[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":641},["ShallowReactive",2],{"roadmap":3,"$f298dwgx5nbx2n":190},{"stages":4,"labels":183},[5,65,110,143],{"key":6,"label":7,"category":8,"tone":9,"items":10},"now","Now","active","amber",[11,22,34,46,52,59],{"id":12,"title":13,"description":14,"votes":15,"postId":16,"labels":17},"public-beta","Public beta","The first builds go out to testers on iPhone, iPad and Mac. Leave your email on the home page and you will hear when it opens.",0,null,[18],{"key":19,"label":20,"tone":21},"release","Release","neutral",{"id":23,"title":24,"description":25,"votes":15,"postId":16,"labels":26},"video","Video clips","Import clips with your photos and play them in the loupe. Trim them, pick the poster frame, preview your edits and export at full size, 1080p or 720p.",[27,30],{"key":28,"label":29,"tone":9},"editing","Editing",{"key":31,"label":32,"tone":33},"library","Library","blue",{"id":35,"title":36,"description":37,"votes":15,"postId":16,"labels":38},"icloud","iCloud sync","No server of your own? iCloud carries your presets, settings and edits between your iPhone, iPad and Mac, and can keep your photos in iCloud Drive. What on-device search found travels too, so your phone finds the faces and words your Mac found.",[39,43],{"key":40,"label":41,"tone":42},"sync","Sync","emerald",{"key":44,"label":45,"tone":21},"apple","Apple devices",{"id":47,"title":48,"description":49,"votes":15,"postId":16,"labels":50},"shortcuts","Shortcuts, Siri, Spotlight and Handoff","Find, rate, flag and export photos from Shortcuts and Siri. Find them in Spotlight by caption, keyword, person or place, and pick up the photo you were on from another device.",[51],{"key":44,"label":45,"tone":21},{"id":53,"title":54,"description":55,"votes":15,"postId":16,"labels":56},"photos-extension","Edit from the Photos app, with Live Photos","Open a photo in Apple's Photos app and edit it with the LightBites sliders and presets, without importing it. Live Photos keep their motion when you edit and save them.",[57,58],{"key":44,"label":45,"tone":21},{"key":28,"label":29,"tone":9},{"id":60,"title":61,"description":62,"votes":15,"postId":16,"labels":63},"libraries","More than one library, on a drive or a NAS","Keep several libraries and switch between them without restarting: one on the device, one that syncs with your server, or one on an external drive or a shared folder on your network.",[64],{"key":31,"label":32,"tone":33},{"key":66,"label":67,"category":68,"tone":33,"items":69},"next","Next","planned",[70,76,85,91,97,103],{"id":71,"title":72,"description":73,"votes":15,"postId":16,"labels":74},"app-store","On the App Store","LightBites on the App Store for iPhone, iPad and Mac. Free to download, with a 7-day trial of LightBites Pro and one purchase for all three. No subscription.",[75],{"key":19,"label":20,"tone":21},{"id":77,"title":78,"description":79,"votes":15,"postId":16,"labels":80},"camera-colour","Colour that matches your camera","Measured colour profiles for the most popular cameras, so a raw file opens looking the way it did on the camera's screen, before you touch a slider.",[81],{"key":82,"label":83,"tone":84},"raw","Raw & colour","orange",{"id":86,"title":87,"description":88,"votes":15,"postId":16,"labels":89},"olympus","Olympus and OM System raw files","Compressed ORF files open as full raw files you can develop, not only as their previews.",[90],{"key":82,"label":83,"tone":84},{"id":92,"title":93,"description":94,"votes":15,"postId":16,"labels":95},"focus-points","Focus points","See where the camera focused, drawn over the photo, and zoom straight to that spot to check sharpness while you cull.",[96],{"key":31,"label":32,"tone":33},{"id":98,"title":99,"description":100,"votes":15,"postId":16,"labels":101},"mask-presets","Mask presets","Save a mask's adjustments, like a brighter face or a deeper sky, and use them again in one tap. Export them to share with a friend.",[102],{"key":28,"label":29,"tone":9},{"id":104,"title":105,"description":106,"votes":15,"postId":16,"labels":107},"slideshow-print","Slideshow export and Print","Give a slideshow titles and overlays and export it as a video or a PDF, and print photos straight from your iPad or Mac.",[108,109],{"key":31,"label":32,"tone":33},{"key":44,"label":45,"tone":21},{"key":111,"label":112,"category":68,"tone":21,"items":113},"later","Later",[114,120,126,132,138],{"id":115,"title":116,"description":117,"votes":15,"postId":16,"labels":118},"smart-masks","Subject, Sky and People masks","Select the subject, the sky or a person in one tap, worked out on your device by a model you download once.",[119],{"key":28,"label":29,"tone":9},{"id":121,"title":122,"description":123,"votes":15,"postId":16,"labels":124},"nikon-he","Nikon High Efficiency raw files","Full raw decoding for NEF files saved in Nikon's High Efficiency modes, which open as previews for now.",[125],{"key":82,"label":83,"tone":84},{"id":127,"title":128,"description":129,"votes":15,"postId":16,"labels":130},"lens-profiles","Corrections for more lenses","Distortion, vignetting and colour fringing corrected automatically for more lenses, from profiles we measure ourselves.",[131],{"key":82,"label":83,"tone":84},{"id":133,"title":134,"description":135,"votes":15,"postId":16,"labels":136},"shared-albums","Comments and likes on shared albums","People you share an album with can like photos and leave a comment, and you see it in the app.",[137],{"key":40,"label":41,"tone":42},{"id":139,"title":140,"description":141,"votes":15,"postId":16,"labels":142},"languages","More languages","Korean, Hindi, Arabic, Vietnamese and Indonesian, with right-to-left layouts for Arabic.",[],{"key":144,"label":145,"category":144,"tone":42,"items":146},"done","Done",[147,153,159,165,171,177],{"id":148,"title":149,"description":150,"votes":15,"postId":16,"labels":151},"server-sync","Sync with your own server","Run the open-source LightCraft server on a NAS or any computer, and every device shares one library: photos, edits, albums, ratings, keywords and presets.",[152],{"key":40,"label":41,"tone":42},{"id":154,"title":155,"description":156,"votes":15,"postId":16,"labels":157},"search-people","Search by description, and People","Describe a photo to find it, search the text in your photos, and name a face once for People. It all runs on your device.",[158],{"key":31,"label":32,"tone":33},{"id":160,"title":161,"description":162,"votes":15,"postId":16,"labels":163},"remove","Remove, Heal and Lens Blur","Brush over a distraction and it is filled in, heal dust and blemishes, and soften the background with a depth map.",[164],{"key":28,"label":29,"tone":9},{"id":166,"title":167,"description":168,"votes":15,"postId":16,"labels":169},"canon-cr3","Canon CR3 raw files","CR3 files from 26 Canon bodies, checked one by one, open as full raw files.",[170],{"key":82,"label":83,"tone":84},{"id":172,"title":173,"description":174,"votes":15,"postId":16,"labels":175},"profile-updates","Camera and lens profiles that stay up to date","LightBites looks for new camera and lens profiles once a day and downloads only what changed.",[176],{"key":82,"label":83,"tone":84},{"id":178,"title":179,"description":180,"votes":15,"postId":16,"labels":181},"pro","LightBites Pro, one purchase","Editing and your library are free. Export and sharing come with one purchase after a free 7-day trial, with no subscription.",[182],{"key":19,"label":20,"tone":21},[184,185,186,187,188,189],{"key":19,"label":20,"tone":21},{"key":82,"label":83,"tone":84},{"key":28,"label":29,"tone":9},{"key":31,"label":32,"tone":33},{"key":40,"label":41,"tone":42},{"key":44,"label":45,"tone":21},{"featured":191,"howTos":616},[192,362,503],{"slug":193,"section":178,"title":194,"seoTitle":195,"description":196,"intro":197,"level":198,"minutes":199,"updated":200,"icon":201,"keywords":202,"presetName":208,"raw":209,"steps":218,"faq":329,"related":339,"order":342,"downloads":343,"images":355},"raw-workflow","How to edit a raw photo, in the order the pros do","How to edit raw photos: a step-by-step workflow on iPhone and Mac","A raw file is where a great photo starts. The order to work in, from profile and white balance to tone, colour and sharpening, with a raw file to practise on.","Most edits go wrong because they're done in the wrong order. Work from the whole photo to the details, and each step makes the next one easier.","Beginner",8,"2026-10-21","i-lucide-aperture",[203,204,205,206,207],"how to edit raw photos","raw editing workflow","edit ProRAW","raw photo editor iPhone","raw editor Mac","Raw Workflow",{"file":210,"title":211,"camera":212,"author":213,"licence":214,"licenceUrl":215,"url":216,"sha256":217},"lightbites-raw-workflow.dng","Landscape in soft daylight","Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra (SM-G998B)","raw.pixls.us contributor","CC0 1.0","https:\u002F\u002Fcreativecommons.org\u002Fpublicdomain\u002Fzero\u002F1.0\u002F","https:\u002F\u002Fraw.pixls.us\u002Fdata-unique\u002FSamsung\u002FGalaxy%20S21%20Ultra\u002F20230712_115041.dng","5baeb5f0c4a125647df03b82c2d38b0f02784393bd39eff1a5b23d8f5308dc5e",[219,232,247,257,274,286,299,314],{"id":220,"title":221,"text":222,"do":223,"shot":228},"profile","Start with the profile","A raw file has no look of its own: the profile decides how its colours and contrast are drawn before you touch a slider. Choose it first, because everything after builds on it.",[224,227],{"ios":225,"mac":226},"Tap **Edit**, then **Profile**, and try a few. Each tile is the photo in that profile.","Open **Profile** at the top of the Edit panel, or **Browse Profiles** to see them as pictures.","Pick one that looks natural rather than finished: you'll add the punch later.",{"alt":229,"ui":230},"The profiles for a raw landscape, each shown as a thumbnail of the photo",{"screen":231,"group":220},"edit",{"id":233,"title":234,"text":235,"do":236,"tip":242,"shot":243},"white-balance","Set the white balance","White balance decides whether white looks white. With a raw file it's lossless, so get it right now: every colour after depends on it.",[237,238,241],"In **Color**, choose a **White Balance**: **As Shot**, **Auto**, or the light you shot in (**Daylight**, **Cloudy**, **Shade**…).",{"ios":239,"mac":240},"Or tap the eyedropper and then something that should be neutral grey or white.","Or press `W` and click something that should be neutral grey or white.","Fine-tune **Temp** (cooler or warmer) and **Tint** (greener or more magenta) by eye.","Not sure? Look at something you know is white, a cloud or a wall, and move **Temp** until it stops looking blue or yellow.",{"alt":244,"ui":245},"The Color group with the white balance menu, Temp and Tint",{"screen":231,"group":246},"color",{"id":248,"title":249,"text":250,"set":251,"shot":253},"exposure","Get the exposure right","Set **Exposure** so the main subject is as bright as you want it. Don't worry about the brightest and darkest parts yet: that's the next step.",{"light.exposure":252},0.3,{"alt":254,"ui":255},"Exposure raised a third of a stop in the Light group",{"screen":231,"group":256},"light",{"id":258,"title":259,"text":260,"do":261,"set":265,"tip":270,"shot":271},"tones","Bring back the highlights, open the shadows","This is where raw files shine: there is far more in the bright and dark parts than the camera showed you.",[262,263,264],"Pull **Highlights** down until the sky has detail again.","Push **Shadows** up until the dark parts open, but stop before it looks flat.","Set **Whites** and **Blacks** last: up and down until the brightest and darkest parts just touch white and black.",{"light.highlights":266,"light.shadows":267,"light.whites":268,"light.blacks":269},-60,40,15,-12,"Watch the histogram: the graph should reach both ends without piling up against either.",{"alt":272,"ui":273},"Highlights down and Shadows up: the sky and the shadows both have detail",{"screen":231,"group":256},{"id":275,"title":276,"text":277,"set":278,"shot":282},"presence","Add contrast and presence","Recovering both ends makes a photo flatter, so add some of it back. **Contrast** for the whole photo, then **Texture** for fine detail and **Clarity** for mid-sized detail, both gently. A little **Dehaze** cuts through haze in the distance.",{"light.contrast":279,"effects.texture":280,"effects.clarity":279,"effects.dehaze":281},12,10,6,{"alt":283,"ui":284},"Texture, Clarity and Dehaze in the Effects group",{"screen":231,"group":285},"effects",{"id":287,"title":288,"text":289,"set":290,"shot":293},"colour","Colour: vibrance first","**Vibrance** lifts the dull colours more than the strong ones, and spares skin. Use it before **Saturation**, which pushes every colour equally. For one colour only, open **Color Mixer**: the blue of a sky, the green of grass.",{"color.vibrance":291,"mixer.blue.sat":199,"mixer.green.sat":292},20,-6,{"alt":294,"ui":295,"mac":296},"Vibrance raised in the Color group, the Color Mixer below it",{"screen":231,"group":246},{"sections":297},[246,298],"mixer",{"id":300,"title":301,"text":302,"do":303,"set":309,"shot":311},"detail","Sharpen and clean up noise","Sharpening and noise reduction come last, looked at up close. Zoom in to 100 % on something with fine detail.",[304,307,308],{"ios":305,"mac":306},"In **Detail**, open **Sharpening** and raise the amount until edges look crisp, not crunchy.","In **Detail**, raise **Sharpening** until edges look crisp, not crunchy.","Raise **Masking** to keep the sharpening off smooth areas such as the sky.","Add **Noise Reduction** only if you see grain in the shadows.",{"detail.sharpenAmount":267,"detail.sharpenMasking":310,"detail.nrLuminance":280},35,{"alt":312,"ui":313},"The Detail group: sharpening and noise reduction",{"screen":231,"group":300},{"id":315,"title":316,"text":317,"edit":320,"shot":324},"crop","Straighten and crop",{"ios":318,"mac":319},"Open **Crop**, tap **Auto** to level the horizon, and crop out anything at the edges that pulls the eye away.","Open **Crop**, level the horizon with **Angle**, and crop out anything at the edges that pulls the eye away.",[321],[322,323],"crop.autoStraighten",{},{"alt":325,"ui":326},"The finished photo with the horizon levelled",{"screen":315,"cropTab":327,"cropGuide":328},"aspect","thirds",[330,333,336],{"q":331,"a":332},"Why shoot raw?","A raw file keeps everything the sensor saw: much more detail in the bright and dark parts, and white balance you can change without losing quality. A JPEG has already thrown most of that away.",{"q":334,"a":335},"Does this work for iPhone ProRAW?","Yes. ProRAW is a DNG file, and LightBites edits it like any raw. Turn on ProRAW in the Camera settings of your iPhone.",{"q":337,"a":338},"Why this order?","Each step changes what the next one sees: the profile and white balance change every colour, exposure changes every tone. Working from the whole photo to the details means you don't undo yourself.",[340,341],"edit-sunset","editing-basics",9,{"photo":344,"preset":347,"raw":350,"xmp":352},{"width":345,"height":346},2400,1800,{"file":348,"bytes":349,"name":208},"raw-workflow.lcpreset",4969,{"file":210,"bytes":351},37770480,{"file":353,"bytes":354},"lightbites-raw-workflow.xmp",3979,{"raw-workflow-after-1600":356,"raw-workflow-after-800":357,"raw-workflow-profile-mac-dark-1600":358,"raw-workflow-profile-mac-dark-800":359,"raw-workflow-profile-mac-light-1600":360,"raw-workflow-profile-mac-light-800":361},"https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F695ca61e-cc8f-4047-9f81-81b146be6ed8.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F3e8691b8-42f5-4fa5-90dd-939c5c7f3909.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002Fbec753e6-7881-48cf-9dc1-3d2a2bc8dac1.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002Fd79cf878-87a5-4d5a-aa03-7a1b882678e4.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F9740b8ac-b6da-40ac-9084-e66ec1077a72.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F9c5387d0-7b68-42ce-a3d5-fffa5de8a219.webp",{"slug":340,"section":178,"title":363,"seoTitle":364,"description":365,"intro":366,"level":367,"minutes":368,"updated":200,"icon":369,"keywords":370,"presetName":376,"raw":377,"steps":386,"faq":477,"related":484,"order":280,"downloads":486,"images":496},"How to edit a sunset photo","How to edit a sunset photo: bring back the sky, keep the glow","Bring back a burnt-out sky, lift a dark foreground, and keep the warm glow of a sunset without making it look fake. With the raw file to follow along.","A sunset is the hardest light to photograph: the sky is far brighter than the land. A raw file holds both. Here's how to get them back without a fake glow.","Intermediate",7,"i-lucide-sunset",[371,372,373,374,375],"how to edit sunset photos","sunset photo editing","recover sky","golden hour edit","landscape editing","Sunset Glow",{"file":378,"title":379,"camera":380,"author":381,"licence":382,"licenceUrl":383,"url":384,"sha256":385},"lightbites-sunset.dng","Sunset with light rays over the fields","Samsung Galaxy S21 FE (SM-G990B)","dnzm (discuss.pixls.us)","CC BY-SA 4.0","https:\u002F\u002Fcreativecommons.org\u002Flicenses\u002Fby-sa\u002F4.0\u002F","https:\u002F\u002Fdiscuss.pixls.us\u002Fuploads\u002Fshort-url\u002FgW9ixh7rLGG3XLW8L7MuLMRm8wC.dng","52e8ea67eeb87591bcee79cb2e16bb51fe6f260ddc5bd6cfccfbc5bdd139323e",[387,394,406,416,445,456,469],{"id":388,"title":389,"text":390,"shot":391},"warmth","Keep the warmth","Auto white balance fixes what it thinks is a colour cast, and at sunset the cast is the point. Start from **As Shot** or **Daylight**, and if anything nudge **Temp** a little warmer, never cooler.",{"alt":392,"ui":393},"The Color group with the white balance set to As Shot",{"screen":231,"group":246},{"id":395,"title":396,"text":397,"set":398,"tip":402,"shot":403},"sky","Bring back the sky","Pull **Highlights** well down and **Whites** a little: the colour comes back into the bright clouds and the sun's glow gets a shape.",{"light.highlights":399,"light.whites":400,"light.exposure":401},-80,-15,0.1,"If the sun itself stays white, that's fine. It was.",{"alt":404,"ui":405},"Highlights pulled down: the clouds have their colour back",{"screen":231,"group":256},{"id":407,"title":408,"text":409,"set":410,"shot":413},"foreground","Lift the foreground","Raise **Shadows** until you can see into the land, but leave it darker than the sky: that's how a sunset looks to the eye. Keep **Blacks** a little down so it still has depth.",{"light.shadows":411,"light.blacks":412,"light.contrast":199},45,-10,{"alt":414,"ui":415},"Shadows raised: detail in the foreground, still darker than the sky",{"screen":231,"group":256},{"id":417,"title":418,"text":419,"do":420,"edit":426,"shot":441},"gradient","Balance it with a gradient","A **Linear Gradient** from the top of the frame down to the horizon darkens the sky a little more, and only the sky. Add a touch of **Dehaze** in it to give the clouds shape.",[421,424,425],{"ios":422,"mac":423},"Open **Masking**, tap **+** and choose **Linear Gradient**.","Open **Masking** and choose **Linear Gradient**.","Drag from the top edge down to just above the horizon.","Lower its **Exposure** a little and add **Dehaze** and **Saturation**.",[427,435],[428,429],"mask.add",{"kind":430,"start":431,"end":433},"linear",[432,15],0.5,[432,434],0.45,[436,437],"mask.adjust",{"values":438},{"exposure":439,"highlights":440,"dehaze":279,"saturation":280},-0.35,-20,{"alt":442,"ui":443},"A linear gradient over the sky, darkening it down to the horizon",{"screen":444},"masking",{"id":446,"title":447,"text":448,"set":449,"shot":451},"glow","Make the colours glow","Raise **Vibrance**, then open **Color Mixer** and lift the **Saturation** of the oranges and yellows a little. Leave the reds: they turn neon fast.",{"color.vibrance":450,"mixer.orange.sat":279,"mixer.yellow.sat":199},25,{"alt":452,"ui":453,"mac":454},"Vibrance up and the orange and yellow saturation raised in the Color Mixer",{"screen":231,"group":246},{"sections":455},[246,298],{"id":457,"title":458,"text":459,"set":460,"shot":463},"grade","Warm the light, cool the shadows","In **Color Grading**, give the highlights a warm, golden hue and the shadows a little blue. The contrast between warm and cool is what makes a sunset feel like a sunset.",{"grading.highlights.hue":267,"grading.highlights.sat":461,"grading.shadows.hue":462,"grading.shadows.sat":280},18,220,{"alt":464,"ui":465,"mac":466},"Color Grading: warm highlights and cool shadows",{"screen":231,"group":246},{"sections":467},[246,468],"grading",{"id":470,"title":471,"text":472,"set":473,"shot":474},"finish","Finish","A gentle **Vignette** darkens the corners and leads the eye to the light. Then press and hold the photo to compare with where you started.",{"vignette.amount":269,"effects.clarity":281},{"alt":475,"ui":476},"The finished sunset with a soft vignette",{"screen":231,"group":285},[478,481],{"q":479,"a":480},"Why does my sunset look grey after editing?","Usually from pulling Highlights down without adding anything back. Raise Vibrance and add warmth in Color Grading's highlights, and keep a little contrast.",{"q":482,"a":483},"Should I use Saturation or Vibrance for sunsets?","Vibrance first: it lifts the weaker colours and leaves the already strong oranges alone. Saturation pushes everything, and a sunset's reds clip quickly.",[485,193],"masks",{"photo":487,"preset":488,"raw":491,"xmp":493},{"width":345,"height":346},{"file":489,"bytes":490,"name":376},"edit-sunset.lcpreset",4970,{"file":378,"bytes":492},24026127,{"file":494,"bytes":495},"lightbites-sunset.xmp",5429,{"edit-sunset-after-1600":497,"edit-sunset-after-800":498,"edit-sunset-warmth-mac-dark-1600":499,"edit-sunset-warmth-mac-dark-800":500,"edit-sunset-warmth-mac-light-1600":501,"edit-sunset-warmth-mac-light-800":502},"https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F75b2c4e9-67d6-46f8-9c0f-2f226d9b1e27.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F7348a8c6-addb-476a-9530-0cd63c546ead.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002Fb331fcf9-f0da-486c-81d6-6683d3c2de69.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F0f3136a6-be35-4894-84c3-0bf3e0ad2493.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F87a46183-d0d7-4807-8730-ea1a49c11ac5.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002Fb0389c28-ce2f-44a1-9563-6a309d75bebe.webp",{"slug":504,"section":178,"title":505,"seoTitle":506,"description":507,"intro":508,"level":367,"minutes":368,"updated":200,"icon":509,"keywords":510,"presetName":516,"raw":517,"steps":524,"faq":588,"related":595,"order":597,"downloads":598,"images":609},"edit-portrait","How to edit a portrait naturally","How to edit portraits: natural skin tones and a softer background","A natural portrait edit: light the face, even out skin tones, make the subject stand out from a softer background. With the raw file to follow along.","A good portrait edit is one nobody notices. Light the face, keep the skin real, and let the background step back.","i-lucide-user-round",[511,512,513,514,515],"how to edit portraits","portrait editing","skin tones","select subject","natural portrait edit","Natural Portrait",{"file":518,"title":519,"camera":520,"author":521,"licence":382,"licenceUrl":383,"url":522,"sha256":523},"lightbites-portrait.arw","Portrait in golden hour","Sony ZV-E10","pu.photograph (discuss.pixls.us)","https:\u002F\u002Fdiscuss.pixls.us\u002Fuploads\u002Fshort-url\u002F3FNjEQYshbhxgSk8GmWDy0pwwW5.ARW","0a0775e6f803329341b954fd4d0ed08d6cc71b3b226c34d0218865761e31f0d8",[525,535,547,563,580],{"id":256,"title":526,"text":527,"set":528,"shot":532},"Light the face","Set **Exposure** for the face, not the background. Bring **Highlights** down so bright skin keeps its detail, and lift **Shadows** a little to soften the shadows under the eyes and chin.",{"light.exposure":529,"light.highlights":530,"light.shadows":291,"light.contrast":531},0.2,-25,-5,{"alt":533,"ui":534},"The Light group set for the face",{"screen":231,"group":256},{"id":536,"title":537,"text":538,"set":539,"tip":541,"shot":542},"skin","Even out the skin tones","Skin is mostly orange, with some red. In **Color Mixer**, lower the **Saturation** of orange a little and raise its **Luminance**: blotchy, ruddy skin calms down and brightens. Keep the changes small.",{"mixer.orange.sat":540,"mixer.orange.lum":199,"mixer.red.sat":531},-8,"Never use **Saturation** for skin: **Vibrance** is made to leave skin tones alone.",{"alt":543,"ui":544,"mac":545},"The Color Mixer with orange saturation lowered and its luminance raised",{"screen":231,"group":246},{"sections":546},[246,298],{"id":548,"title":549,"text":550,"edit":551,"shot":559},"subject","Make the subject stand out","Open **Masking** and choose **Select Subject**: the person is selected in a moment, on your device. Brighten them a touch and lower **Texture** for gentler skin; that's softer than any blur.",[552,556],[553,554],"ui.set",{"screen":444,"selectSubject":555},true,[436,557],{"values":558},{"exposure":529,"texture":400,"clarity":531},{"alt":560,"ui":561,"wait":562},"The subject selected, brightened and softened",{"screen":444},5,{"id":564,"title":565,"text":566,"edit":567,"tip":574,"shot":577},"background","Let the background step back","Add **Select Background** and darken it a little, with less **Saturation** and **Clarity**. Nothing changes in the face, and the background stops competing with it.",[568,570],[428,569],{"kind":564},[436,571],{"values":572},{"exposure":573,"saturation":269,"clarity":400},-0.3,{"ios":575,"mac":576},"For a real out-of-focus look, try **Lens Blur** in Edit: it blurs by distance.","For a real out-of-focus look, try **Lens Blur** in the Edit panel: it blurs by distance.",{"alt":578,"ui":579,"wait":562},"The background selected and darkened behind the subject",{"screen":444},{"id":470,"title":581,"text":582,"set":583,"shot":585},"Finish with a soft vignette","A gentle **Vignette** keeps the eye on the face. Then look at the photo at full size: if the skin looks plastic, take **Texture** back up in the subject mask.",{"vignette.amount":584,"color.vibrance":199},-14,{"alt":586,"ui":587},"The finished portrait with a soft vignette",{"screen":231,"group":285},[589,592],{"q":590,"a":591},"How do I make skin look smooth but natural?","Lower Texture in a Select Subject mask, by 10 to 20. It softens skin and keeps pores and hair, which Clarity and blurring don't.",{"q":593,"a":594},"Can I remove a blemish?","Yes: open Remove, switch to Heal and tap the spot. It's taken from the skin around it.",[485,596],"remove-objects",11,{"photo":599,"preset":601,"raw":604,"xmp":606},{"width":600,"height":345},1600,{"file":602,"bytes":603,"name":516},"edit-portrait.lcpreset",4931,{"file":518,"bytes":605},24890112,{"file":607,"bytes":608},"lightbites-portrait.xmp",13948,{"edit-portrait-after-1600":610,"edit-portrait-after-800":611,"edit-portrait-light-mac-dark-1600":612,"edit-portrait-light-mac-dark-800":613,"edit-portrait-light-mac-light-1600":614,"edit-portrait-light-mac-light-800":615},"https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F003ad94b-b6e8-4134-9ac0-70ecb656ab5a.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002Fd99180f2-b39e-4f24-b86d-e3d03f680e11.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002Fc3e78de0-f933-4d19-8868-9109c9c8e5ba.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002Ff0e1c976-f812-4085-8780-9cca864e6bd6.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F67336fe1-af90-46a1-9695-fdeb0e16d056.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002Ff2df5a70-538a-473a-9233-5709a7e06532.webp",[617,620,623,626,628,631,633,635,638],{"slug":618,"title":619},"getting-started","Get started with LightBites",{"slug":621,"title":622},"organize-photos","Rate, flag and sort your photos into albums",{"slug":624,"title":625},"search-photos","Find any photo with search",{"slug":341,"title":627},"Edit a photo: the basics",{"slug":629,"title":630},"crop-and-straighten","Crop and straighten a photo",{"slug":485,"title":632},"Edit part of a photo with masks",{"slug":596,"title":634},"Remove people and objects from a photo",{"slug":636,"title":637},"presets","Use, make and import presets",{"slug":639,"title":640},"export-and-share","Export and share your photos",1792693337600]