Why Learn Editing When You Have Presets?
Saturday 28 March 2026, 13:13 by Nando Harmsen | 1,609 views | 3 commentsThis article was translated from Dutch with the help of AI. Read the original.
Save a few euros by skipping a meal out, and spend it on around ten presets from a well-known photographer. That way, you can be sure your photos will hold their own and get the attention they deserve. Do you already use presets for your photography?
You can spend hours learning how to edit a photo. Take Lightroom courses on Photofacts Academy or browse YouTube for overly fast explanations with automatically AI-generated Dutch subtitles.
Then comes the tedious task of moving all those sliders in Lightroom or Luminar yourself. The result still doesn't look like all those popular photos on Facebook or Instagram. The solution is presets.
For the price of a main course at a not-so-good restaurant, you can buy a set of presets from a well-known photographer. Complete with the promise that your photos will also get that fantastic look you were so desperately searching for.
Be honest, why would you go to all that effort of learning how to edit when someone else has already worked it out for you? Make use of that well-known photographer's knowledge and your photo is edited with a simple press of a button.
Even better, use two or three presets at the same time. Make sure your photo stands out, and when it has become almost impossible to look at, you know that you have achieved your signature photo editing style.
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This article is not meant seriously, of course, and I have to be honest, it is loosely based on a short chapter from a humorous article on Fstoppers. It was too much fun not to use.
You should definitely read the article on Fstoppers too, especially if you are a street photographer. It is well worth it. Not good at English? Use automatic translation. Because why would you still make the effort to learn English? 
About the author
Nando Harmsen has been photographing for more than 40 years. He specialises in wedding photography and landscape photography. Nando also gives talks, workshops, masterclasses and photo trips, and regularly reviews new and interesting equipment.
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3 comments
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Mac wrote on Monday 30 March 2026 at 08:17 | replyPersonally, I also use presets, which I created myself and which others have created.
Translated from Dutch.
but this is only the starting point for further editing.
Sometimes I first look at a photo through multiple presets, to get an idea of what works best for a photo.
And every once in a while you're lucky, and a photo actually doesn't need any further editing) -
Donald Willemsen wrote on Tuesday 31 March 2026 at 15:47 | replyIf only it were that simple. Nowadays I rarely or never use a preset, unless I made the preset myself. Besides Ps and Lr, I also use Luminar Neo Pro. With the latter, I now also have a ton of presets, but I hardly ever use them.
Translated from Dutch.
A preset has to suit the photo you want to use. But all too often it amounts to nothing and you’re better off handling the post-processing completely yourself. If you have several similar photos, it might make sense to make a preset from your own post-processing to apply it to other photos from the series. -
guest wrote on Tuesday 31 March 2026 at 17:36 | reply
Also keep in mind that Presets only produce the desired result if the photo you apply the preset to is already technically correct. Correcting exposure or color cast really does not work with a Preset! You really have to do that yourself beforehand...!
Translated from Dutch.
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Elja Trum
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Would you like to take better photos and keep up with what is happening in photography? Photofacts publishes articles that teach you something about photography — from a product announcement to a practical shooting tip or a look at a website. Photofacts covers photography every day and is a hobby project of Elja Trum's that got out of hand. The articles are written by a team of volunteer authors. If you would enjoy writing one or more articles for Photofacts, do get in touch.More about PhotofactsPhotofacts is made possible in part by
