How can I light a portrait to emphasize cheekbones and facial structure?
Asked 10/14/2018
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I’d like to recreate a portrait look where the subject’s cheekbones and jawline appear more defined. In the examples I’ve seen, the face is lit cleanly from the front, with highlights around the sides of the face that seem to separate it from the background and add shape.
What lighting setup would create this effect? I’m interested in the likely light positions and modifiers, and whether this look has a common name.
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
7y ago
2 Answers
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I'll be back to add examples to this later but wanted to get it started.
From the eyes, it looks like clamshell lighting using a circular or octagonal main light and a big square reflector or big square light on the bottom.
Both sides are lit using harder light sources, using either a grid or snoot to control the direction of the light. Look up rim lighting for more on this.
Originally by user67377. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user67377
7y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
A practical way to get this look is a clamshell-style beauty setup combined with rim lights.
- Main/front light: Place a soft light slightly above and in front of the subject, often a round source like a beauty dish or octabox. This gives the smooth frontal illumination.
- Fill from below: Use a large reflector or soft light under the face to fill shadows from below. That top-and-bottom arrangement is what people usually call clamshell lighting.
- Side lights: Add harder lights on each side and slightly behind the subject to outline the face. Use grids or snoots to keep them controlled. These are commonly called rim lights.
The cheekbone definition comes from the combination of soft frontal light for skin, controlled side light for edge definition, and the subject’s natural bone structure. Makeup can enhance it further, but the lighting is doing much of the shaping.
So the terms to search are mainly clamshell lighting, beauty lighting, and rim lighting.
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