[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":1368},["ShallowReactive",2],{"$f1yjeuyaym9r3o":3},[4,105,213,294,381,468,572,657,731,785,938,1067,1172,1269],{"slug":5,"section":6,"title":7,"seoTitle":8,"description":9,"intro":10,"level":11,"minutes":12,"updated":13,"icon":14,"keywords":15,"photo":21,"steps":22,"faq":85,"related":95,"order":98,"downloads":99,"images":100},"getting-started","app","Get started with LightBites","Get started with LightBites: import photos on iPhone, iPad and Mac","Add photos from Photos, Files, a camera or a Mac folder, check what comes in, and find your way around the library.","Bring your photos in, see what LightBites does with them, and learn the three places you'll use every day.","Beginner",3,"2026-10-21","i-lucide-rocket",[16,17,18,19,20],"import photos","photo library app","iPhone photo editor","Mac photo library","raw photos iPhone","seljalandsfoss.jpg",[23,42,58,75],{"id":24,"title":25,"text":26,"do":29,"tip":36,"shot":37},"add","Add your photos",{"ios":27,"mac":28},"Everything starts with **+** (Add Photos): at the top right on an iPhone, in the bar at the bottom on an iPad. Your originals are left as they are: LightBites copies the photos into its library and keeps your edits beside them.","Everything starts with **File ▸ Import Photos…** (`⇧⌘I`), or **+** in the toolbar. Your originals are never changed: edits are saved beside them.",[30,33],{"ios":31,"mac":32},"Tap **+**, then **Photos…**, **Files…** or **Folder from Files…**.","Choose files or whole folders in the window that opens, or drag them onto the grid.",{"ios":34,"mac":35},"A camera or card reader that's plugged in shows up as **Connected Camera\u002FCard**.","A camera or card reader shows up under **+ ▸ Connected Camera\u002FCard**.","Coming from Lightroom? **+ ▸ Lightroom Catalog…** brings your photos, edits, ratings, keywords and collections across.",{"alt":38,"ui":39},"The LightBites library: a grid of travel photos, with the Add Photos button at the top",{"screen":40,"span":41},"grid","all",{"id":43,"title":44,"text":45,"do":46,"shot":52},"review","Check what comes in","Before anything is added, **Import Photos** shows what it found. Duplicates and photos already in your library are marked and left out, so importing a card twice is harmless.",[47,48,49],"Untick anything you don't want, or use **Deselect All** and choose a few.","Optionally put them in an album, add keywords or apply a preset as they come in.",{"ios":50,"mac":51},"Tap **Add** (it says how many).","Click **Add** (it says how many).",{"alt":53,"ui":54,"wait":57},"The Import Photos review: six new photos selected, with options for an album, keywords and a preset",{"sheet":55,"paths":56},"importFiles","@import-sample",5,{"id":59,"title":60,"text":61,"do":64,"shot":71},"around","Find your way around",{"ios":62,"mac":63},"The tab bar has three places. **Library** is everything you've added. **iPhone** (**iPad** on an iPad) is your Photos library as it is: open a picture there and edit it, and it joins your library with its first change. **Search** sits at the right end.","The sidebar holds your albums. The switch at its top goes between **Library**, everything you've added, and **Local**: your Photos library and the folders on this Mac, used where they are, with edits saved beside them as XMP files.",[65,68],{"ios":66,"mac":67},"Pinch the grid to make the thumbnails bigger or smaller.","Pinch the trackpad over the grid to make the thumbnails bigger or smaller.",{"ios":69,"mac":70},"Scroll down and choose **Years**, **Months** or **All** beside the tab bar.","Choose **Years**, **Months** or **All** in the middle of the toolbar.",{"alt":72,"ui":73},"The library grouped by month, each month with its own heading",{"screen":40,"span":74},"months",{"id":76,"title":77,"text":78,"shot":81},"open","Open a photo",{"ios":79,"mac":80},"Tap a photo to open it, and swipe sideways for the next one. Pinch or double-tap to zoom in. The tools are in the bar at the bottom: **Presets**, **Crop**, **Edit**, **Masking**, **Remove** and **Info**.","Double-click a photo to open it. The tools are in the strip on the right: **Presets**, **Edit**, **Crop**, **Remove**, **Red Eye** and **Masking**, then **History**, **Versions**, **Keywords** and **Info**.",{"alt":82,"ui":83},"A waterfall at sunset open in LightBites, with the editing tools along the bottom",{"screen":84},"photo",[86,89,92],{"q":87,"a":88},"Does LightBites change my original photos?","No. Your originals are left as they are. Edits are stored as instructions beside the photo and applied when it is shown or exported, so you can always go back.",{"q":90,"a":91},"Which files can I import?","Raw files from many cameras, including Canon CR3, Apple ProRAW and other DNG files, as well as JPEG, HEIC, PNG and TIFF.",{"q":93,"a":94},"Do I have to import my whole Photos library?","No. On iPhone and iPad the iPhone (or iPad) tab shows your Photos library without importing it, and a picture joins your LightBites library only when you change it. On a Mac, Local does the same for your Photos library and your folders.",[96,97],"organize-photos","editing-basics",0,{},{"getting-started-add-mac-dark-1600":101,"getting-started-add-mac-dark-800":102,"getting-started-add-mac-light-1600":103,"getting-started-add-mac-light-800":104},"https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F0db3ea5a-2344-49a1-943d-4b50df0a35af.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002Fdf5c8cbc-cbb3-479f-9213-45ffd47dbcb2.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F668e6ff6-f7ea-4639-b0c5-b5d7a6a17757.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F58c958db-7629-4505-ab31-bc693fd51db1.webp",{"slug":96,"section":6,"title":106,"seoTitle":107,"description":108,"intro":109,"level":11,"minutes":110,"updated":13,"icon":111,"keywords":112,"photo":118,"steps":119,"faq":197,"related":204,"order":206,"downloads":207,"images":208},"Rate, flag and sort your photos into albums","How to organise photos: ratings, picks, albums and keywords in LightBites","Cull a shoot fast with stars and flags, group photos in albums, add keywords, and filter the library down to your best.","A good library is one where your best photos are a tap away. Stars and flags while you look through a shoot, albums for keeps, a filter to find them again.",4,"i-lucide-star",[113,114,115,116,117],"rate photos","cull photos","photo albums","photo keywords","flag picks rejects","glacier-lagoon.jpg",[120,137,158,176,188],{"id":121,"title":122,"text":123,"do":124,"tip":131,"shot":134},"rate","Rate and flag as you go","Use stars for how good a photo is and flags for a quick yes or no: **Pick** the keepers, **Reject** the misses.",[125,128],{"ios":126,"mac":127},"Open a photo, tap **…** and choose a rating, or **Flag ▸ Pick** or **Reject**.","Press `1` to `5` to rate and `0` to clear it; `P` picks, `X` rejects, `U` clears the flag.",{"ios":129,"mac":130},"Swipe to the next photo and keep going.","Hold `⇧` with a number to rate and move straight on; `⇧Z`, `⇧X` and `⇧U` pick, reject or unflag and move on.",{"ios":132,"mac":133},"Colour labels are in the same **…** menu, for anything else you want to mark: to print, to send, to fix.","`6` to `9` add the red, yellow, green and blue colour labels.",{"alt":135,"ui":136},"A photo of icebergs in a lagoon, open, with its rating shown",{"screen":84},{"id":138,"title":139,"do":140,"shot":147},"select","Do several at once",[141,144],{"ios":142,"mac":143},"Tap **Select**, then tap photos, or drag across a row to take a run of them.","Click a photo, then `⌘`-click to add more, or `⇧`-click to take a run.",{"ios":145,"mac":146},"Use **Rating**, **Flag**, **Color Label** or **Add to Album** in the bar at the bottom.","Rate or flag them all with the same keys, or right-click for more.",{"alt":148,"ui":149,"prepare":151},"Four photos chosen in the grid, with the selection bar's Rating, Flag and Add to Album buttons",{"screen":40,"select":150},true,[152],[153,154],"library.select",{"files":155},[21,118,156,157],"kirkjufell.jpg","fagrifoss.jpg",{"id":159,"title":160,"do":161,"tip":171,"shot":172},"albums","Make an album",[162,165,168],{"ios":163,"mac":164},"Tap **Albums** at the top left, then **+** (Create New) ▸ **Album**.","Choose **File ▸ New Album…** (`⌘N`).",{"ios":166,"mac":167},"Name it and tap **Create**.","Name it and click **Create**.",{"ios":169,"mac":170},"To fill it, select photos and tap **Add to Album**.","To fill it, drag photos onto it in the sidebar.","A **Smart Album** fills itself: every five-star photo from this year, say, or everything with a keyword. **Smart Album from Filter** turns the filter you have on into one.",{"alt":173,"ios":174,"mac":175},"The albums: Iceland, Alps, Rockies, Coast and more, each with a cover photo",{"screen":40,"sheet":159},{"screen":40},{"id":177,"title":178,"text":179,"do":180,"shot":185},"keywords","Add keywords","Keywords make photos easy to find years later, by subject, person or trip.",[181,184],{"ios":182,"mac":183},"In a photo, tap **…** ▸ **Keywords**.","In a photo, press `K` or click **Keywords** in the tool strip.","Type one in **Add Keyword** and add it. **On This Photo** lists the ones it has.",{"alt":186,"ui":187},"The Keywords sheet for a photo, with glacier and iceland on it",{"screen":84,"sheet":177},{"id":189,"title":190,"do":191,"shot":194},"filter","Show only the best",[192,193],"Open **Filter** and set a minimum rating, a flag or a colour label; or narrow by type, camera, people, place or keyword.","The chips under the title show what's on. **Clear All** takes them off.",{"alt":195,"ui":196},"The Filter sheet: rating, flags, colour labels, then type, camera, people, place and keyword",{"screen":40,"sheet":189},[198,201],{"q":199,"a":200},"What's the difference between a rating and a flag?","A rating (one to five stars) says how good a photo is. A flag is a quick decision while you cull: Pick to keep, Reject to drop. Many photographers flag first and rate the picks.",{"q":202,"a":203},"Do ratings and keywords work with other apps?","Yes. They are standard XMP metadata: on a Mac, photos in Local folders get them in XMP sidecars that Lightroom and other editors read, and exports can include them.",[205,5],"search-photos",1,{},{"organize-photos-rate-mac-dark-1600":209,"organize-photos-rate-mac-dark-800":210,"organize-photos-rate-mac-light-1600":211,"organize-photos-rate-mac-light-800":212},"https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F47f48a67-efea-42c3-9ec6-c137cf525950.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F3d5f4c69-b5bb-47a4-a571-98f718ceeba8.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F3e590d68-11d6-491a-97c9-6ea5923a98ba.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F6bb49ca2-0658-4743-8f24-31e201bc3645.webp",{"slug":205,"section":6,"title":214,"seoTitle":215,"description":216,"intro":217,"level":11,"minutes":12,"updated":13,"icon":218,"keywords":219,"photo":224,"steps":225,"faq":279,"related":286,"order":287,"downloads":288,"images":289},"Find any photo with search","Search your photos by place, date, camera or description in LightBites","Find photos by place, date, camera or keyword, describe the one you remember, browse the map, and save a search as a smart album.","You remember the photo, not the file name. Search by what you know about it: where, when, what was in it.","i-lucide-search",[220,221,222,223],"search photos","find photos by place","photo search by description","photo map","tokyo-alley.jpg",[226,244,257,267,273],{"id":227,"title":228,"text":229,"do":230,"tip":235,"shot":236},"words","Search with words","Type a place, a month, a camera, a lens, a keyword or part of a file name, and the grid narrows as you type. It understands places and dates, so “photos in tokyo in march” works.",[231,234],{"ios":232,"mac":233},"Tap **Search** at the right end of the tab bar.","Click the search field in the toolbar, or press `⌘F`.","Type what you remember, for example “night”.","Add a condition the short way: `rating:4`, `flag:pick` or `iso:>800`.",{"alt":237,"ui":238,"prepare":240,"wait":57},"A search for night: city streets, aurora and lighthouses after dark",{"screen":40,"searching":150,"search":239},"night",[241],[242,243],"library.filter",{"text":239},{"id":245,"title":246,"text":247,"tip":250,"shot":251},"describe","Describe it",{"ios":248,"mac":249},"Switch the field from **Words** to **Describe** and write a sentence: “boats on a lake at sunrise”. It runs when you tap Search, on your device, and finds photos by what is in them, keywords or not.","Choose **Describe** in the field's **Search by** menu and write a sentence: “boats on a lake at sunrise”. It runs when you press Return, on your Mac, and finds photos by what is in them, keywords or not.","**Describe** appears once search by description is on, in **Settings ▸ AI Models**. Its model downloads once and never sends your photos anywhere.",{"alt":252,"only":253,"ui":254},"Settings, AI Models: search by description, with its model","ios",{"screen":40,"sheet":255,"section":256},"settings","models.search",{"id":258,"title":259,"text":260,"shot":263},"map","Browse the map",{"ios":261,"mac":262},"Tap **…** ▸ **Map** to see your photos where you took them. Zoom in on a place to see the photos from there.","Choose **View ▸ Map** to see your photos where you took them. Zoom in on a place to see the photos from there.",{"alt":264,"ui":265,"wait":266},"A map with groups of photos over Iceland, the Alps and North America",{"screen":258},6,{"id":268,"title":269,"text":270},"people","Find people",{"ios":271,"mac":272},"Open **People** from the menu under the library's title. LightBites groups the same face across your library; name it once and every photo of them is a tap away. Turn it on in **Settings ▸ AI Models ▸ People**.","Choose **View ▸ People**. LightBites groups the same face across your library; name it once and every photo of them is a click away. Turn it on in **Settings ▸ AI Models ▸ People**.",{"id":274,"title":275,"text":276},"smart-album","Keep a search",{"ios":277,"mac":278},"Set up a filter you'll want again (four stars and up, a camera, a keyword), then in **Albums** tap **+** ▸ **Smart Album from Filter**. It stays up to date as you add photos.","Set up a filter you'll want again (four stars and up, a camera, a keyword), then choose **File ▸ New Smart Album from Filter…** (`⌥⌘N`). It stays up to date as you add photos.",[280,283],{"q":281,"a":282},"Are my photos uploaded to search them?","No. Search, Describe and People all run on your device. Their models are downloaded once, when you turn them on.",{"q":284,"a":285},"Can it find text in my photos?","Yes: words in your photos, on a sign or a page, can be searched too, once text recognition is on in Settings.",[96,5],2,{},{"search-photos-words-mac-dark-1600":290,"search-photos-words-mac-dark-800":291,"search-photos-words-mac-light-1600":292,"search-photos-words-mac-light-800":293},"https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F87acbc79-a1a1-40fe-8ec3-60a8d7ca0adc.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002Fc90e301a-a20a-4bc9-ad5b-a8189ba27f09.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F6d7c7079-e172-4cd8-b4f5-57f6e7cf410f.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002Fa6ea95fd-9eb2-4adc-b875-42d89e896f97.webp",{"slug":97,"section":6,"title":295,"seoTitle":296,"description":297,"intro":298,"level":11,"minutes":57,"updated":13,"icon":299,"keywords":300,"photo":305,"steps":306,"faq":365,"related":372,"order":12,"downloads":375,"images":376},"Edit a photo: the basics","How to edit photos on iPhone and Mac: the LightBites editor in five minutes","The editor in five minutes: the edit groups, Auto, the Light and Color sliders, comparing before and after, undo, and dials or sliders.","Every edit in LightBites can be undone and none of them touches the original. Here is the editor, and the few sliders that do most of the work.","i-lucide-sliders-horizontal",[301,302,303,304],"photo editor iPhone","edit photos Mac","exposure contrast highlights shadows","Lightroom alternative","lake-louise.jpg",[307,321,336,345,358],{"id":308,"title":309,"text":310,"tip":313,"shot":316},"open-edit","Open the editor",{"ios":311,"mac":312},"Open a photo and tap **Edit** (the sliders) in the bar at the bottom. The groups run along the panel: **Auto**, **Light**, **Color**, **Effects**, **Detail**, **Optics**, **Lens Blur**, **Calibration** and **Profile**.","Open a photo and click **Edit** in the tool strip. The panel has **Auto**, **B&W** and **HDR** at the top, the profile, then the groups one under another: **Light**, **Color**, **Effects**, **Detail**, **Optics**, **Lens Blur** and **Calibration**. Click a title to open or close it; `⌥`-click opens only that one.",{"ios":314,"mac":315},"**Auto** gives a balanced starting point to adjust from. Tap it again, before you change anything else, to take it away.","**Auto** (`⇧A`) gives a balanced starting point to adjust from.",{"alt":317,"ui":318},"The editor open on a photo of kayaks on a mountain lake, with the Light group's sliders",{"screen":319,"group":320},"edit","light",{"id":320,"title":322,"text":323,"set":324,"tip":330,"shot":333},"Set the light","Work down the **Light** group. **Exposure** sets the overall brightness. **Highlights** down brings back a bright sky; **Shadows** up opens the dark parts. **Whites** and **Blacks** set the brightest and darkest points, and **Contrast** comes last.",{"light.exposure":325,"light.highlights":326,"light.shadows":327,"light.whites":328,"light.blacks":329,"light.contrast":328},0.15,-45,30,10,-8,{"ios":331,"mac":332},"Double-tap a slider to put it back to zero.","Double-click a slider to put it back to zero.",{"alt":334,"ui":335},"The Light group: Exposure, Contrast, Highlights, Shadows, Whites and Blacks moved",{"screen":319,"group":320},{"id":337,"title":338,"text":339,"set":340,"shot":342},"color","Fix the colour","In **Color**, the **White Balance** menu (**As Shot**, **Auto**, **Daylight**, **Cloudy**…) and the eyedropper take a colour cast away; **Temp** and **Tint** fine-tune it. Then add **Vibrance**, which boosts the dull colours more than the bright ones, before you reach for **Saturation**.",{"color.vibrance":341,"color.saturation":110},22,{"alt":343,"ui":344},"The Color group: white balance, Temp, Tint, Vibrance and Saturation",{"screen":319,"group":337},{"id":346,"title":347,"do":348,"shot":355},"compare","Compare, undo, start again",[349,352],{"ios":350,"mac":351},"Press and hold the photo to see it as it was; let go to come back.","Hold `\\` to see the photo as it was; tap it to keep the original on screen.",{"ios":353,"mac":354},"**Undo** at the top left takes back the last change. Hold it for **Redo**, **Reset**, **Versions** and **History**.","`⌘Z` undoes and `⇧⌘Z` redoes. **Photo ▸ Reset Edits** (`⇧⌘R`) starts over.",{"alt":356,"ui":357},"Before and after: the original photo beside the edited one",{"screen":319,"group":320,"beforeAfter":150},{"id":359,"title":360,"text":361,"shot":362},"dials","Dials or sliders","On iPhone and iPad, choose how you adjust in **Settings ▸ Interface ▸ Adjustments**: **Dials**, a row of dials like the Photos app's, **Sliders**, like Lightroom's, or **Automatic**: dials under the photo, sliders beside it on a wide screen. Both edit the same way.",{"alt":363,"only":253,"ui":364},"The Light group as a row of dials under the photo",{"screen":319,"group":320,"editStyle":359},[366,369],{"q":367,"a":368},"Can I undo an edit later?","Yes, at any time. Edits are saved as instructions, not baked into the photo: reset a slider, step back through History, or reset the whole photo, even weeks later.",{"q":370,"a":371},"Is LightBites a Lightroom alternative?","It works the way Lightroom does, with the same kind of sliders, masks, presets and raw processing, but it runs entirely on your device, with no account and no subscription.",[373,374],"raw-workflow","crop-and-straighten",{},{"editing-basics-open-edit-mac-dark-1600":377,"editing-basics-open-edit-mac-dark-800":378,"editing-basics-open-edit-mac-light-1600":379,"editing-basics-open-edit-mac-light-800":380},"https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F341898eb-bd18-4717-b9e5-cbd256278dda.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F1e09ac99-4d2f-4846-b5ab-a5ffb7077513.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F7c5fd437-fc3c-4ad0-b5c0-f00e1ca71d3e.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F6e60365b-0d73-4f78-8924-797822605df9.webp",{"slug":374,"section":6,"title":382,"seoTitle":383,"description":384,"intro":385,"level":11,"minutes":12,"updated":13,"icon":386,"keywords":387,"photo":392,"steps":393,"faq":453,"related":460,"order":110,"downloads":462,"images":463},"Crop and straighten a photo","How to crop, straighten and rotate photos in LightBites","Level a crooked horizon, crop to 4:5, 9:16 or square for social media, rotate and flip, and change it all again later.","A level horizon and a tighter frame fix more photos than any slider. Here is how, in a few taps.","i-lucide-crop",[388,389,390,391],"crop photo","straighten horizon","crop 4:5 Instagram","rotate photo","sun-on-horizon.jpg",[394,404,424,439],{"id":76,"title":395,"text":396,"shot":399},"Open Crop",{"ios":397,"mac":398},"Open a photo and tap **Crop** in the bar at the bottom. The screen is called **Crop & Rotate**.","Open a photo and click **Crop** in the tool strip, or press `C`.",{"alt":400,"ui":401},"Crop & Rotate on a beach at sunset, with the crop frame and the straighten dial",{"screen":402,"cropTab":403},"crop","aspect",{"id":405,"title":406,"do":407,"edit":414,"tip":418,"shot":421},"straighten","Level the horizon",[408,411],{"ios":409,"mac":410},"Tap **Auto** to level it for you, or turn the dial under the photo.","Drag **Angle** until the horizon is level.",{"ios":412,"mac":413},"Or tap **Straighten** and draw a line along something that should be level, like the sea.","The **Overlay** menu puts a grid over the photo to judge it by.",[415],[416,417],"crop.autoStraighten",{},{"ios":419,"mac":420},"Double-tap the dial to set it back to 0°.","Double-click Angle to set it back to 0°.",{"alt":422,"ui":423},"The horizon levelled, with a grid over the photo",{"screen":402,"cropTab":403,"cropGuide":40},{"id":403,"title":425,"text":426,"edit":427,"tip":432,"shot":435},"Choose a shape","Under **Aspect**, pick **Original**, **Free** or a ratio. **4 × 5** (Portrait) fills the most of an Instagram feed, **9 × 16** is a story or reel, **1 × 1** is square. Drag the photo to choose what's in the frame.",[428],[429,430],"crop.aspect",{"aspect":431},"4x5",{"ios":433,"mac":434},"**Lock Aspect** keeps the shape while you drag a corner.","Press `X` to swap the crop between portrait and landscape.",{"alt":436,"ui":437},"The photo cropped to 4 by 5, with the aspect tiles below",{"screen":402,"cropTab":403,"cropGuide":438},"thirds",{"id":440,"title":441,"do":442,"tip":449,"shot":450},"done","Rotate, flip, and finish",[443,446],{"ios":444,"mac":445},"**Rotate** turns it by 90°; **…** ▸ **Flip Horizontal** mirrors it.","**Rotate Left** and **Rotate Right** (`⌘[` and `⌘]`) turn it by 90°; the flip buttons mirror it.",{"ios":447,"mac":448},"Tap ✓ to keep the crop, or ✕ to go back to how it was.","Click **Done** to keep it, or **Cancel** to go back to how it was.","A crop is an edit like any other: open Crop again any time to change it, or choose **Reset Crop**.",{"alt":451,"ui":452},"The finished crop: a level horizon in a tall 4 by 5 frame",{"screen":84},[454,457],{"q":455,"a":456},"What size should I crop for Instagram?","4 × 5 for photos in the feed (it takes up the most room), 9 × 16 for stories and reels, and 1 × 1 for a square grid. LightBites has them all under Aspect, in Social.",{"q":458,"a":459},"Does cropping lose the rest of the photo?","No. The crop is stored as an edit. Open Crop again and the whole photo is still there.",[97,461],"export-and-share",{},{"crop-and-straighten-open-mac-dark-1600":464,"crop-and-straighten-open-mac-dark-800":465,"crop-and-straighten-open-mac-light-1600":466,"crop-and-straighten-open-mac-light-800":467},"https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002Ffeb9b935-fec5-43bf-a431-9346708a2e7f.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F52db1881-ea69-467f-bd1c-cfbb80290d93.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002Fa637ca4e-9137-4195-812d-98346bd7c0c6.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002Fcc65eaa6-f3fe-48d1-a29b-b34b4bb28a48.webp",{"slug":469,"section":6,"title":470,"seoTitle":471,"description":472,"intro":473,"level":474,"minutes":57,"updated":13,"icon":475,"keywords":476,"photo":482,"steps":483,"faq":556,"related":563,"order":57,"downloads":566,"images":567},"masks","Edit part of a photo with masks","How to use masks: select sky, select subject and gradients in LightBites","Brighten just the subject, darken just the sky, or fade an edit across the frame with a gradient. Masks in LightBites, step by step.","A mask lets an edit touch only part of the photo: the sky, the person, the bottom third. It's how a good photo becomes a great one.","Intermediate","i-lucide-circle-dashed",[477,478,479,480,481],"photo masks","select sky","select subject","linear gradient","local adjustments","matterhorn-sunset.jpg",[484,496,515,535,551],{"id":76,"title":485,"text":486,"do":489,"shot":492},"Open Masking",{"ios":487,"mac":488},"Open a photo and tap **Masking** in the bar at the bottom, then **+** (Create New Mask).","Open a photo and click **Masking** in the tool strip, or press `M`.",[490,491],"Choose what to select: **Select Subject**, **Select Sky**, **Select Background** or **Select Object**, or draw it with a **Linear Gradient**, a **Radial Gradient** or a **Brush**.","**Color Range**, **Luminance Range** and **Depth Range** select by colour, brightness or distance.",{"alt":493,"ui":494},"Masking on a photo of the Matterhorn at sunset, before any mask",{"screen":495},"masking",{"id":497,"title":498,"text":499,"edit":500,"tip":511,"shot":512},"sky","Select the sky","Choose **Select Sky**. LightBites finds the sky and shows it tinted. Now the groups under it, **Light**, **Color**, **Effects** and the rest, change only the sky.",[501,504],[502,503],"mask.add",{"kind":497},[505,506],"mask.adjust",{"values":507},{"exposure":508,"highlights":509,"saturation":510,"dehaze":328},-0.35,-30,15,"Darken a bright sky a little and add a touch of **Dehaze**: the clouds get their shape back without a halo.",{"alt":513,"ui":514},"The sky selected and darkened, the mountain left as it was",{"screen":495},{"id":516,"title":517,"text":518,"edit":519,"shot":532},"gradient","Fade an edit with a gradient","A **Linear Gradient** fades from full strength to nothing between two lines: drag from where you want the most to where it should stop. It's the classic way to calm the top of a landscape. A **Radial Gradient** does the same in a circle: a soft spotlight, or with **Invert**, a vignette.",[520,527],[502,521],{"kind":522,"start":523,"end":525},"linear",[524,206],0.5,[524,526],0.72,[505,528],{"values":529},{"exposure":530,"shadows":531},0.25,20,{"alt":533,"ui":534},"A linear gradient over the bottom of the photo, brightening the foreground",{"screen":495},{"id":536,"title":537,"text":538,"edit":539,"shot":547},"subject","Select the subject","**Select Subject** finds the main subject, a person, an animal, a thing, with the model built into your device. Brighten it a little and it stands out from the background.",[540,543],[541,542],"ui.set",{"screen":495,"selectSubject":150},[505,544],{"values":545},{"exposure":546,"clarity":328},0.3,{"alt":548,"photo":549,"ui":550,"wait":57},"A cat's portrait with only the cat selected and brightened","green-eyes.jpg",{"screen":495},{"id":552,"title":553,"text":554,"tip":555},"refine","Add, subtract, fine-tune","**±** (Add or Subtract) adds to a mask, takes part of it away, or keeps only where it overlaps another selection: the subject minus a brush stroke, say. In the **Mask** group, **Amount** fades the whole mask's edit and **Invert** turns it inside out.","Name your masks (**Rename…** in each mask's menu) once a photo has a few.",[557,560],{"q":558,"a":559},"Do masks need an internet connection or a download?","No. Select Subject and Select Object use the model built into your iPhone, iPad or Mac, and Select Sky works on the device too.",{"q":561,"a":562},"Can I copy masks to other photos?","Yes: Copy Settings… (in the photo's … menu) lets you tick Masking, which is left out unless you ask for it.",[564,565],"edit-sunset","edit-portrait",{},{"masks-open-mac-dark-1600":568,"masks-open-mac-dark-800":569,"masks-open-mac-light-1600":570,"masks-open-mac-light-800":571},"https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F0d9dabb1-4de0-45fd-a6f4-2aaf56784950.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F813b39ad-1cfc-4537-a41f-f5ad65d43130.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F39df4704-06f9-4961-9b8b-4fcbf5b8f775.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002Fb41e3613-616e-4c96-8b34-d5f0dfee6d7a.webp",{"slug":573,"section":6,"title":574,"seoTitle":575,"description":576,"intro":577,"level":11,"minutes":12,"updated":13,"icon":578,"keywords":579,"photo":585,"steps":586,"faq":643,"related":650,"order":266,"downloads":651,"images":652},"remove-objects","Remove people and objects from a photo","How to remove objects, people and dust spots from photos in LightBites","Paint over a distraction and LightBites fills it in. Remove, Heal and Clone, Generative AI for big objects, and dust spots.","A sign, a stranger, a power line. Paint over it and it's gone, filled in from what was around it.","i-lucide-eraser",[580,581,582,583,584],"remove objects from photo","remove people from photo","heal brush","clone tool","dust spots","surf-sunset.jpg",[587,599,633,637],{"id":76,"title":588,"text":589,"do":592,"shot":595},"Open Remove",{"ios":590,"mac":591},"Open a photo and tap **Remove** (the eraser) in the bar at the bottom.","Open a photo and click **Remove** in the tool strip, or press `H`.",[593,594],"**Remove** fills in what you paint over from what's around it.","**Heal** and **Clone** copy from another part of the photo, for spots and blemishes; Heal blends in, Clone copies exactly.",{"alt":596,"ui":597},"A surfer on a wave at sunset, open in Remove",{"screen":598,"removeMode":598},"remove",{"id":600,"title":601,"do":602,"edit":605,"tip":629,"shot":630},"paint","Paint over it",[603,604],"Paint over the distraction, a little beyond its edges.","Let go: it's filled in. Paint again over anything left.",[606],[607,608],"spot.add",{"mode":598,"points":609,"size":628},[610,613,616,619,621,624,626],[611,612],0.495,0.6,[614,615],0.53,0.59,[617,618],0.57,0.58,[612,620],0.575,[622,623],0.604,0.545,[622,625],0.515,[627,611],0.603,0.04,"**Select with: Tap** takes away a whole object with one tap, edges and all.",{"alt":631,"ui":632,"wait":57},"The same wave with the surfer removed, the water filled in",{"screen":598,"removeMode":598},{"id":634,"title":635,"text":636},"ai","Bigger things: Generative AI","For something large, a person or a car, switch on **Generative AI**. It's a one-time download, then runs on your device. **High quality** takes longer and does better with complex backgrounds.",{"id":638,"title":639,"text":640},"dust","Clean up dust spots",{"ios":641,"mac":642},"Dust on the sensor shows as soft dark spots in a clear sky. **…** ▸ **Visualize Spots** makes them easy to see, and **Find Dust Spots** finds them for you. Switch to **Heal** and tap each one.","Dust on the sensor shows as soft dark spots in a clear sky. Press `A` to visualize spots, or let **Find Dust Spots** find them. Switch to **Heal** and click each one.",[644,647],{"q":645,"a":646},"Is the original photo changed?","No. Each removal is an edit you can undo or delete later: Delete All Spots in the … menu takes them all away.",{"q":648,"a":649},"Does Generative AI upload my photo?","No. Its model is downloaded once and runs on your device.",[469,97],{},{"remove-objects-open-mac-dark-1600":653,"remove-objects-open-mac-dark-800":654,"remove-objects-open-mac-light-1600":655,"remove-objects-open-mac-light-800":656},"https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F41cb205b-f277-4e25-8a5a-c88f53963416.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F1ceea66f-3d38-4d16-b716-e7973c016d78.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F47d16c5e-0d14-4c94-aeec-f3d5e650864c.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F88f05bde-55e9-49f4-bbcf-9739c6669a44.webp",{"slug":658,"section":6,"title":659,"seoTitle":660,"description":661,"intro":662,"level":11,"minutes":110,"updated":13,"icon":663,"keywords":664,"photo":156,"steps":670,"faq":716,"related":723,"order":724,"downloads":725,"images":726},"presets","Use, make and import presets","How to use presets in LightBites: apply, create, import and copy edits","Apply a look in one tap, save your own edit as a preset, import Lightroom and XMP presets, and copy an edit to other photos.","A preset is an edit you can use again. Find a look you like once, then put it on a whole shoot in seconds.","i-lucide-swatch-book",[665,666,667,668,669],"photo presets","import Lightroom presets","XMP presets","create preset","copy edit settings",[671,683,699,706],{"id":672,"title":673,"do":674,"shot":680},"apply","Try a preset",[675,678,679],{"ios":676,"mac":677},"Open a photo and tap **Presets**.","Open a photo and click **Presets** in the tool strip. Hover over a preset to preview it.","Tap one to apply it; tap it again to take it off.","**Amount** makes it weaker or stronger, from 0 to 200 %.",{"alt":681,"ui":682},"The presets for a photo of Kirkjufell mountain in fog",{"screen":658},{"id":684,"title":685,"text":686,"do":687,"set":692,"shot":695},"create","Save your own","Edit a photo until you like it. Then save the edit as a preset: give it a name, choose a group, and tick what it should keep. Crop, masks and Remove start unticked, because they rarely fit another photo.",[688,691],{"ios":689,"mac":690},"In **Presets**, tap **+** ▸ **Create Preset**.","Choose **Photo ▸ Create Preset…** (`⇧⌘P`).","Name it and choose **Create**.",{"light.contrast":510,"light.highlights":509,"light.shadows":531,"color.vibrance":510,"effects.clarity":693,"vignette.amount":694},8,-10,{"alt":696,"ui":697},"Create Preset: a name, a group and the settings it keeps",{"screen":658,"sheet":698},"createPreset",{"id":700,"title":701,"text":702,"tip":705},"import","Import presets",{"ios":703,"mac":704},"LightBites reads its own .lcpreset files, XMP presets, Lightroom's .lrtemplate files, and zips of them. Tap **+** in the library, then **Import Profiles & Presets…**, or **+ ▸ Import Presets…** in Presets. Check what's in them and tap **Import**.","LightBites reads its own .lcpreset files, XMP presets, Lightroom's .lrtemplate files, and zips of them. Choose **File ▸ Import Profiles & Presets…**, check what's in them and click **Import**.","Every guide in [Edit like a pro](\u002Fguides#pro) comes with its edit as a preset you can import this way.",{"id":707,"title":708,"do":709},"copy","Copy an edit to other photos",[710,713],{"ios":711,"mac":712},"In the edited photo's **…**, choose **Copy Edit Settings** (or **Copy Settings…** to pick which).","Choose **Edit ▸ Copy Edit Settings** (or **Choose Edit Settings to Copy…**, `⇧⌘C`, to pick which).",{"ios":714,"mac":715},"Open another photo and choose **Paste Edit Settings**, or select several and use **Paste Selected Settings…** in **…**.","Select the other photos and choose **Edit ▸ Paste Edit Settings**. **Paste Settings from Previous** (`⌥⌘V`) skips the copy.",[717,720],{"q":718,"a":719},"Can I use my Lightroom presets?","Yes. LightBites imports XMP presets and classic .lrtemplate files, alone or zipped. They map onto LightBites's own settings, so the look comes across closely, though not always pixel for pixel.",{"q":721,"a":722},"Do presets sync between my devices?","Yes, when your devices sync through a LightCraft server: presets follow you like photos and edits.",[373,461],7,{},{"presets-apply-mac-dark-1600":727,"presets-apply-mac-dark-800":728,"presets-apply-mac-light-1600":729,"presets-apply-mac-light-800":730},"https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F4563d0c1-6ea8-422e-8e5f-7a6cfd235893.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002Fb83179fb-b8c5-4e3e-9437-d72515ca8c44.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002Fb1b8e451-2a0a-4ad4-b6ea-17f2ebd21d68.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F0e682f1d-9008-485b-b5cc-4f42ee8f893c.webp",{"slug":461,"section":6,"title":732,"seoTitle":733,"description":734,"intro":735,"level":11,"minutes":12,"updated":13,"icon":736,"keywords":737,"photo":224,"steps":743,"faq":771,"related":778,"order":693,"downloads":779,"images":780},"Export and share your photos","How to export and share photos from LightBites: sizes, formats and quality","Send an edit to Messages, AirDrop or Photos, choose JPEG, PNG, TIFF, AVIF or the original, pick the right size, and keep your location private.","Your edit only exists inside LightBites until you export it. Choose a size and a format, and send it on.","i-lucide-share",[738,739,740,741,742],"export photos","share photos iPhone","photo export size","JPEG quality","remove location from photo",[744,757,765],{"id":76,"title":745,"do":746,"shot":753},"Open Share",[747,750],{"ios":748,"mac":749},"In a photo, tap **Share** at the top.","Choose **File ▸ Export…** (`⇧E`), or right-click a photo and choose **Export…**.",{"ios":751,"mac":752},"For several, tap **Select**, choose them, and tap **Export**.","For several, select them first.",{"alt":754,"ui":755},"The Share sheet for a night photo of a Tokyo alley: file type, size, quality and metadata",{"screen":84,"sheet":756},"export",{"id":758,"title":759,"do":760,"tip":764},"options","Pick the file and the size",[761,762,763],"**File Type**: JPEG goes anywhere; PNG or TIFF for printing and more editing; AVIF, WebP and JPEG XL make small files; **Original** sends the file as you imported it.","**Size**: **Small** (1080 px) for messages, **Medium** (2048 px) for social media, **Large** (4096 px), or **Full Size** for prints.","**Metadata**: keep it all, only the copyright, or none. **Remove Location** leaves out where you took it.","Use the same settings again and again? Save them with **Preset ▸ Save as Preset…** at the top of the sheet.",{"id":766,"title":767,"text":768},"send","Send it",{"ios":769,"mac":770},"**Share** opens the share sheet: AirDrop, Messages, Mail, Files and the rest. **Save to Photos** puts a copy in your Photos library (JPEG, PNG, TIFF or DNG).","When it's done: **Share** to send it on, **Show in Finder** to see the files, or **Done**. **File ▸ Export with Previous** (`⌥⇧⌘E`) exports the photos you've chosen with the settings you used last time.",[772,775],{"q":773,"a":774},"Which size should I export for Instagram?","Medium (2048 px on the long side) is plenty: Instagram shows photos at most 1080 px wide. Crop to 4 × 5 first for the most room in the feed.",{"q":776,"a":777},"Can I export the original raw file?","Yes: choose Original as the file type to send the file exactly as you imported it, or DNG to export it as a DNG.",[374,658],{},{"export-and-share-open-mac-dark-1600":781,"export-and-share-open-mac-dark-800":782,"export-and-share-open-mac-light-1600":783,"export-and-share-open-mac-light-800":784},"https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002Faaa84b27-bac7-4c59-b52b-d9387edbb0c1.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002Fcbbe47dd-4d76-441c-97e6-0f6431c26190.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F30eccd36-9b93-4cae-8433-f8fbf1eca5df.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002Fa483121f-dcd8-445e-92f5-6b5afb2b7a9a.webp",{"slug":373,"section":786,"title":787,"seoTitle":788,"description":789,"intro":790,"level":11,"minutes":693,"updated":13,"icon":791,"keywords":792,"presetName":798,"raw":799,"steps":808,"faq":907,"related":917,"order":918,"downloads":919,"images":931},"pro","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.","i-lucide-aperture",[793,794,795,796,797],"how to edit raw photos","raw editing workflow","edit ProRAW","raw photo editor iPhone","raw editor Mac","Raw Workflow",{"file":800,"title":801,"camera":802,"author":803,"licence":804,"licenceUrl":805,"url":806,"sha256":807},"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",[809,821,835,843,859,869,881,896],{"id":810,"title":811,"text":812,"do":813,"shot":818},"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.",[814,817],{"ios":815,"mac":816},"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":819,"ui":820},"The profiles for a raw landscape, each shown as a thumbnail of the photo",{"screen":319,"group":810},{"id":822,"title":823,"text":824,"do":825,"tip":831,"shot":832},"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.",[826,827,830],"In **Color**, choose a **White Balance**: **As Shot**, **Auto**, or the light you shot in (**Daylight**, **Cloudy**, **Shade**…).",{"ios":828,"mac":829},"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":833,"ui":834},"The Color group with the white balance menu, Temp and Tint",{"screen":319,"group":337},{"id":836,"title":837,"text":838,"set":839,"shot":840},"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":546},{"alt":841,"ui":842},"Exposure raised a third of a stop in the Light group",{"screen":319,"group":320},{"id":844,"title":845,"text":846,"do":847,"set":851,"tip":855,"shot":856},"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.",[848,849,850],"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":852,"light.shadows":853,"light.whites":510,"light.blacks":854},-60,40,-12,"Watch the histogram: the graph should reach both ends without piling up against either.",{"alt":857,"ui":858},"Highlights down and Shadows up: the sky and the shadows both have detail",{"screen":319,"group":320},{"id":860,"title":861,"text":862,"set":863,"shot":865},"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":864,"effects.texture":328,"effects.clarity":864,"effects.dehaze":266},12,{"alt":866,"ui":867},"Texture, Clarity and Dehaze in the Effects group",{"screen":319,"group":868},"effects",{"id":870,"title":871,"text":872,"set":873,"shot":875},"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":531,"mixer.blue.sat":693,"mixer.green.sat":874},-6,{"alt":876,"ui":877,"mac":878},"Vibrance raised in the Color group, the Color Mixer below it",{"screen":319,"group":337},{"sections":879},[337,880],"mixer",{"id":882,"title":883,"text":884,"do":885,"set":891,"shot":893},"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.",[886,889,890],{"ios":887,"mac":888},"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":853,"detail.sharpenMasking":892,"detail.nrLuminance":328},35,{"alt":894,"ui":895},"The Detail group: sharpening and noise reduction",{"screen":319,"group":882},{"id":402,"title":897,"text":898,"edit":901,"shot":904},"Straighten and crop",{"ios":899,"mac":900},"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.",[902],[416,903],{},{"alt":905,"ui":906},"The finished photo with the horizon levelled",{"screen":402,"cropTab":403,"cropGuide":438},[908,911,914],{"q":909,"a":910},"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":912,"a":913},"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":915,"a":916},"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.",[564,97],9,{"photo":920,"preset":923,"raw":926,"xmp":928},{"width":921,"height":922},2400,1800,{"file":924,"bytes":925,"name":798},"raw-workflow.lcpreset",4969,{"file":800,"bytes":927},37770480,{"file":929,"bytes":930},"lightbites-raw-workflow.xmp",3979,{"raw-workflow-after-1600":932,"raw-workflow-after-800":933,"raw-workflow-profile-mac-dark-1600":934,"raw-workflow-profile-mac-dark-800":935,"raw-workflow-profile-mac-light-1600":936,"raw-workflow-profile-mac-light-800":937},"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":564,"section":786,"title":939,"seoTitle":940,"description":941,"intro":942,"level":474,"minutes":724,"updated":13,"icon":943,"keywords":944,"presetName":950,"raw":951,"steps":960,"faq":1042,"related":1049,"order":328,"downloads":1050,"images":1060},"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.","i-lucide-sunset",[945,946,947,948,949],"how to edit sunset photos","sunset photo editing","recover sky","golden hour edit","landscape editing","Sunset Glow",{"file":952,"title":953,"camera":954,"author":955,"licence":956,"licenceUrl":957,"url":958,"sha256":959},"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",[961,968,979,988,1010,1021,1034],{"id":962,"title":963,"text":964,"shot":965},"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":966,"ui":967},"The Color group with the white balance set to As Shot",{"screen":319,"group":337},{"id":497,"title":969,"text":970,"set":971,"tip":975,"shot":976},"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":972,"light.whites":973,"light.exposure":974},-80,-15,0.1,"If the sun itself stays white, that's fine. It was.",{"alt":977,"ui":978},"Highlights pulled down: the clouds have their colour back",{"screen":319,"group":320},{"id":980,"title":981,"text":982,"set":983,"shot":985},"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":984,"light.blacks":694,"light.contrast":693},45,{"alt":986,"ui":987},"Shadows raised: detail in the foreground, still darker than the sky",{"screen":319,"group":320},{"id":516,"title":989,"text":990,"do":991,"edit":997,"shot":1007},"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.",[992,995,996],{"ios":993,"mac":994},"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**.",[998,1003],[502,999],{"kind":522,"start":1000,"end":1001},[524,98],[524,1002],0.45,[505,1004],{"values":1005},{"exposure":508,"highlights":1006,"dehaze":864,"saturation":328},-20,{"alt":1008,"ui":1009},"A linear gradient over the sky, darkening it down to the horizon",{"screen":495},{"id":1011,"title":1012,"text":1013,"set":1014,"shot":1016},"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":1015,"mixer.orange.sat":864,"mixer.yellow.sat":693},25,{"alt":1017,"ui":1018,"mac":1019},"Vibrance up and the orange and yellow saturation raised in the Color Mixer",{"screen":319,"group":337},{"sections":1020},[337,880],{"id":1022,"title":1023,"text":1024,"set":1025,"shot":1028},"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":853,"grading.highlights.sat":1026,"grading.shadows.hue":1027,"grading.shadows.sat":328},18,220,{"alt":1029,"ui":1030,"mac":1031},"Color Grading: warm highlights and cool shadows",{"screen":319,"group":337},{"sections":1032},[337,1033],"grading",{"id":1035,"title":1036,"text":1037,"set":1038,"shot":1039},"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":854,"effects.clarity":266},{"alt":1040,"ui":1041},"The finished sunset with a soft vignette",{"screen":319,"group":868},[1043,1046],{"q":1044,"a":1045},"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":1047,"a":1048},"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.",[469,373],{"photo":1051,"preset":1052,"raw":1055,"xmp":1057},{"width":921,"height":922},{"file":1053,"bytes":1054,"name":950},"edit-sunset.lcpreset",4970,{"file":952,"bytes":1056},24026127,{"file":1058,"bytes":1059},"lightbites-sunset.xmp",5429,{"edit-sunset-after-1600":1061,"edit-sunset-after-800":1062,"edit-sunset-warmth-mac-dark-1600":1063,"edit-sunset-warmth-mac-dark-800":1064,"edit-sunset-warmth-mac-light-1600":1065,"edit-sunset-warmth-mac-light-800":1066},"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":565,"section":786,"title":1068,"seoTitle":1069,"description":1070,"intro":1071,"level":474,"minutes":724,"updated":13,"icon":1072,"keywords":1073,"presetName":1078,"raw":1079,"steps":1086,"faq":1145,"related":1152,"order":1153,"downloads":1154,"images":1165},"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",[1074,1075,1076,479,1077],"how to edit portraits","portrait editing","skin tones","natural portrait edit","Natural Portrait",{"file":1080,"title":1081,"camera":1082,"author":1083,"licence":956,"licenceUrl":957,"url":1084,"sha256":1085},"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",[1087,1097,1108,1120,1137],{"id":320,"title":1088,"text":1089,"set":1090,"shot":1094},"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":1091,"light.highlights":1092,"light.shadows":531,"light.contrast":1093},0.2,-25,-5,{"alt":1095,"ui":1096},"The Light group set for the face",{"screen":319,"group":320},{"id":1098,"title":1099,"text":1100,"set":1101,"tip":1102,"shot":1103},"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":329,"mixer.orange.lum":693,"mixer.red.sat":1093},"Never use **Saturation** for skin: **Vibrance** is made to leave skin tones alone.",{"alt":1104,"ui":1105,"mac":1106},"The Color Mixer with orange saturation lowered and its luminance raised",{"screen":319,"group":337},{"sections":1107},[337,880],{"id":536,"title":1109,"text":1110,"edit":1111,"shot":1117},"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.",[1112,1114],[541,1113],{"screen":495,"selectSubject":150},[505,1115],{"values":1116},{"exposure":1091,"texture":973,"clarity":1093},{"alt":1118,"ui":1119,"wait":57},"The subject selected, brightened and softened",{"screen":495},{"id":1121,"title":1122,"text":1123,"edit":1124,"tip":1131,"shot":1134},"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.",[1125,1127],[502,1126],{"kind":1121},[505,1128],{"values":1129},{"exposure":1130,"saturation":854,"clarity":973},-0.3,{"ios":1132,"mac":1133},"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":1135,"ui":1136,"wait":57},"The background selected and darkened behind the subject",{"screen":495},{"id":1035,"title":1138,"text":1139,"set":1140,"shot":1142},"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":1141,"color.vibrance":693},-14,{"alt":1143,"ui":1144},"The finished portrait with a soft vignette",{"screen":319,"group":868},[1146,1149],{"q":1147,"a":1148},"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":1150,"a":1151},"Can I remove a blemish?","Yes: open Remove, switch to Heal and tap the spot. It's taken from the skin around it.",[469,573],11,{"photo":1155,"preset":1157,"raw":1160,"xmp":1162},{"width":1156,"height":921},1600,{"file":1158,"bytes":1159,"name":1078},"edit-portrait.lcpreset",4931,{"file":1080,"bytes":1161},24890112,{"file":1163,"bytes":1164},"lightbites-portrait.xmp",13948,{"edit-portrait-after-1600":1166,"edit-portrait-after-800":1167,"edit-portrait-light-mac-dark-1600":1168,"edit-portrait-light-mac-dark-800":1169,"edit-portrait-light-mac-light-1600":1170,"edit-portrait-light-mac-light-800":1171},"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",{"slug":1173,"section":786,"title":1174,"seoTitle":1175,"description":1176,"intro":1177,"level":474,"minutes":266,"updated":13,"icon":1178,"keywords":1179,"presetName":1184,"raw":1185,"steps":1192,"faq":1243,"related":1250,"order":864,"downloads":1252,"images":1262},"edit-night-city","How to edit night city photos","How to edit night photos: city lights, clean shadows, less noise","Tame bright city lights, clean up noise, open the shadows and keep the night dark. A night photo edit, step by step, with the raw file.","Night photos fight you twice: lights that burn out, and noise in the dark. A raw file has room for both. Here's how to keep the night a night.","i-lucide-moon-star",[1180,1181,1182,1183],"how to edit night photos","city night photography editing","reduce noise","night photo editing","City Night",{"file":1186,"title":1187,"camera":1188,"author":1189,"licence":956,"licenceUrl":957,"url":1190,"sha256":1191},"lightbites-night-city.nef","Dresden skyline at night","Nikon D7100","semperit (discuss.pixls.us)","https:\u002F\u002Fdiscuss.pixls.us\u002Fuploads\u002Fshort-url\u002FuqvjQI2dzI6OVoYPZ8Qvz1LUbFb.NEF","b7e00c12fc468c9e7504edd59078a04cae860f703352022bf86de4038054ad9e",[1193,1199,1208,1216,1225,1233],{"id":822,"title":1194,"text":1195,"shot":1196},"Choose the colour of the night","Street lights are orange, shop signs every colour: there is no correct white. Try **Auto**, then move **Temp** cooler until the lights look warm but the night isn't brown.",{"alt":1197,"ui":1198},"The Color group for a night street, white balance and Temp",{"screen":319,"group":337},{"id":1200,"title":1201,"text":1202,"set":1203,"shot":1205},"lights","Tame the lights","Pull **Highlights** and **Whites** down: the glow around the lights shrinks and the signs become readable again.",{"light.highlights":1204,"light.whites":1006},-70,{"alt":1206,"ui":1207},"Highlights and Whites down: the lights are no longer blown out",{"screen":319,"group":320},{"id":1209,"title":1210,"text":1211,"set":1212,"shot":1213},"shadows","Open the shadows, keep the dark","Raise **Shadows** to see into the streets, then pull **Blacks** down so the sky and the darkest corners stay black. A night photo that's grey all over doesn't look like night.",{"light.shadows":892,"light.blacks":973,"light.exposure":1091},{"alt":1214,"ui":1215},"Shadows raised, Blacks lowered: detail in the street, a black sky",{"screen":319,"group":320},{"id":1217,"title":1218,"text":1219,"set":1220,"tip":1221,"shot":1222},"noise","Clean up the noise","Zoom in to 100 % on a dark, flat area. Raise **Noise Reduction** until the grain is smooth but edges are still sharp, and **Color Noise Reduction** until the coloured speckles go. Then a little sharpening, with **Masking** up so it stays off the smooth parts.",{"detail.nrLuminance":892,"detail.nrColor":327,"detail.sharpenAmount":327,"detail.sharpenMasking":984},"Noise is worst where you raised Shadows most. If cleaning it up costs too much detail, give back a little Shadows instead.",{"alt":1223,"ui":1224},"The Detail group: noise reduction and sharpening",{"screen":319,"group":882},{"id":1226,"title":1227,"text":1228,"set":1229,"shot":1230},"pop","Make it glow","**Clarity** and a little **Dehaze** bring back the punch that noise reduction takes away. **Vibrance** brings the signs to life.",{"effects.clarity":510,"effects.dehaze":328,"color.vibrance":510},{"alt":1231,"ui":1232},"Clarity and Dehaze in the Effects group",{"screen":319,"group":868},{"id":1022,"title":1234,"text":1235,"set":1236,"shot":1238},"Teal and orange (if you like)","For the cinematic look, open **Color Grading**: a blue-green hue in the shadows, orange in the highlights. Keep both under 20, or it looks like a filter.",{"grading.shadows.hue":1237,"grading.shadows.sat":510,"grading.highlights.hue":892,"grading.highlights.sat":510},200,{"alt":1239,"ui":1240,"mac":1241},"Color Grading: teal shadows and orange highlights",{"screen":319,"group":337},{"sections":1242},[337,1033],[1244,1247],{"q":1245,"a":1246},"How do I reduce noise in night photos?","Use Noise Reduction in Detail, looking at 100 %: raise it until the grain is smooth but edges are sharp, and clear the coloured speckles with Color Noise Reduction.",{"q":1248,"a":1249},"Why does my night photo look grey?","Too much Shadows and not enough Blacks. Pull Blacks down until the sky is black again.",[373,1251],"black-and-white",{"photo":1253,"preset":1254,"raw":1257,"xmp":1259},{"width":921,"height":1156},{"file":1255,"bytes":1256,"name":1184},"edit-night-city.lcpreset",4938,{"file":1186,"bytes":1258},26436263,{"file":1260,"bytes":1261},"lightbites-night-city.xmp",3952,{"edit-night-city-after-1600":1263,"edit-night-city-after-800":1264,"edit-night-city-white-balance-mac-dark-1600":1265,"edit-night-city-white-balance-mac-dark-800":1266,"edit-night-city-white-balance-mac-light-1600":1267,"edit-night-city-white-balance-mac-light-800":1268},"https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002Ff5198828-3aa0-4998-8e6f-6649450939d4.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002Ff41c0e96-3044-4eb9-aa04-dd1ff25278a7.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F6b952bf0-0284-4487-bfb1-6be925832c39.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F3a55ed39-1ab0-454f-9bd4-a281526a3647.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F5e147458-169d-491e-856d-0bd3cf2570d6.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F3234e430-6e8a-4952-b12f-ec7d3230f7ff.webp",{"slug":1251,"section":786,"title":1270,"seoTitle":1271,"description":1272,"intro":1273,"level":474,"minutes":266,"updated":13,"icon":1274,"keywords":1275,"presetName":1281,"raw":1282,"steps":1289,"faq":1342,"related":1349,"order":1350,"downloads":1351,"images":1361},"How to make a black and white photo that pops","How to edit black and white photos: contrast, the B&W mixer and grain","A black and white edit with depth: convert, mix the colours into the right greys, build contrast, and finish with grain. With the raw file to follow along.","Black and white isn't colour taken away; it's colour turned into light and dark. You decide which colours become which greys.","i-lucide-contrast",[1276,1277,1278,1279,1280],"black and white photo editing","how to edit black and white","B&W mixer","monochrome photo","film grain","Deep Black & White",{"file":1283,"title":1284,"camera":1285,"author":1286,"licence":956,"licenceUrl":957,"url":1287,"sha256":1288},"lightbites-black-and-white.cr2","Mesa Arch, Utah","Canon EOS 60D","LaurentFromSF (discuss.pixls.us)","https:\u002F\u002Fdiscuss.pixls.us\u002Fuploads\u002Fshort-url\u002FiHM3LJfZ44ZphaCdR5zyKn2VMSq.CR2","cd212c90af4724f594ba4ea23eda8fa7beb39bd3a3d72437b782702d4bccc356",[1290,1303,1316,1326,1334],{"id":1291,"title":1292,"text":1293,"edit":1296,"shot":1300},"convert","Convert to black and white",{"ios":1294,"mac":1295},"Tap **Edit**, then **Color**, then **B&W**. Start from a raw file: the colours it keeps are what you'll mix next.","Click **B&W** at the top of the Edit panel, or press `V`. Start from a raw file: the colours it keeps are what you'll mix next.",[1297],[1298,1299],"develop.treatment",{"bw":150},{"alt":1301,"ui":1302},"The photo in black and white, with the B&W button on",{"screen":319,"group":337},{"id":1304,"title":1305,"text":1306,"set":1307,"tip":1308,"shot":1311},"mix","Mix the colours into greys","**B&W Mixer** sets how bright each colour becomes. Darken the blues and the sky turns dramatic; brighten the oranges and skin glows; darken the greens for moody foliage.",{"bw.blue":1092,"bw.aqua":694,"bw.orange":328,"bw.yellow":57},{"ios":1309,"mac":1310},"Not sure which colour is which? Drag the Point Color eyedropper over the photo.","Not sure which colour is which? Use the Point Color eyedropper on the photo.",{"alt":1312,"ui":1313,"mac":1314},"The B&W Mixer with blue darkened and orange brightened",{"screen":319,"group":337},{"sections":1315},[337,880],{"id":1317,"title":1318,"text":1319,"set":1320,"tip":1322,"shot":1323},"contrast","Build contrast","Black and white lives on contrast. Raise **Contrast**, set **Whites** and **Blacks** so the photo reaches true white and true black, and use **Highlights** and **Shadows** to keep detail at both ends.",{"light.contrast":1015,"light.highlights":1006,"light.shadows":510,"light.whites":531,"light.blacks":1321},-22,"For a gentle S-curve, open **Curve** and raise **Lights** and lower **Darks** a little.",{"alt":1324,"ui":1325},"Contrast, Whites and Blacks set for a deep black and white",{"screen":319,"group":320},{"id":1327,"title":1328,"text":1329,"set":1330,"shot":1331},"texture","Bring out the texture","**Texture** and **Clarity** do more in black and white than in colour: stone, skin, cloud and bark gain depth. Go further than you would in colour, then back off a little.",{"effects.texture":531,"effects.clarity":1026},{"alt":1332,"ui":1333},"Texture and Clarity raised in the Effects group",{"screen":319,"group":868},{"id":1335,"title":1336,"text":1337,"set":1338,"shot":1339},"grain","Finish with grain","A little **Grain** makes digital black and white feel like film, and hides any noise. Keep **Size** small for a fine grain. A light **Vignette** frames it.",{"grain.amount":531,"grain.size":1015,"vignette.amount":694},{"alt":1340,"ui":1341},"Grain and a light vignette in the Effects group",{"screen":319,"group":868},[1343,1346],{"q":1344,"a":1345},"Why edit in black and white instead of desaturating?","Desaturating turns every colour into the same grey it had for brightness. The B&W treatment keeps the colours behind the scenes, so the B&W Mixer can make each one lighter or darker: a dark sky, bright skin.",{"q":1347,"a":1348},"Can I go back to colour?","Yes, any time: tap B&W again. The mixer settings stay for next time.",[1173,373],13,{"photo":1352,"preset":1353,"raw":1356,"xmp":1358},{"width":921,"height":1156},{"file":1354,"bytes":1355,"name":1281},"black-and-white.lcpreset",4951,{"file":1283,"bytes":1357},22283314,{"file":1359,"bytes":1360},"lightbites-black-and-white.xmp",3941,{"black-and-white-after-1600":1362,"black-and-white-after-800":1363,"black-and-white-convert-mac-dark-1600":1364,"black-and-white-convert-mac-dark-800":1365,"black-and-white-convert-mac-light-1600":1366,"black-and-white-convert-mac-light-800":1367},"https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F2edd210a-b337-4397-9933-a2e6c48879cb.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002Fc0eb0557-c346-4022-ae78-c0dec7c84140.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F0af29e27-4f34-4d61-8814-a7b4896b0d76.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002Fb421de70-160b-48d3-91ad-f1bb08828fcb.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F580cd610-bc01-4931-a1f3-8e434ef083b6.webp","https:\u002F\u002Ffiles.eliasruiz.com\u002Fhelp-bites\u002Ftb4A2EAxRx\u002Fblog\u002F9b39661f-4884-4598-a4e0-823c6d3a2fe1.webp",1792693337585]