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So how good is Lightroom’s color editing? Especially compared to professional color grading in Photoshop. In this tutorial, you’ll learn how to color grade a photo in Lightroom, and we’ll turn the technique on its head by doing the same thing in Photoshop.
Techniques For Color Grading Images In Photoshop For Professional Looks
Let’s learn Lightroom’s color calibration panel and see the difference in editing the same image in Photoshop. The results are amazing!
A Complete Guide To Color Grading (in Lightroom & Photoshop)
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Photo color grading is the process of changing or enhancing the colors of an image. It is used in photography and filmmaking to change the mood or enhance the emotion the photographer is trying to convey. It is also used to enhance the beauty of the image by choosing a matching color scheme and applying it to your image.
In our example, we use a common color combination using orange and blue. Sometimes this is called the orange and teal look. As you can see in the image below, blue is added to the shadows and orange is added to the highlights to help match the colors already in the image. This makes it more pleasing to the eye.
Raw image straight from the camera – Camera settings: F 2.8 – 1/400 sec – ISO 100 – 85 mm Focal length
Levels In Photoshop: Mastering Image Tonality
Lightroom has added a special color picker panel to help you add color to your photos. In the panel you will find 3 color wheels representing your highlights, midtones and shadows. Use these wheels to add color to highlights, midtones, and shadows.
You can control the saturation of the color by clicking, holding and moving on or off the center of the color wheel. To change the color shade, move the dot around the wheel to the desired color.
After choosing the starting colors, you can use the Blending slider to adjust the degree of overlap between shadows and highlights, and use the Balance slider to adjust the effect between highlights, midtones, and shadows. e.g. add more color to your highlights while reducing from your shadows or vice versa. There is also a brightness slider to lighten or darken the effect.
The best way to add color to lightroom is to think about the color scheme you want to achieve before you start. This inspiration usually comes from the colors already in the image. Then think about colors that go with those colors and look for colors that clash with them.
My Color Grading Workflow For Raw Landscape Photos In Lr And Acr
For example, if your photo is of a sunset and orange light is floating around your scene, orange would be a good color to base your color scheme on. Once you have that, think about which colors complement or match the color and which colors will clash.
In the example below, the orange light is hitting the top of the mountain, so I used Lightroom’s Color Sorter panel to add oranges to the highlights and midtones and reds to the shadows. This blended the colors in the image and gave it a more cohesive effect.
Mount Teide, Tenerife – raw image, no color adjustment – camera settings: F 11 – 1/13 second – ISO 100 – 35mm focal length
You don’t have to and shouldn’t limit yourself to the Color Editing panel in Lightroom. There are many other tools in Lightroom to help you test an image. As mentioned before, it’s not just about adding color. You should also remove colors that clash with your scheme. In the Mount Teide example above, the green started to appear in the lower right corner of the image during processing. To remove them, I used the HSL panel and finished the green.
Dan Margulis’ Modern Photoshop Color Workflow, Beta-readers Interview
I also used Presence sliders to increase the blues and saturation throughout the image. Below are screenshots of the exact settings used to color grade an image.
In the video above, I compare the color of the same image in Lightroom and Photoshop, so here is my verdict.
Lightroom’s color editing panel is good, very good, and I think it will serve its purpose for most people. I also think it will find its place in landscape photography more than portraits because there is often little editing in the landscape. Also very easy to use!
But that brings me to my next discovery that Lightroom’s color editing cannot be adjusted. It doesn’t have the fine details you can add in Photoshop. Photoshop gives you the ability to focus more on specific colors in your scene and mask those effects with precise detail when needed. However, color editing in Photoshop is very difficult.
Advanced Color Grading In Lightroom Classic
So if you want a fast, easy and flexible way of color editing, Lightroom will do just fine. If you want a professional and refined look, especially for portraiture, Photoshop is the place to go.
Portrait Color Corrected in Lightroom – Camera Settings: F 2.8 – 1/400 Seconds – ISO 100 – 85mm Focal Length
Raw image of Canary Wharf, London – Camera settings: F 16 – 3.2 seconds – ISO 100 – 16mm Focal length
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Hi, my name is Marc Newton and I am a photographer, educational speaker, author, photography teacher and founder of The Photography School. Follow my personal work on Facebook, Instagram and Vero. Are you ready to learn the art of color grading? From color correction and saturation to the tools you need, here’s your guide.
Have you ever looked at a photo and wondered how the photographer was able to capture such vivid color or reduce noise and create a crystal clear image? This is probably done through a process called color grading.
Color grading is the process of changing the color tone of an image by adjusting the hue and saturation. By changing these things, you can create a certain atmosphere or add drama to your photos in a way that you wouldn’t be able to do otherwise. This is a common technique used in photography and film.
Color grading is often confused with color correction, but the two deal with different types of adjustments or corrections.
The Complete Color Correction Process In Photoshop
Color correction balance and color matching, make it look as realistic as possible. In video, color correction can make a video shot during the day look like it was all shot at the same time or in the same light.
Color grading follows color correction. You control the colors and can change the shooting mode. For example, if you want a shot that brings out the idea of drama, you can increase the saturation of blue or red.
The best thing to do if you are new to color grading is to practice. Edit different photos and see what you like best. Remember, this is your art; there is no right or wrong.
If you’re a first-time travel photographer, don’t worry: you can colorize photos right on your phone using a special editing app. Apps like Snapseed, VSCO, and Afterlight are just a few to start with (available on both Android and iOS).
Here’s A Short List Of Color Grading Tips & Tricks For Lightroom
Color grading can seem intimidating at first, but it just takes a little practice. It will enhance your photos and help you create your own art.
What do you think of the color scheme? Tell us more by leaving a comment below or start a conversation on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Color correction is a key part of photo editing, and Photoshop has a range of tools and techniques to help you achieve the perfect result.
Color correction is a key part of photo editing, and Photoshop has a range of tools and techniques to help you achieve the perfect result. In this guide, we’ll show you how to use Levels, Curves, Hue/Saturation, Color Balance, Spot Colors and more to get the best color in your images.
Note: The screenshots used in this tutorial were taken from Photoshop 2022. Other than that, the tools themselves remain very similar.
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One of the first things to consider when color correcting an image is the tonal range. Tone range refers to the range of light and dark tones in an image. The Levels tool in Photoshop allows you to adjust the tonal range by adjusting shadows, midtones, and highlights. To access the Levels tool, go to Image > Adjustments > Levels:
The Level tool has a histogram that shows distribution