Adobe Lightroom: Colour Grading Tutorial For Beginners,
Lightroom Color Grading Tutorial: Step-by-Step Guide:
Therefore, Color grading in Adobe Lightroom allows you to enhance your photos by adjusting the tones, shadows, highlights, and mid-tones. In other words, Here’s a step-by-step guide to achieving professional-looking color grades.
1. Import & Select Your Photo:
- Therefore, Open Lightroom Classic or Lightroom CC.
- In other words, Click Import and select the photo you want to edit.
- Therefore, Go to the Develop Module.
2. Adobe Lightroom: Colour Grading Tutorial For Beginners, Adjust Basic Settings First:
Therefore, Before color grading, adjust the basic settings to correct exposure, contrast, and white balance:
- Exposure: Adjust for proper brightness.
- Contrast: Increase or decrease for depth.
- Highlights & Shadows: Recover details.
- Whites & Blacks: Fine-tune dynamic range.
- White Balance (WB): Set the correct temperature and tint before grading.
3. Use the Color Grading Panel:
- Therefore, Open the Color Grading panel (formerly known as “Split Toning”).
- In other words, You’ll see three color wheels:
- Shadows (affects dark areas)
- Midtones (affects mid-range colors)
- Highlights (affects bright areas)
- In other words, Use the Blending slider to mix the adjustments smoothly.
- Therefore, Use the Balance slider to shift the effect towards shadows or highlights.
Pro Tip:
- Teal & Orange Look: Add teal (blue-green) to shadows and orange/yellow to highlights.
- Cinematic Look: Shift shadows to blue and highlights to warm yellow/orange.
- Moody Dark Look: Use deep blue/purple in shadows and desaturated highlights.
4. Adobe Lightroom: Colour Grading Tutorial For Beginners, Fine-Tune with HSL (Hue, Saturation, Luminance):
- Therefore, Adjust specific colors using the HSL Panel.
- Hue: Shift individual colors (e.g., make blues more teal).
- Saturation: Increase or decrease specific colors.
- Luminance: Adjust the brightness of a particular color.
5. Add a Final Touch with a Tone Curve:
- Therefore, Use the Tone Curve to refine contrast.
- In other words, Add an S-curve for a more dynamic look.
- However, Lift the shadows for a faded/film effect.
6. Adobe Lightroom: Colour Grading Tutorial For Beginners, Apply Effects (Optional):
- Vignette: Darken edges for focus.
- Grain: Add a filmic texture.
- Clarity & Dehaze: Increase depth but use sparingly.
7. Save & Export:
- In other words, Once satisfied, export with high-quality settings.
- However, Save in JPEG for social media or TIFF for professional use.
Adobe Lightroom: Colour Grading Tutorial For Beginners, Final Tips:
✅ Less is more – don’t overdo saturation.
✅ Experiment with different color combinations.
✅ Use Presets for quick edits and inspiration.
✅ Compare before & after with the “Y | Y” key.
Would you like recommendations for specific color grading styles? 😊
