3 Tips to Make Presets Work for You

If you ask several photographers, you may get different responses about whether a preset is a good thing to use, or not. Some will say to never use them, because all you are doing is adapting someone else’s vision to your photo instead of crafting your own. I totally get that argument, but I disagree with it. 

I’m a fan of presets, which is why I make several packs (some free and some for sale). I’ve built and used them for years, and I think they are very useful, especially if you are newer to photo editing. They can be a big help if you use them correctly. 

Here’s why I think they can be useful:

• They aren’t meant for one click. 

• They can inspire you.

• They can teach you.

Let’s break these down one by one so I can explain my thinking.

The one click solution

A big challenge with presets is that they are often marketed as a one-click solution. I’m guilty of saying that as well, because it is the easiest way to describe what a preset will do. It describes the value in an easy, catchy phrase. And truthfully, it is a one click solution. It’s just that the solution it provides isn’t always a complete solution for a specific image. 

But that phrase is not fully descriptive, and I honestly don’t believe they are meant to be a true one-click solution, most of the time. They are a starting point - that’s how I think of them. Sure, sometimes they actually work with a single click, and you get exactly what you would have done to the photo yourself. But admittedly, that is rare. 

More often than not they get you started on an edit, and many times get you as much as 50-75% of the way to achieving your vision. That’s a big help! You’ve just saved a lot of time, which I think everyone can appreciate. Then, you have a little more fine-tuning to do to the image, and voila! You have an edit. 

A basis for inspiration

One of the key benefits that I see with presets is that they can guide you in a creative direction with a photo that you may not have come up with yourself. You can easily audition various looks and pick something that suits your photo, or your mood, or your tastes. It’s a great tool for inspiration, for finding a direction to pursue with your edit.

Not sure how you want to edit an image? Perhaps you are stuck? Try a preset! This gives you multiple paths you can go down with your edit, and I suspect that many of these paths are not ones that you would arrive at on your own. These presets are giving you ideas, and ideas are powerful. Presets are great as guides in this situation.

A teaching tool

The other thing I love about presets is that they are a wonderful training or instructional tool. If you have presets from a photographer whose work you enjoy (or want to learn from), you get a chance to peek behind the curtain to see how they approach an edit. You get a look inside their thinking about what tools they use, and how, and to what extent. It’s a little bit like they are sitting there with you, giving you some pointers as you edit.

I consider this one of the best aspects about presets. I’m always looking for inspiration and new knowledge or tips for making better edits with different types of images. It’s because I want to grow my skills and get better and better at understanding how to edit, and understanding how to control my images. When I find that I have done something that works well, I save it as a preset, so that I preserve that approach for the future.

As a user of someone else’s presets, you get to sit on their shoulder and see how they do things. You can learn a lot this way, and accelerate your own learning and education, improve your editing skills, and create more compelling images.

Final Thoughts

With these ideas in mind, I think you can approach the use of presets in your editing as something that is helpful - almost like having an editing assistant with you. They can inform your editing in new ways and help you craft results that you may not have arrived at on your own. This is why I make various preset packs, because I think of it like a transfer of knowledge, a training tool. And of course if you have followed me for any length of time, you know I am big on sharing knowledge.

How do you feel about presets?