How to choose the right preset for your photography style

Scroll through dozens of preset categories and the first question is not which look you find beautiful, but what kind of photos you actually take. A preset that looks spectacular on a sample photo can work against you on your own images.

Start with your subject

Mostly photographing people? Look for a preset built around skin tones, such as Portrait. Shoot a lot on the street? You want more contrast and grain, like in Flaneur. Landscape and travel call for something else again: calm colours that let sky and water speak, as in Zoutwater or Bergtop.

Pay attention to the light you shoot in

A preset built around soft morning light behaves very differently in harsh midday sun or indoor artificial light. So look not just at the example photo, but also at the conditions it was shot in. Not sure? Use the preset tester on the detail page: it shows the effect on several test scenes, not on one carefully picked image.

Start light, build up

Every preset on this site comes in four strengths: 25, 50, 75 and 100 percent. Torn between two styles? Start at 50 percent. That is subtle enough to see whether the colour direction suits your photo, without a too-strong effect clouding your judgement.

Not decided yet

Want to experience how a preset behaves before you buy? Download The Observer, the free pack on this site. After that you will know a lot better what to look for in the rest of the presets.