I battled with whether to title this post “Why Every Influencer Needs a Lightroom Preset” or “Why Everyone Needs a Lightroom Preset” and at the end of the day, if you have a social media presence even if you only have 10 followers, you have a personal brand and a personal brand requires uniqueness and the best way to create uniqueness is through your aesthetic. And how do we achieve that? With a Lightroom preset of course!
what is lightroom?
For those of you who don’t know, Lightroom is a digital photo editing app made by Adobe. For those of you who do know, Lightroom is often referred to as Photoshop’s little sister.
The difference between the two is that Lightroom is strictly a color correcting, light editing program and Photoshop is more for design – anything from fliers and brochures to photos and email templates. If you want to get into graphic design or photography, I recommend both.
Lightroom isn’t just any editing program, it’s the editing program. It’s the cream of the crop and every influencer, photographer, and creator has it. You know those beautiful wedding photos you see on Pinterest? Yup, that’s the work of Lightroom.
Lightroom allows you to edit the most precise things from the color of your jeans to the shadows on your face. You can do a n y t h i n g with Lightroom. It’s one of those things where once you experience it, you’ll never want to go back.
what are lightroom presets?
Lightroom presets are the shortcuts to Lightroom. Lightroom presets are a pre-made editing combination you can frequently use. They save you time and are especially genius for those who aren’t tech savvy. You literally click “apply” and you’ve got yourself a new and improved beautiful photo.
So for example, you may like your photos a little bright, a little warm, a little desaturated… Instead of trying to achieve this look on your own, you just buy a preset that does it for you so you can easily repeat it every time you post a new photo.
There are two types of presets you can get: desktop and mobile. The presets I’m mainly referring to in this post are mobile because they’re so ridiculously easy and the Lightroom presets I offer are for mobile only. For whatever reason, mobile presets can’t be used on your desktop and desktop presets can’t be used on your phone, but if you’re not super tech savvy or a professional photographer I recommend the mobile presets because you can pull any photo from your desktop onto your phone and edit that way if need be.
If you’ve ever wondered how all these influencers have the most cohesive aesthetic, I promise you it’s because they use same Lightroom preset. BUT… most every Lightroom preset, no matter how amazing it is, will need some tweaking. Lightroom presets are not one size fits all. The lighting you shoot in plays a major role in how much tweaking will need to be done so the rule of thumb is always try to shoot in the same lighting. For example, I always shoot in the early morning or right before dusk.
why everyone needs a lightroom preset
Even if you don’t consider yourself an “influencer” having any sort of social media automatically makes you one. Regardless if you’re trying to find a job in catering, fashion, travel, accounting, or as an entrepreneur, we can all agree that first impressions are everything.
And in today’s landscape first impressions happen on social media so if you have any form of social media, you better believe the job you applied for or the investor you pitched to will look you up on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, etc. Social media is the new resume; some people pay more attention to that than what you’re actually qualified to do. I know I “stalk” all my potential hires on social media before interviewing them…
My point is that in order to stand out, you want to make a lasting first impression no matter what your goal is by having social media. In fact, it’s even more impressive if you’re using a Lightroom preset and you’re not an influencer because most non-influencer folk (lol) don’t even know what Lightroom is, let alone think about adding a preset to their pictures on Instagram, which gives those who do use a preset a competitive edge.
A Lightroom preset is like wearing a matching outfit. It makes you look put together, organized, and aesthetically pleasing. You personality, skills, and value add is the real gift but a Lightroom preset is like adding bow on top for the full package.
If you are an influencer, brand, or public figure, having a preset is key because it keeps your aesthetic consistent and branded. Lightroom is what separates amateurs from pros. You can instantly tell if someone’s using a preset or a low quality editing app.
Having a Lightroom preset sets you apart and will get brands, followers, and anyone else who stumbles upon your Instagram to do a double take. If you’ve ever come across an IG account and you think “Wow that feed is amazing!”, it’s most likely because that person uses Lightroom.
preset 1
This is the preset I use every day. I’ve been using this preset for about a year and I love it! It’s light, airy, muted, and beachy. It very much matches my personal and interior design style right now and I don’t see it changing anytime soon.
preset 2
This is a preset I used when I was living in NYC. It’s urban, gritty, eclectic, and sophisticated. If I ever moved to LA or another big city I would 100% use this preset.
preset 3
This Lightroom preset I’ll use when I travel and want to show a bit more color than usual. It has a vintage vibe to it yet it still captures the details of your photos. It also makes your tan POP. This preset would look great in Europe or in a dessert location like the Grand Canyon or Zion National Park.
helpful hints when picking a preset
Picking a preset is supposed to be fun. It’s like discovering yourself for the first time. But you also want to think about the type of brand you’re representing and how you want to be portrayed because how you edit says a lot about who you are.
Are you quiet? Are you bubbly? Do you live in a city, the midwest, or by the beach? How would you describe your personal style? What’s the weather typically like – sunny or overcast?
All of these questions play a factor in what preset you choose. However, the good news is whichever preset you go with, you can tweak it until it 100% works for you.
Happy preset picking!
Which Lightroom preset is your favorite? I love them all but my favorite right now is Preset 1.
xx
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