I. Understanding the Goal:
Before we start, let's define what we mean by "Soft Portrait":
* Smooth Skin: Reduced texture and blemishes, softened skin tones.
* Soft Highlights: Reduced harshness, gentler transitions.
* Increased Clarity (Carefully): Used sparingly to add a hint of sharpness without harshness.
* Slight Warmth: Often, a touch of warmth adds a pleasing look to portraits.
* Subtle Contrast: Reduced overall contrast for a softer feel.
* Gentle Tones: No overly saturated or blown-out colors.
II. Starting with a Base Image:
* Choose a portrait image you want to edit. It's best to use an image that is well-exposed and properly focused as a starting point.
III. Lightroom 4 Adjustments:
1. Basic Panel:
* Temperature: +2 to +7. Adjust to add a slight warmth. Go higher for more warmth. Watch for unnatural skin tones.
* Tint: +0 to +3. Adjust based on the initial white balance of your photo. Add green to combat magenta and magenta to combat green.
* Exposure: Adjust as needed for proper exposure. Slightly overexposing can help with the soft look (+0.10 to +0.30).
* Contrast: -10 to -25. Reduce contrast to soften the overall look. Start at -15 and adjust as needed.
* Highlights: -15 to -30. Soften the highlights to prevent harshness. You can go lower if the highlights are blown out.
* Shadows: +5 to +15. Open up the shadows to reveal more detail.
* Whites: +3 to +8. A slight increase can add a subtle glow, but be careful not to blow out highlights.
* Blacks: -5 to -10. Gently reduce blacks to avoid a muddy look.
* Clarity: +3 to +8. This is a *very* small adjustment. Use with caution. Too much will ruin the soft look. The exact amount depends on the image. It should enhance detail without adding harshness.
2. Tone Curve Panel:
* Point Curve: A subtle S-curve is often used in portrait editing, but for a soft look, consider a very gentle S-curve or even a slight flattening of the curve:
* Drag the lower-left point up slightly.
* Drag the upper-right point down slightly.
* Add one point to the curve and slightly pull it upward, and add a corresponding point on the curve slightly below it and pull down a little.
* Alternatively: Use the region sliders:
* Highlights: Slight decrease (-5 to -10) can further soften highlights.
* Lights: Slight increase (+5 to +10) can brighten the midtones.
* Darks: Slight decrease (-5 to -10) to soften the transition between midtones and shadows.
* Shadows: Slight increase (+5 to +10) to open up the shadow details.
3. HSL / Color Panel:
* Luminance:
* Orange: +5 to +15. Increase the luminance of orange to brighten skin tones.
* Yellow: +3 to +10. Increase the luminance of yellow to make it pop.
* Red: +3 to +10. Increase the luminance of red to make it pop.
* Saturation:
* Orange: -3 to -8. Reduce the saturation of orange if skin tones appear overly saturated.
* Yellow: -3 to -8. Reduce the saturation of yellow if skin tones appear overly saturated.
* Red: -3 to -8. Reduce the saturation of red if skin tones appear overly saturated.
* Hue: Make subtle adjustments to skin tones if necessary. Shifting orange slightly towards red or yellow can be useful, but use sparingly.
4. Split Toning Panel: (Optional)
* A subtle split toning effect can add a unique mood. Experiment with:
* Highlights: Hue around 35-45 (yellow/orange), Saturation around 3-5.
* Shadows: Hue around 220-230 (blue/purple), Saturation around 3-5.
* Balance: Adjust the balance slider to favor either the highlights or shadows depending on the desired look. A slight positive value (towards highlights) is often preferred for a soft look.
5. Detail Panel:
* Sharpening: Reduce the amount of sharpening.
* Amount: 20-40. Start low.
* Radius: 0.5-0.7. Keep the radius low for a subtle sharpening effect.
* Detail: 20-30. Reduce this to avoid adding unwanted textures.
* Masking: 40-60. Masking helps to prevent sharpening in areas like skin.
* Noise Reduction: Apply a small amount of luminance noise reduction to smooth skin.
* Luminance: 5-15. Increase gradually until noise is reduced but detail is still preserved.
* Color: 10-20. Helps remove any color noise.
6. Lens Corrections Panel: (Optional)
* Enable "Remove Chromatic Aberration" and "Enable Profile Corrections." This will correct lens distortions and vignetting. This is generally a good practice regardless of the portrait style.
7. Effects Panel: (Optional)
* Vignette: Add a subtle vignette (either positive or negative) to draw attention to the subject. For soft portraits, a slight positive vignette (brightening the edges) can sometimes enhance the dreamy feel.
* Grain: Avoid adding grain for a soft portrait look.
IV. Saving the Preset:
1. Click on the "Presets" panel (usually on the left side).
2. Click the "+" button at the top of the panel.
3. Choose "Create Preset..."
4. Give your preset a descriptive name (e.g., "Soft Portrait - Subtle Warmth").
5. Carefully choose which settings to include in the preset. Important: *Uncheck* settings that are specific to the image you edited (like Exposure, if you only adjusted it to correct the original image). In general, you should include:
* Basic Tone (Temperature, Tint, Contrast, Highlights, Shadows, Whites, Blacks, Clarity)
* Tone Curve
* HSL/Color
* Split Toning (if used)
* Detail (Sharpening, Noise Reduction)
* Lens Corrections (if you want to automatically apply these)
* Effects (Vignetting, if used)
6. Click "Create."
V. Applying and Adjusting the Preset:
1. Select a different portrait image.
2. Click on your newly created preset.
3. Crucially: *Adjust the preset settings to suit the individual image.* Every photo is different, and you'll likely need to tweak the exposure, white balance, and other settings to achieve the desired result. Don't just blindly apply the preset and expect perfection.
VI. Tips and Considerations:
* Skin Tone: Always pay close attention to skin tones. Use the HSL panel to fine-tune them.
* Subtlety is Key: Soft portraits are about subtlety. Avoid extreme adjustments.
* Experiment: Don't be afraid to experiment with different settings and combinations.
* Brush Tool: Consider using the adjustment brush to further refine the skin softening effect. You can reduce clarity and sharpness specifically on the skin.
* Graduated Filter: Use the graduated filter to gently reduce highlights in the sky or background for a more balanced look.
Example Settings (Starting Point):
These are *starting points*. You'll need to adjust them for each image.
* Temperature: +5
* Tint: +2
* Exposure: +0.15
* Contrast: -18
* Highlights: -25
* Shadows: +10
* Whites: +5
* Blacks: -7
* Clarity: +5
* Tone Curve: Subtle S-curve or flattened curve
* Orange Luminance: +10
* Orange Saturation: -5
* Sharpening Amount: 30
* Sharpening Radius: 0.6
* Sharpening Detail: 25
* Sharpening Masking: 50
* Luminance Noise Reduction: 8
By following these steps and experimenting with different settings, you can create a "Soft Portrait" preset in Lightroom 4 that will give your portraits a beautiful, ethereal look. Remember that practice and attention to detail are key to achieving the best results. Good luck!