Presets vs LUTs in Luminar Neo
Today’s tutorial compares presets and LUTs in Luminar Neo. I cover the pros and cons of each, what the major differences are between them, and discuss and demonstrate when, why and how I use them in my editing. Enjoy!
I’ve recently gotten several questions about presets and LUTs, mostly about trying to understand the difference between these two tools. So as I tend to do, I made a video about it. I also created a chart that shows all the differences, and you can download a copy of it if you join my newsletter (plus you get some Luminar presets and more - all for FREE!).
https://jimnix.com/newsletter
Both tools are excellent, although I feel they are built for different uses. I use both in my editing at times - sometimes it is one or the other, and sometimes I use both on a single image. It just depends on the look I am trying to achieve.
Check out today’s tutorial video and let me know if you have any questions!
Announcing "Roadtripper", a preset pack for Aurora HDR 2018!
My newest preset pack is ready! It's called Roadtripper, and it's for Aurora HDR 2018. Check it out!
Roadtripper: a preset pack for Aurora HDR 2018!
Hello friends, today I am announcing my first preset pack for Aurora HDR 2018. I have been working with this wonderful product for a while now, and have hand-crafted these presets to help you get the most out of your Aurora HDR 2018 experience. You can do SO MUCH with Aurora HDR 2018 that it will blow you away. It has been a lot of fun for me to crank out some beautiful HDR photos with it!
You can find my other preset packs right here on my presets page if you would like to see them all (but this is the only pack available right now for Aurora HDR 2018).
I love to create these preset packs and I use them on many of my images, too. I think of presets as the “easy button” for photo editing. Sometimes it really just takes that one click to get your shot looking exactly how you imagined it, although of course there are times when a preset is a great starting point to send you off in a new creative direction. Either way, I know you will enjoy this new preset pack and get a lot of mileage out of it.
Introducing Roadtripper
If you have been following me since before this past summer, you may be aware that I took a massive road trip with the family over the course of June, July and August and we covered about 9 states and 2 Canadian provinces. Dang, it was a hell of a lot of driving (but a lot of fun too). On this trip, I captured thousands of photos and these were the inspiration for this preset pack.
These presets range from something you could use on a beautiful sunset and go all the way to a grungy, rusted out old truck - because that is the entire range of what I photographed on this road trip. These presets are designed to work with ALL sorts of scenes, just as you would encounter on a road trip yourself. I like bold, colorful and expressive photos, so my presets are designed to accentuate that, and I think you will be able to see that theme in the sample screenshots below.
Don't forget you can stack presets for more fun and experimentation! I often stack 2 presets and adjust the opacity levels of each layer to get interesting and beautiful results. Or stack them and just mask in the part of the preset that fits with your photo. Your options are limitless! Just experiment and have fun. That's what this is all about, anyway. Create something interesting and have fun doing it.
There are 20 presets in this pack and once loaded in Aurora HDR 2018 it will be displayed as it’s own category of presets, right alongside all the other categories that are built into Aurora (see below for installation instructions).
Go watch it in action!
Here's a video showing many of the presets in action. Take a look! (Can you tell I like doing videos? I think they just work better than reading something, and they are fun for me.)
How To Purchase This Preset Pack
Ready to purchase this preset pack? You can click on “Add to Cart” below, or visit my presets page. Once you complete the purchase process, you will receive an email with a download link for the preset pack file, which you can then import into Aurora HDR 2018. Installation instructions are below.
It sells for the low price of $10.00. That's just $0.50 per preset! Think of all the amazing creations you will use these on!
Thanks for stopping by, and let me know if you have any questions. I appreciate the support very much! I couldn't do this without your support, so I want you to know I am deeply grateful. Thank you!
How To Install A Custom Preset Pack
When you import a custom preset pack such as this one, it will create a new category in the Presets category window, and the presets will be displayed within that category.
See the example to the right. --> Roadtripper is in the bottom right hand corner.
To add a custom preset pack, select the menu item File > Add Custom Presets Pack. An open dialog box will be displayed, allowing you to choose the pack you wish to add.
After you receive your email with the download link, download the preset pack file to your desktop which allows you to easily find it and select it.
Then you start making awesome photos!
Show me some samples, Jim!
Ok, it’s about time to do that, don’t you think? Take a look at all the screenshots below and any of them can be viewed larger with a single click. You will also see the preset name in the screenshots below. This is just a few of them - remember, there are 20 presets in the pack!
Thanks for taking a look and let me know if you have any questions! Click any image to enlarge!
Do you need help using Aurora HDR? Want to create masterful HDR photos?
One thing that I decided to do, upon the release of Aurora HDR 2018, was to create a tutorial series on YouTube. I used to write out lengthy tutorials but I find videos are much better for this. You can follow along and watch what I do, instead of just read about it, and I think that's way better. So, if you need help with Aurora, check out my Aurora HDR 2018 Tutorial Series over on YouTube. The tutorial itself is a collection of 10 videos covering the basic all the way to advanced techniques, and there are a few other videos in the set, too. I think you will enjoy this quite a lot! And yes, these are all free!
Click here to see my entire collection of Aurora HDR 2018 videos.
Here's a sample of what you will see there...enjoy!
Thank you and enjoy the presets!
Blue hour in Prague: Aurora HDR + Luminar workflow
Here's my latest video, showing how I build the base HDR photo in Aurora and then take it into Luminar for some additional editing and customization. Enjoy!
Here's my latest video, showing how I start with Aurora HDR to build my base HDR image, and then take it into Luminar for some stylizing work. This was shot on my recent trip to Prague. I was up super early to get out on the Charles Bridge, specifically so I could avoid all the tourists. Worked out perfectly! I had the bridge nearly to myself for a couple of hours!
Luminar Workflow: Stars over Nashville
Here's a new video showing how I quickly transform a flat, lifeless photo into a work of art, all in Luminar!
In this video, I share how I transform a relatively flat and boring photo of Nashville into a beautiful and starry night over Nashville. I employ a few of my favorite tricks: using some presets, adding a new sky and more. It's a fun bunch of techniques that are easy yet effective, and the end result is a considerably different photo. Enjoy!
Luminar Tip: Curves Filter Basics
In this video I give a demonstration of the basic uses of the Curves Filter in Luminar. It's a very powerful tool to have, but can get a little confusing. Check this out to get started using it.
I shared this video recently and got a lot of feedback on it. It appears that the Curves Filter is a bit of a mystery to some. When I first started, I felt the same way. It seems like it can do a lot but being able to figure out how and why to use it can be a struggle.
So this is my first video about this filter and I believe I will come back soon and do another one. This covers the basics of the Curves Filter, designed to get you familiar with the controls and generally what they do to your photos. It's not an in-depth guide to it but rather a quick tour of how it works so you can get started with it.
Take a look and let me know if you have any questions, and thanks!