> PHOTOSHOP USER>^ APRIL 2020[ 82 ]
MAKE YOUR OWN LUT
A look-up table (LUT) is essentially a preset; the difference
being that a preset makes adjustments to a wide range of
parameters in your image. A preset generally will target the
sliders that appear in the Basic panel in Lightroom or Adobe
Camera Raw, e.g., Exposure, Contrast, Highlights, and oth-
ers. A LUT targets a narrower set of image parameters, and
is geared more toward changing color and tone. LUTs are
traditionally things to apply to moving images, but they’re
becoming increasingly popular in still-image processing.
Think of it as the Photoshop or Premiere Pro equivalent of
an Instagram filter.WHAT DOES A LUT DO?
The way a LUT works is not dissimilar to what you’re doing
when you use the HSL (Hue, Saturation, Luminance) Adjust-
ments panel in Camera Raw or the HSL/Color panel in Light-
room. You’re taking the colors captured in-camera with your
RAW file, and then remapping their values. You shift the
values from their original state and output them as a target,
creating a specific scene or mood and, quite often, making
the image more cinematic.
An advantage of using a LUT is that it can be applied or
edited as a layer, which allows you to adjust it in terms of theALL IMAGES BY DAVE WILLIAMS
Photo Effects
DAV EWILLIAMS
Just how many ads have you seen for presets on social media lately? They’re usually full of buzzwords
telling you just how FAST and EASY it is to edit your photos with them, and they have exotic names like
the “Bahamas Pack” or the “Fall Forest Look.” I’ve even seen some advertised with celebrity names
this past week. The thing is that you actually have three options when it comes to these presets:
You can buy them, find them for free, or make them.