Understanding the Goal:
A soft portrait preset aims to:
* Soften Skin: Reduce blemishes and wrinkles without making the subject look plastic.
* Enhance Light: Create a gentle glow and emphasize highlights.
* Introduce Warmth: Add a touch of warmth for a healthy skin tone.
* Create a Dreamy Feel: Use subtle effects to create a pleasant, slightly ethereal atmosphere.
Steps to Create Your "Soft Portrait" Preset:
1. Import and Select an Image: Open Lightroom and import a portrait photo that you want to use as a base for your preset. Choose an image that's well-exposed and in focus.
2. Basic Panel Adjustments: This is where the foundation of your preset is built.
* Exposure: Adjust this slightly to achieve the desired brightness. Usually, a slight increase is good, but it depends on the original image. *(Slight Increase/Decrease. Depends on the Original)*
* Contrast: Reduce the contrast. Lowering the contrast helps to soften details and create a smoother overall look. *(Lower Contrast - Around -10 to -25)*
* Highlights: Lowering the highlights protects them from clipping (becoming pure white) and helps retain detail in bright areas. *(Lower Highlights - Around -10 to -30)*
* Shadows: Increase the shadows to brighten the darker areas and reveal more detail. This helps to create a more balanced exposure and reduce harsh shadows. *(Increase Shadows - Around +10 to +30)*
* Whites: Adjust Whites with caution. A small increase can brighten the image, but too much can wash out details. Consider lowering slightly. *(Slight Decrease/Increase - Around -5 to +5)*
* Blacks: Slightly lower the blacks to maintain some depth and prevent the image from looking flat. *(Lower Blacks - Around -5 to -15)*
3. Tone Curve Adjustments: The Tone Curve gives you more control over contrast and brightness.
* Point Curve: Click on the 'Point Curve' icon (the one with the diagonal line).
* Subtle S-Curve: Create a subtle S-curve by adding two points on the curve: one in the highlights (upper-right area) and one in the shadows (lower-left area). Gently pull down the highlights point slightly and pull up the shadows point slightly. This adds a gentle contrast boost while maintaining softness. Be very subtle; overdoing this will undo the previous steps. This helps to deepen the blacks and make the highlights brighter without increasing contrast significantly.
4. HSL/Color Panel Adjustments: This panel allows you to fine-tune the colors in your image, especially skin tones.
* Hue:
* Orange: Adjusting the Orange hue can affect skin tone. Usually, a small shift towards yellow can add warmth. *(Slight Shift Towards Yellow)*
* Red: Similar to orange, subtly adjust the red hue to fine-tune skin tone. *(Subtle Adjustment)*
* Saturation:
* Orange: Reduce the saturation of orange slightly to soften skin tones. *(Reduce Slightly)*
* Red: Reduce the saturation of red slightly as well. *(Reduce Slightly)*
* Luminance:
* Orange: Increase the luminance of orange to brighten skin. *(Increase Slightly)*
* Yellow: Increase the luminance of yellow for added brightness. *(Increase Slightly)*
5. Detail Panel Adjustments: Here, you'll control sharpening and noise reduction.
* Sharpening: Reduce the sharpening amount. Too much sharpening will accentuate skin texture and negate the "soft" effect. *(Reduce Amount – Start around 20-30, adjust as needed)*
* Noise Reduction: Increase Luminance Noise Reduction. This helps to smooth out skin and reduce any grainy appearance. *(Increase Amount – Start around 10-20, adjust as needed)*
6. Effects Panel Adjustments (Optional): This can add to the dreamy quality.
* Vignetting: Consider adding a slight vignette (either positive or negative, depending on the image) to draw focus to the subject. A *slight* dark vignette will darken the edges. A *slight* light vignette will brighten the edges. Experiment to see what works best. *(Very Subtle)*
* Grain: Adding a very subtle amount of grain can enhance the filmic, soft look, but it's not always necessary. *(Very subtle, if at all)*
7. Camera Calibration Panel (Optional): This can subtly adjust the overall color palette.
* Play with the Red, Green, and Blue Primary Hue and Saturation sliders. Very small adjustments can sometimes enhance the skin tones or overall feel. Be very careful with this panel; small adjustments go a long way.
8. Create the Preset:
* In the left panel, click the "+" button next to "Presets."
* Name your preset (e.g., "Soft Portrait," "Dreamy Portrait," etc.).
* In the "Check" settings box, *carefully* select which settings you want to include in the preset. *It's crucial to avoid including settings that are image-specific, like Exposure.* Here's a recommended list:
* Basic Tone: (Contrast, Highlights, Shadows, Whites, Blacks)
* Tone Curve
* HSL / Color
* Detail (Sharpening, Noise Reduction)
* Effects (if you used them)
* Camera Calibration (if you used it)
* Click "Create."
9. Test and Refine:
* Apply your new preset to several different portrait photos.
* Examine the results closely. You may need to tweak the preset based on the specific characteristics of each image.
* Adjust individual settings within the preset by going back to the Develop module, making your changes, and then *right-clicking on the preset name in the Presets panel and selecting "Update with Current Settings."*
Important Considerations:
* Subtlety is Key: The goal is a soft, flattering look, not an over-processed one. Small adjustments are better than large ones.
* Image-Specific Settings: *Avoid* including settings like Exposure, White Balance, and Lens Corrections in your preset. These are best adjusted on a per-image basis. Including them will often lead to undesirable results on other images.
* Skin Tone: Pay close attention to skin tones. The goal is a healthy, natural look, not an artificial or overly-orange appearance. Use the HSL/Color panel carefully.
* Lightroom Version: While this guide is geared toward Lightroom 4, the principles and most of the steps are applicable to newer versions of Lightroom, although the interface may be slightly different.
* RAW vs. JPEG: This preset will work better on RAW files, as they contain more information and allow for more flexible adjustments.
* Practice: The best way to create effective presets is to experiment and practice. The more you use Lightroom, the better you'll understand how different adjustments affect your images.
By following these steps, you can create a beautiful "Soft Portrait" preset in Lightroom 4 that will help you achieve flattering and dreamy results in your portrait photography. Remember to adjust the preset to suit the specific characteristics of each image for the best results. Good luck!