1. Start with a Representative Portrait:
* Open a portrait image in Lightroom 4 that you want to use as your test subject. Choose an image with good lighting and a subject whose skin tone you want to enhance.
2. Basic Panel Adjustments:
* Exposure: Adjust to achieve proper overall brightness. A slightly brighter exposure can contribute to the soft look. Don't overexpose, though; preserve highlight detail.
* Contrast: Reduce the contrast. This is crucial for softening the image. Start with a value around -15 to -30, and adjust to taste. Too much reduction can make the image flat.
* Highlights: Lower the Highlights slider. This will recover detail in bright areas and further contribute to a softer feel. Start around -20 to -40.
* Shadows: Raise the Shadows slider. This opens up the dark areas of the image, creating a more even tone and reducing harshness. Try +10 to +30.
* Whites: Slightly lower the Whites slider. Similar to highlights, this protects against overexposure in the brightest areas. -5 to -15 is a good starting point.
* Blacks: Slightly raise the Blacks slider. This adds a bit of "lift" to the blacks and reduces harshness. +5 to +15.
* Clarity: This is VERY important! Reduce Clarity drastically. This will soften the skin and create a dreamy effect. Start with -20 to -50. Experiment; too much can make the image look unnatural.
* Vibrance: Slightly increase Vibrance to subtly boost the saturation of the skin tones. +5 to +15. Avoid over-saturating.
* Saturation: Adjust Saturation cautiously. You might want to reduce it slightly (e.g., -5 to -10) to prevent the overall colors from becoming too intense after the Vibrance adjustment.
3. Tone Curve Adjustments:
* Point Curve: A subtle "S" curve will gently increase contrast without harshness. Click on the point curve graph and make a very shallow S shape. Pull the shadows point up slightly and the highlights point down slightly. Avoid making it too pronounced. A good starting point is to raise the bottom left control point ever so slightly and lower the top right point ever so slightly.
4. HSL/Color Adjustments (Optional):
* Luminance: Increase the Luminance of the orange and yellow hues. These colors primarily affect skin tones. Increasing them will brighten the skin. Experiment with +5 to +20 for each.
* Saturation: You might want to reduce the Saturation of reds or oranges slightly if skin tones are too intense after the previous adjustments.
* Hue: Minor adjustments here can fine-tune skin tone, but be careful not to make the colors look unnatural.
5. Detail Panel Adjustments:
* Sharpening: Reduce Sharpening significantly. This is key for the "soft" look. Set the Amount slider to a low value (e.g., 20-40).
* Radius: Keep the radius low (0.5-0.8).
* Detail: Reduce the detail slider (e.g., 0-25). This further softens the image and reduces the appearance of fine lines.
* Masking: Increase the Masking slider (e.g., 50-80). This protects areas of high detail (like eyes and hair) from being over-softened. Use Alt/Option key while dragging the slider to visualize the masked areas (white = sharpened, black = unsharpened).
* Noise Reduction (Luminance): Apply a small amount of Noise Reduction (Luminance) to further smooth the skin. A value of 5-15 is usually sufficient. Don't overdo it, as it can make the image look plastic.
6. Effects Panel (Optional):
* Post-Crop Vignetting: Add a slight vignette (Amount around -10 to -20) to draw attention to the subject. Use the "Highlight Priority" style for a softer, more natural vignette.
* Grain: You can add a tiny bit of grain (Amount around 5-10, Size around 25-30, Roughness around 50-60) to give the image a film-like quality, but this is entirely optional.
7. Saving the Preset:
* In the left panel, click the "+" button in the "Presets" panel.
* Give your preset a descriptive name (e.g., "Soft Portrait - Gentle Glow," "Soft Skin Portrait").
* In the "Check All" dialog, carefully choose which settings you want to include in the preset. It's generally best to uncheck the following:
* White Balance: Unless you want the preset to *always* apply the same white balance, leave this unchecked.
* Exposure: You'll usually want to adjust exposure on a per-image basis.
* Process Version: Leave this unchecked to avoid potential compatibility issues.
* Crop: Definitely uncheck this, unless you're creating a preset for a very specific crop ratio.
* Click "Create."
Important Considerations and Tips:
* Skin Tone: Pay close attention to skin tones. The goal is to smooth the skin without making it look unnatural or plastic. Use the HSL/Color panel to fine-tune skin tones if needed.
* Eyes: Make sure the eyes remain sharp. The masking in the Detail panel helps with this. You might also consider using the Adjustment Brush to selectively sharpen the eyes.
* Lighting: The effectiveness of this preset will depend on the lighting of the original image. It works best with well-lit portraits.
* Subtlety: The key to a good soft portrait preset is subtlety. Avoid extreme adjustments.
* Experimentation: These are just guidelines. Experiment with different settings to find what works best for your style and your specific images.
* Adaptation: You will almost certainly need to tweak the preset slightly for each individual image. Treat it as a starting point, not a one-size-fits-all solution.
* Backup: Regularly back up your Lightroom presets!
By following these steps, you can create a custom "soft portrait" preset in Lightroom 4 that will help you achieve beautiful, dreamy, and flattering portraits with a gentle, artistic touch. Remember to practice and experiment to refine the preset to your liking. Good luck!