Sometimes referred to as filters (although please note that presets and filters are NOT the same!), Lightroom Presets are an amazing way to save time in editing.
Not only do Lightroom Presets help you save time in editing, just as importantly, using a preset helps you achieve a consistent look across your images.
Presets are a big deal, and a huge time saver.
As I mentioned in my post, Making Lightroom Work for You: Processing Pictures in Bulk, a preset is exactly what it sounds like – a collection of saved development settings, ready to be applied again and again with a single click.
Lightroom Presets can be used in both Lightroom Classic (desktop) and Lightroom Mobile.
Are Free Lightroom Presets Really Worth It? Read this thorough article from bouncecolor.com.
Who are Lightroom Presets for?
Presets are for everyone! Whether you are an amateur photographer or a pro, a non-photographer looking to create better images for your family, product, business, or blog, presets are for you!
My favorite part about using Lightroom Presets that other artists have created is playing with new ideas on how to edit a photo…. it’s a way for me to dig in and get that much more creative. It’s another way for me to be creatively charged, and usually I can stretch my skills or think of things I wouldn’t have thought of on my own.
Which Presets Do I Use?
After I edit a photo and want to apply the same edits to others, I’ll save the settings as a preset. Keep in mind when you save a preset, you don’t necessarily want to save the white balance setting, since the color temperature can vary greatly as lighting changes. There’s even a website that has a few presets I had authored way before Lightroom Mobile was a thing. That was a couple computers ago, so I’m not sure I even still have those presets saved anywhere!
While I most often make my own presets, I truly enjoy playing with presets that other artists have created! It’s always different from what I come up with!
lightroom Preset Recommendations:
- Pretty Presets. Pretty, LLC has created hundreds of high quality presets, brushes, and overlays to use in Lightroom Classic, Lightroom Mobile and Photoshop. I usually save Pretty Presets for Lightroom Classic, but they work great in Lightroom Mobile as well.
- Loox Presets. Made for both Mobile & Desktop, there’s 4 presets to each collection, and if you sign up for her email list you’ll get notifications when they are on sale! I tend to use the Loox presets in Lightroom mobile the most.
- The Luxe Lens. There are so many collections within The Luxe Lens, they have separated them into different brands! Light & Airy, Film, Landscapes… you name it! I have only just started using their Wanderlust Collection, but I’ll continue to update as I try more.
- Adam King Photography. Adam King is known for his amazing surfing photographs, and distinct editing styles. For the month of October he made a Pumpkin Spice preset and fortunately for us, published it for sale on his website. I absolutely had a blast transforming my surfing images with his presets. These are made as a starting point to use in Lightroom Classic, and are not necessarily a one click preset.
As I use more presets from other artists, I’ll keep this post updated!
SEE MORE OF MY LIGHTROOM PRESET POSTS HERE.
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