Becoming a Lighter
So let's say that you're thinking this might be something you want to do as a career.
How do you get started?
The short answer is that you're going to need to put together a portfolio or a reel, to show your latest and best work.
The longer answer is how you go about creating that portfolio.
You are probably already aware of that good old catch-22: Companies want to hire people who already have experience, but how are you supposed to get experience if nobody will hire you?
In a nutshell, you have to keep working at creating your own experience, until your portfolio is impressive enough that someone will be willing to give you a chance.
There are a few things you can do that will help here:
1) Work on Mods. You might not think that working on game mods is going to get you anywhere, since the work isn't usually for a "real" company, and it may not be a real game. But I've known a number of people over the years that got started working on mods and then had enough work to show for a good starter portfolio.
2) Learn the available game engines. Engines used to be expensive, and difficult to get started with. Things have changed quite a bit, and now anyone can download and learn Unreal or Unity. It could very well be that the company you end up working for may be using a proprietary engine, but many of the basics are similar, and the more you've worked with different game engines, the easier it will be to adapt to new ones.
3) Armed with a game engine, you can put your own scenes together. Come up with some interesting spaces, then light them a number of different ways. Show how you can create different moods to a space by changing only the lighting. You don't have to build out these scenes yourself (unless you want to), there are a number of sites that sell complete levels for the game engines. Just specify in your portfolio or reel that you just did the lighting. Anybody looking at your work will want to know what you did, specifically.
4) Prepare for tests. Odds are good that when you apply for a lighting job that someone is going to want you to do a lighting test. I've done lighting tests for almost every place I've worked. They'll supply you with a scene, and say something like "Light this scene 5 different ways, using the included camera". If you've already done this while working on your own scenes, you'll be better prepared.
And last but not least, keep developing your eye, and improving your lighting skills.
Thank your lucky stars that you're living in the age of the internet. There are a ton of tutorials and videos out there about lighting. Watch them and keep practicing.
Another thing that's invaluable for improving your lighting skills is to take up photography as a hobby if it isn't one already.
My advice is to get a camera with an actual viewfinder, which will help you learn about composition as well. You can't see enough while you're waving your phone around and squinting at the screen.
Showing your work
Once you've started to put a few pieces together, it's time to find a place to show them to potential employers. You should consider either having your own website, or using one of the gallery hosting sites like Artstation.
You can see my lighting portfolio here.
Once you have a good body of work to start with (say, 10 of your best pieces) you can start to contact companies. The job sections on their websites will tell you whether or not they're currently looking for Lighting Artists. If they are, apply, and make sure you include a link to your work.
Contract vs. Full time: More and more companies are hiring for temporary positions. Most people would rather have a full-time position, but if you're trying to get your foot in the door, consider applying to contract jobs as well. There's always a chance if they really like your work that you'll be asked to stay on as permanent.
