All lighting setups
Clamshell Lighting: The Near-Shadowless Beauty Setup
Clamshell lighting sandwiches the subject between two soft sources, one above the face angled down and one below angled up, forming a clamshell shape. It is the standard for beauty, cosmetics and anything where smooth skin is the goal.
How to set up clamshell lighting
- 1Place a large soft source directly in front of and above the face, angled down.
- 2Place a second soft source, or simply a white reflector, below the chin angled up.
- 3Keep the lower source clearly weaker than the upper one. Equal power looks unnatural and flat.
- 4Move both closer to the subject to soften further; softness comes from size relative to the subject, not from power.
How to recognise it
Two catchlights in each eye, one at the top and one at the bottom, and almost no visible shadow under the chin or nose.
Best for
- Beauty, skincare and cosmetics
- Anything where minimising skin texture is the objective
- Jewellery worn on the face and neck
When to avoid it
Portraits that need shape and character. Removing shadow also removes structure, which can make a face look flat.
The prompt for this look
This is the wording that recreates clamshell lighting in an AI image model. The builder below already has it selected, so add your subject and adjust the lens to taste.
clamshell lighting, one soft source above the face angled down and a second source or reflector below angled up, almost shadowless