gaffer plus best boy and 1-2 electricians, while larger shoots need full departments with rigging crews.

Can your lighting crews work with international DPs?

Yes. Our gaffers are skilled working with global cinematographers and know global terminology, techniques, and workflow expectations. Many are fluent English English-speaking.

Do you provide generators and power distribution?

We set up power packs hire and distribution gear through our rental partners. Power packs operators can be had in crew packages for shoots needing major power infrastructure.

Productions in New York that need this often pair it with LED Lighting Systems, Portable Power Solutions, and Grip Services for full coverage. Most projects also draw on Gimbal Filming and Virtual Production.

On Set

Need a Lighting Team?

Tell us about your production and we'll recommend the right gaffer and crew for your lighting needs.