Monday, 25 January 2016

What is clamshell lighting, and when should it be used?


I've heard of Clamshell Lighting. What is it, and when should it be used?



Answer



Clamshell lighting is a common way to photograph a head shot, often used in the fashion world. The general idea is you take 2 light sources, or a light source and a reflector. Both of them are roughly on-axis with the center of the person's face. You put one of them above pointed down, and the other lower pointed up. The end effect is that there are reduced shadows from any imperfections in a person's face. See this site for an example setup picture.


The reference I originally heard comes from PhotoFocus as a method of reducing wrinkles, scars, etc in a person's face.


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