How to Use Presets to Enhance Your Favorite Photos

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links and is a sponsored collaboration with Nicky Presets. All opinions are my own.

Summer Vibes Preset

I love how DSLR cameras capture special moments, especially ones of my boys. I was introduced into photography when we decided to do a newborn shoot with our oldest. Ever since then we’ve been able to have different friends and photographers capture birthdays, pregnancies, and our many seasons of life. Photos are timeless and tell beautiful stories. With that, I eventually dove into learning all about using my own DSLR right before I taught my first high school photography course over a year ago. Though you may be thinking I’m not one to use anything other than my phone, don’t be dismayed! Great pictures are at your disposal even with your phone. I’m going to show you how to use presets to enhance your favorite photos.

What is a preset?

What is a preset you may be wondering. Well a preset is like a filter, but more specific. It’s is a pre-determined position all (or some) of the of sliders in a program like Lightroom (white balance, hue, saturation, warmth). With those pre-set settings, you can edit multiple photos with the exact combinations you’ve created. Presets can be tricky and are fairly new to those who do not regularly edit pictures. They’ve become much easier to use, but you still need some helpful tips and knowledge to make them work for you.

So when Nicky Presets reached out with the opportunity to test our their library and provide feedback, I was excited. Mostly because as I’ve incorporated presets into my own social media and visual stories, I see their value. Especially with Instagram feeds!

Tips on How to Use a Preset

Once you’ve decided on a look for your photos, find a preset(s) that compliment the following:

• Your skin tone
• The lighting in your photos
• The overall color stories in your photos
• Backgrounds and scenes

As you choose your preset, know that the preset is a basis for each picture. NO preset is one size fits all, but it creates cohesiveness to your pictures. That’s the goal of using a preset! It can a take dull, lifeless, photo and enhances it so you don’t have to start from scratch.

So when you have your chosen preset you may need to adjust the lighting, saturation, and warmth (just to name a few). Check out these before and afters with Nicky Presets. I’m beyond pleased!!

Before & After Preset: Vanilla Taste

Before & After Preset: Aloe

Before & After Preset: Honey Cake

Do you see now how using presets can enhance your favorite photos? I really hope so! What’s your personal fav from the before and afters?

If you haven’t tried a preset, I encourage you to do so. They work with Lightroom on your phone and/or computer. Nicky Presets have a array of styles to choose from along with easy to follow directions on how to use your chosen preset. I would definitely recommend them, especially since many are currently on sale!

There’s tons of great presets to choose from and they all provide options to create a cohesive feed. I encourage you to check out these tips in this post as well as you test out deciding what to use, you want to

Now go dive into great new photos friend!