Lightroom Profiles vs. Presets: The Difference Between Presets and Profiles

A question we get often is " What is the difference between lightroom presets and profiles?" 

Presets have been a part of Lightroom's develop panel for years. It wasn't until 2018 when Lightroom made a pretty large update with the release of version 7.3, and added a new feature that allowed the ability to create and save profiles. Since the release, the popularity of Lightroom profiles has grown immensely. And it is why here at REFINED Co, we created them too!

A preset is a saved group of photo-editing settings in Adobe Lightroom that transforms your images with just a click of the preset. You then have the flexibility to adjust the settings that best fit the image that you are editing.

Where in Lightroom can you find "presets"? Once you have an image loaded into Lightroom, go to the Develop mode. Once in Develop Mode click on Presets in the left hand panel. If you have loaded presets into Lightroom you will find them here. 

How do I edit an image with a preset? Select your unedited image in Lightroom. Navigate to your saved presets in your Preset Panel on the left hand side. Select a preset from your preset dropdown menu and click on it. 

Once you select the preset you will see the settings change in the various panels on the right side of Lightroom. You can then adjust those settings to the needs of the image you are working on.

Within the types of presets available, wedding presets hold a distinct significance. Refined Co's curated collection of wedding presets for desktop and mobile is meticulously designed to capture the intimate essence of matrimonial moments. With a simple selection from the Preset Panel after purchase, witness a graceful transformation in your wedding photographs, while retaining the flexibility to further adjust the settings to meet the precise aesthetic demands of each image.

When comparing Lightroom profiles vs. presets, the reality is that a profile is similar to a preset in that a preset and profile are both used to change the settings of your image and elevate the overall appearance. Profiles, however, are created with look up tables and saved to create a single layer edit that you then have control over the opacity of that layer. In our Difference Between Lightroom Profiles vs Presets video you will notice that when you select a profile the settings in your editing panels on the right do not change. They stay at zero giving you full flexibility to adjust them as needed. You also have the option to change the intensity of the profile by sliding the profile slider up or down.

Where in Lightroom can you find "profiles"? Once you have an image loaded into Lightroom, go to the Develop mode. Once in Develop Mode in the upper portion of the Basic Panel on the right you will find the word Profile and 4 rectangles. Click on the rectangles to see the Lightroom profiles that have been loaded up. 

With REFINED Co Lightroom profiles we have also saved them as a proset which is a profile and preset mixed together that will show up in the Preset Panel on the left side. This was done to simplify the entire process for turning presets into Lightroom profiles by giving you the same workflow you have when working with presets. By clicking on profiles in your open preset panel on the left instead of opening a new dropdown menu, you can select the Lightroom profile, close that panel, and then continue editing. By creating a proset in the preset panel, it will save you several steps, which in turn saves you valuable time when editing.

How do I edit an image with a Lightroom profile? Select your unedited image in Lightroom. Navigate to your Basic Panel on the right and at the top click on the 4 rectangles, and then select a profile from the dropdown menu. Once you choose your profile, close the profile menu, and then you can either adjust the profile slider at the top of the Basic Panel and/or make any exposure, shadow, white, HSL adjustments, etc as you feel your image needs it. 

If you are using REFINED Co Lightroom profiles, you also have the option of selecting the profile from your Preset Panel in your folder labeled REFINED x ________ Profiles. Select the profile you want to use and then you can either adjust the profile slider at the top of the Basic Panel and/or make any exposure, shadow, white, HSL adjustments, etc as you feel your image needs it. 

Images by KT Merry