Touch of Drama is a free Lightroom preset that adds a vibrant and dramatic feel by enhancing a photo’s natural tones. It has a clear, high-contrast, look that can be applied to all types of photography.
Collection: Landscape Presets
Best for: All Landscapes, Outdoor Photography
Style: Dark, Deep Tones, Dramatic, Moody
This versatile preset works best on outdoor photos like landscapes and street photography. Although it still looks good on pictures taken indoors, its dramatic tones look best on vast spaces and skies. If you are looking for a preset that does not alter the look of a photo, this is the one to go for. It simply, but professionally, gives images a professional feel.
Try using it as an Instagram filter, especially if you post a lot of travel photos. It can give your feed a stunning and cohesive look.
Dims Light Regions for a Dramatic Effect
Dramatic Tones. Touch of Drama lowers the intensity of light regions by decreasing the brightness of whites. Doing so can reveal a lot of detail and, of course, add a dramatic atmosphere. In the example above, examine how this simple adjustment extracts tones from the building façade. It also brings out more detail from the sky; the effect makes clouds look dramatic.
Emphasizes Dark Regions and Midtones
Accent Blacks. The preset complements its white tones by increasing the intensity of dark regions. It only moderates them by lightening the shadows; this tweak makes sure that you can still see the textures in the photo’s darkest areas.
Touch of Drama reinforces this tonal contrast by amplifying clarity. This means that midtones are heightened to add depth and definition. You can easily notice the effect in the after photo above: compare the craters, crevices, and textures on the ground.
Refines Color Saturation and Luminance
Vivid Colors. The preset intensifies colors as well by increasing their saturation. Touch of Drama uses the overarching saturation slider under Lightroom’s Presence panel, plus the more complex HSL. These settings allow the preset to fine-tune such color levels.
To neutralize the warm tones often found in sunlight, Touch of Drama slightly lowers the saturation of the color yellow and amplifies its vibrance along with orange hues. As a result, the sun’s golden hues would appear like warm pastels instead.
As you can see from the After photo above, the illumination from the left now looks more gentle. The tones from the left now look less washed out by sunlight.
Enhances Textures
Crisp Details. Finally, Touch of Drama boosts sharpening further to maximize texture. This, after all, adds to the dark and dramatic motif. Look at the crisp textures of the mountain above. These fine details go hand in hand with the intensified dark regions to produce a mysterious atmosphere. Try to compare the depth in both landscapes as well.
Touch of Drama is for Lightroom Mobile, Desktop and…
Like all our presets, you can absolutely use Touch of Drama preset as is, right out of the box. With any preset, you might need to make adjustments to accommodate your specific camera, settings, lighting and subject matter.
- Entirely Adjustable
- Compatible with Lightroom 4, 5, 6 and CC
- Performs with both PC, Mac, and Mobile
- Applicable to both RAW and JPG images
- 100% Free
Free Lightroom Preset by Rachael Towne
