Ethereal

Ethereal takes the weight out of a portrait. The exposure goes up, contrast drops, and what remains is something that almost evaporates at the edges. Not blurry, not technically broken, but deliberately light in feeling. Like a memory you can just barely hold onto in the early morning.

Technically, the preset applies a significant positive exposure shift combined with a strong reduction of the blacks. Shadows do not go dark here, they go soft, faint lilac or pale pink depending on the shot. Highlights push close to pure white, which would normally be a mistake but here it is the point. Colour saturation drops slightly, so skin tones begin to dissolve into the light. That tension, almost too much brightness but just enough colour, is what gives Ethereal its character.

The preset works best on portraits shot in soft, diffused light. Overcast days outdoors, a window without direct sun, a light studio setup. Light to medium skin tones respond exactly as intended, becoming luminous without losing detail. For darker skin tones, one simple adjustment is enough: after applying the preset, reduce the overall exposure by half a stop to one full stop in Lightroom to keep structure visible in the skin. Beyond portraits, Ethereal also works well on light-background still life photography and on wedding imagery where you want that airy, dreamed-up atmosphere.

You reach for Ethereal when you want a portrait to feel like a feeling rather than a record. When the story of your photo is not about every sharp eyelash but about the mood the person carries. Editorial work, street portraits shot against strong backlight, minimalist studio concepts, these are the images where this preset finds its purpose.

A practical tip: use Lightroom's masking tools to apply the preset selectively, keeping the full effect on the background while lowering the exposure on the face by a quarter to half a stop. This keeps the dreamy atmosphere in the frame while grounding the subject just enough to feel present.