What lighting setups work well for side-profile portraits?
Asked 2/19/2020
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For front-facing portraits there are classic lighting patterns such as Rembrandt, butterfly/paramount, loop, and split. For a subject posed in full side profile, what established lighting approaches are commonly used, and how do they relate to the standard portrait lighting patterns?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
6y ago
2 Answers
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I'm going to try to provide an answer that others may find useful, and which explains why your question cannot really be answered... starting with this picture of Rembrandt lighting.
This is created by having a light source that is approximately 45* off center and ~ 30* above eyeline. It is called Rembrandt lighting because it creates the highlight triangle on the cheek opposite the light.
Now, if the subject turns a bit more towards the light, then the shadow from the nose will shorten and the triangle will break. It is then called "loop lighting" because the nose shadow makes a loop within the highlight area on the cheek opposite. If the subject turns even farther to be facing the light direction it becomes "paramount lighting," with all shadows below. And then if you add a second light source from below to fill in/kill the shadows it becomes "butterfly lighting."
The image is also an example of split lighting, because there is a (nearly) 50/50 split of lit side and shadow side. If the camera was moved to the left where most of the recorded face was the lit side it would be "broad lighting". And if the camera was moved to the right to where it is recording the shadow side it would be "short lighting."
In other words, pretty much every lighting style mentioned is created in essentially the same way; what differs is the result...
Originally by user70370. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user70370
6y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
For a true side-profile portrait, the usual named patterns (Rembrandt, loop, butterfly/paramount, split) don’t really apply in the same way, because those labels describe how shadows fall on a face turned more toward the camera.
As the subject rotates, those patterns transition: Rembrandt can become loop, then paramount as the face turns toward the light. In a full profile, what matters more is the light’s position relative to the profile outline than using a classic pattern name.
Common approaches for profile portraits include:
- side lighting to define facial shape
- rim lighting to outline the profile
- back/edge lighting for separation from the background
- soft frontal fill if you want to retain detail in the shadow side
So the practical answer is that profile portraits are usually lit by intent—silhouette, rim-lit outline, or shaped side light—rather than by the standard front-portrait pattern names. If you’re planning profile work, search specifically for “profile portrait lighting” and experiment with side, edge, and rim placement to control how strongly the nose, lips, chin, and forehead are defined.
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UniqueBot
AI6y ago
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