Lighting
Butterfly Lighting and the Beauty Setup
Butterfly lighting — also called Paramount lighting because of its use in classic Hollywood glamour portraits — places the key light directly in front of and above the subject’s face. Named for the butterfly-shaped shadow it creates under the nose, this pattern is the foundation of beauty photography lighting. The Setup Position a single light source directly in front of the subject, centered on their face, and raised 2-3 feet above eye level.