Reasons to use presets when editing photos

Presets are like a cheat code for photo editing, so many people decide to ignore them and edit manually for a few weeks. Many people think that editing without presets will make them a better photographer. But that's not true!

5. Presets are a good base for editing

If you've been editing photos regularly for years, you probably have a pretty good idea of ​​how presets affect your photos. You can create specific presets for different types of photography, like sunny days and overcast days, so you can intuitively know what kind of edits you need to achieve the look you want.

Presets provide a solid foundation and significantly reduce editing time. In many cases, all you need is slight adjustments to lighting, color, style, and some aesthetic details.

Many apps, like Lightroom , also categorize presets based on genre (e.g., lifestyle and travel). So you can easily filter through these presets and find the one that fits your mood.

4. Use presets as inspiration

Sometimes you like the composition of a photo you're editing but don't know what you want the final result to look like. While you can adjust multiple sliders, this can be time-consuming.

Presets give you editing inspiration. Hover over each one to see what would and wouldn't work for your current edit. While you won't always find something that works, this strategy will usually work.

3. Installing a preset is sometimes the only edit needed

Many people used to be very resistant to using presets in their photos and not editing anything else. Personally, they felt like they were cheating. However, over time, they realized that the results were more important than the time spent editing the photos.

Not using presets will take you longer to edit your photos. In some ways, this is a good thing, as it gives you the opportunity to fine-tune details that are often overlooked. But once you can incorporate them into your workflow, there's no reason not to use presets.

Presets are a creative way to transform photos in Lightroom and other apps. You can also use this tool if it gives you the desired results in less time (and at such a good level).

2. Can save time editing multiple photos

Many people like to have consistency across all images from the same photo shoot. If you shoot a lot of photos in the same lighting conditions, using presets for all of them is probably the only editing you'll need. You can tweak the exposure and saturation a bit, but starting from scratch every time isn't practical.

Once you edit one photo, you don't need to manually apply the preset to all your other photos. Lightroom's Sync tool does it for you automatically.

1. Preset settings help make photos more consistent

Even if you don't have a single editing 'style,' your photos will often have similar characteristics. For example, some people add a lot of contrast and like to adjust the tonalities. Always be willing to experiment with new editing styles, but if you're editing an image as you normally would, presets are your best bet.

Presets help keep images more consistent across social media and travel blogs. Some bloggers and influencers even use the same presets for all of their photos. If you want a more consistent look, you can do the same in the future.

Marvin Fry

Update 25 May 2025