Set Lighting Tests

I went through some lighting test today as i am reaching the point i can finally animate.

I began with some heady lighting to as I have been told it is easier to bring light down than scale it up in post.

So i started with a high exposure test shots of my first scene.

The Intensity was to High and i wasnt getting a natural looking light. I ended up trying a bunch of different exposure and intensity levels before Phil showed me How much a Good HDRI can Help with Lighting information.

I spent a bit of time finding an HDRI That was working for my lighting set up.

after awhile i managed to get one i like. I was still struggling with getting a lighting look that i liked. again phil came to my rescue with a great idea if i render my set at 2 different exposures i can use the higher exposure as a highlight for my main light.

My Idea is to render at 3 Different exposures to get a darker and lighter image i can blend in to the main render to get lighting information. 

Darker Render

 Main Light Level

 High Exposure for Highlights. 

As for the back drop i can use the same method by rendering the different depth of the forest at different exposures decreasing in brightness. I can Simulate or trick the idea of depth to the Forest.