How to Build an Over-Under Beauty Lighting Setup (And Why One Light at a Time Is the Only Way to Work)

How to Build an Over-Under Beauty Lighting Setup (And Why One Light at a Time Is the Only Way to Work)

There’s a moment in almost every portrait shoot where the lighting feels close but not quite right, and you end up chasing your tail, adjusting everything at once and making it worse. I spent an embarrassing amount of time doing exactly that before I started treating each light as its own separate problem to solve. When I came across this KelbyOne tutorial with RC Concepcion breaking down a two-light over-under setup, I recognized the workflow immediately, not because I’d seen it taught this way before, but because it’s the method I had to learn the hard way after too many frustrating test shots.

The Westcott S18 Mini Flash: A Game-Changer for Portable Portrait Retouching

The Westcott S18 Mini Flash: A Game-Changer for Portable Portrait Retouching

The Westcott S18 Mini Flash: A Game-Changer for Portable Portrait Retouching When I first started exploring portable lighting solutions for portrait work, I kept running into the same frustration: every flash felt like a compromise. Either it was powerful enough but bulky, or it was compact but underpowered. Then I discovered the Westcott S18 Mini Flash, and honestly, it changed how I approach location shooting. In this excellent tutorial, Joel Grimes introduces us to a flash that finally bridges that gap.