Ab Sesay is a commercial advertising photographer and creative producer known for creating educational content that helps creatives advance their lighting skills. In his recent AdoramaTV video, he demonstrates eight unique fashion and beauty lighting setups featuring bare-bulb flash. Watch the video below to see how he used Rosco E276 Blackout, Blackwrap®, and R26 Light Red to transform a simple lighting setup into dramatic fashion photography.
Ab began the shoot by placing the bare-bulb flash about 16 inches from the model’s face and approximately 8 feet from the background, creating a clean, minimalist beauty shot.
From this simple starting point, he experimented with different approaches—adjusting the light’s distance and height, adding a red gel, and applying flagging techniques—to produce a series of images with distinct moods and depth.
In this setup, Ab flagged the top of the light to prevent spill from bouncing off the ceiling and washing out the background, and used the R26 Light Red to cast a vibrant hue onto the model.
The result is a cohesive look where the red gel tones on the skin complement the red stockings, creating impactful, editorial-style images.
Next, Ab used the R26 to cast a red slash of light across the model’s face for a bold, dramatic look. He placed a V-flat behind the model to intensify the effect and achieve rich, saturated colour.
Ab then used a roll of E276 Blackout to build a large flag measuring 4 ft × 10 ft. He mounted it on a High Roller Stand for quick, easy repositioning during the shoot.
The blackout material enabled Ab to strategically block light, creating a dramatic slash of shadow across the background. His top tip? “If you take anything away from this video, it’s getting a roll of E276 Blackout,” said Ab.
To deepen the shadow, Ab added Blackwrap along the edges of the overhead flag while keeping the E276 Blackout in place. The custom-made flag blocked unwanted light from the ceiling and sides, resulting in a richer, more defined shadow.
To learn more about Ab Sesay’s work, visit absesay.com or follow @absesay_photo on Instagram. For more information about the products featured in his lighting setups, explore the Blackwrap, e-colour+ and Roscolux product pages on the Rosco website.
Tatiana Massano December 04, 2025 Questions?
Content Marketing Specialist: Based in the Madrid office, Tatiana is ideally positioned to share inspiring stories of how customers use Rosco products to accomplish their ideas in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
