Studio Lighting

There are 3 main lighting styles photographers use in studio lighting, and these are called Rembrandt, Butterfly, and Short Lighting. Each different style accentuates different parts of the models face, making this certain part more prominent.

Rembrandt lighting

This is where the photographer creates a triangle of light on one cheek, and makes the rest of the other side light. These are mainly used if you want to create a 'moody' photo, or more of an 'older looking' image. The left image has a stronger triangle of light than the other, meaning that the one on the right is being exposed to a softer quality of light than the one on the left.

Butterfly Lighting

This is where a 'butterfly' shape is revealed underneath the persons nose, hence why it is called butterfly lighting. This is because the lighting is held above the face, which allows the shadow to occur under the nose and chin.

Short Lighting

Short lighting is where the photographer makes one side of the persons face have a dark shadow, and the other completely exposed to light. This allows the persons face to look sharper, and emphasizes the contour on the persons face, and this is why it can sometimes be called 'narrow lighting'.

The different qualities of light can change how prominent the lighting technique is, as softer qualities don't show up as much as stronger qualities, but they are still visible. These qualities can be effected by a:

softbox, snoot, beauty dish, ringflash, wafer, and a honeycomb.

#lightin #studiolightin