Butterfly lighting, otherwise known as paramount lighting or glamour lighting, refers to the butterfly shaped shadow created under the nose from a light source above the camera.

It gets the name paramount lighting from the technique being used on lots of Hollywood stars. Because the light source angles downwards it creates shadows under the cheeks lips and nose which gives the subject a slimmer appearance.

This is an example of a butterfly lighting setup. The light source can be of any kind including natural light or strobe lights because the quality of light is not important.

For a softer effect, you can use a modifier like an umbrella to help more evenly distribute light across the subjects skin.

Personal Attempt

During editing, I created a layer with 25% opacity with gaussian blur and spot healer to remove blemishes.

There are clear shadows that run down the subject but for next time I wish to create sharper shadows that to divide up sections of the face more.