Creating your own presets locks in your editing style and speeds up your workflow dramatically. Here is how to build presets that actually hold across different shooting conditions.
A Lightroom preset is a saved set of slider adjustments that can be applied to any image with one click. It is not a filter — it is a replication of your specific editing decisions. When built correctly, a preset cuts your editing time dramatically and ensures visual consistency across an entire gallery or your full body of work.
Every adjustment you make in Lightroom's Develop module — tone curve, color grading, HSL panel, clarity, texture, grain — can be saved as a preset. When you apply that preset to a new image, Lightroom applies those same adjustments to the new file. The result is your look, applied instantly, without rebuilding it from scratch on every image.
Step 1: Start with a representative base image. Choose an image that represents your typical shooting conditions — well-exposed, neutral white balance, natural light or your standard flash setup. Do not build a preset on an image that required unusual corrections.
Step 2: Develop the image fully. Work through the full Lightroom Develop module until the image looks exactly as you want your work to look. Take your time here — this edit becomes the foundation of your preset.
Step 3: Save the preset. In the Develop module, click the + icon next to the Presets panel, name your preset, and select which adjustments to include. Be deliberate about what you include and exclude (more on this below).
Step 4: Test on 5-10 different images. Apply the preset to a range of images from different lighting conditions. Expect to fine-tune the preset after testing — the first version will rarely be perfect across all conditions.
Keep reading for the framework, or have ShootRate check one real quote, package, or inquiry path for pricing friction before you send it.
Review my real quote for $29 →Include: tone curve, color grading, HSL adjustments, clarity and texture, grain, vignetting, sharpening defaults, and noise reduction defaults.
Do not include: exposure, white balance, crop, spot removal, lens corrections, and any local adjustments (masks, brushes, radial filters). These vary per image and will cause more problems than they solve if baked into the preset.
One preset is rarely enough. Build a small collection of starting-point presets for your common shooting situations:
Each preset is a starting point — you still adjust exposure and white balance per image, but the stylistic look is already applied before you touch anything.
Name presets in a way that makes the shooting situation immediately clear: "Outdoor Natural Light Base," "Studio Flash Base," "Indoor Window Base." Avoid vague names like "My Style v3" — those become meaningless within a month.
Making your own is almost always better for your long-term development as an editor. Bought presets teach you nothing about why the adjustments work and often do not match your shooting conditions or camera sensor. Use bought presets as inspiration or a starting point, then deconstruct what they do and rebuild your own version. Your presets will be more consistent because they are built around your actual images.
Exclude exposure and white balance from the preset — these vary per image and should always be set manually. Focus the preset on stylistic adjustments that are relatively lighting-agnostic: tone curve shape, color grading, HSL shifts, and texture or clarity. Then test the preset on images from at least three different lighting conditions and adjust until it holds across all of them.
No — Lightroom presets (.lrtemplate or .xmp) are not compatible with Capture One. Capture One uses its own styles format. If you use both applications, you will need to rebuild your look natively in each. Some third-party vendors sell the same look for both platforms, but there is no direct import between them.
In Lightroom Classic, right-click the preset and choose "Export." This saves the preset as an .xmp file that you can share via email or file transfer. The recipient imports it by right-clicking their Presets panel and choosing "Import Presets." In Lightroom (cloud version), the export process is similar but the file format may differ depending on the version.
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