There are hundreds of Lightroom landscape presets available for download. Some are part of paid packages. Others are free.
What are Lightroom presets? Lightroom presets are easy “recipes” for post-processing. With one click, you can completely change the style of your landscape images.
I’ve chosen 35 free Lightroom presets to share that will shake up your landscape photography. Most are for color and daytime scenes, but I’ve included some for astrophotography, black & white conversion, and a few special effects.
Before I jump into the recommended presets, let me show you how to install Lightroom presets. First, download the preset and unzip it if necessary.
There are two ways to install presets for Lightroom.
In the left column of the Develop Module, click the plus sign next to the Presets window. You’ll have the option to import a preset. By default, Lightroom stores the preset under the User Presets tab.
Drag a folder containing presets into the Develop Presets folder on your computer. This folder can be tricky to find. Here are the steps I take to get to this folder:
Drag a new folder containing Lightroom presets into the Develop Presets folder. The next time you open Lightroom, a new group of presets will appear.
Fix the Photo has many quality presets. Wanderlust is the first of three I’ve included in this article. The Wanderlust preset subtly enhances your landscape with clarity and contrast.
There are also slight changes to the tone curve, white balance, and the HSL panel.
Magic Nature by Fix the Photo seems to find colors that I didn’t think were in my image. The preset favors purples and reds. The free presets on Fix the Photo come and go. This is one of my favorites. Let’s hope this one stays around!
There are also large changes in split toning and the HSL panel. All colors have been saturated, some more than others.
The Dull Slot Canyon preset is part of the Exploring Exposure Landscape bundle. This is a set of additive presets that work together to enhance your photos. I’m going to talk about two presets in this bundle that immediately enhance your image.
Dull Slot Canyon enhances the sunset and autumn colors of your image. Add one of the high-contrast scene presets and your colors will really pop!
The High Contrast Scene – Light Shadows preset is part of the Exploring Exposure Landscape bundle. This set of additive presets works together to enhance your photos. High Contrast Scene – Light Shadows, as the name suggests, increases contrast and lightens shadows. This brings out the colorful details in your landscape.
There are also slight changes to the tone curve and noise reduction.
Classic Bright found on Preset Love creates a bright, high-contrast scene that’s full of color. There’s nothing moody about this preset. It brings in all the light of a bright sunny day.
There are also changes to the white balance, tone curve, HSL panel, and noise reduction. A slight post-crop vignette holds the lightness in check.
When I’m gifted free presets from the post-processing queen, Nicolesy, I jump on them. I’ll recommend four of her free presets. The first is the understated preset Summer Breeze. It subtly clarifies your landscape’s colors and freshens your image.
There are changes to the tone curve and split toning. A color-priority post-crop vignette centers the scene.
The Summertime preset by Nicolesy is bright and breezy. Shadows are brightened, allowing your colors to pop.
There are changes to the tone curve, split toning, and the HSL panel. There is also a highlight priority post-crop vignette.
The Sucker Punch preset by Look Filter is for photographers who like cool shadows. There is definite contrast afoot, and it works well.
There are changes to the white balance and the tone curve. The largest changes are in the HSL panel, with a unique recipe of color changes.
The Enter Sandman preset by Look Filter warms up the image like a sunset. The increased shadows brighten the image. The whites ensure there are no high-key areas distracting the viewer.
There are also changes to the tone curve, white balance, and color calibration. Saturation is added in the HSL panel.
The High Tide preset by Look Filter is for photographers who want a cool, muted color scheme. There’s plenty of color, but the effect is of dim light on a hazy day. This Lightroom preset feels cinematographic and empowering to any landscape scene.
Changes to the white balance, HSL panel, and split toning warm the highlights and cool the shadows. Changes in the tone curve further even out the light.
The Very Dynamic preset by Preset Pro is, as it says, very dynamic. This is a strong preset that highlights details through contrast. The increased blacks and clarity give added punch to the scene. It gives the impression of a stronger sun during the blue hour.
There are also slight changes to the tone curve, split toning, and the HSL panel.
The Warm Light preset by Preset Pro brings out the sun in your image—even if there wasn’t a lot of sun when you took the photo. This preset warms up and brings out the light and detail.
There are also changes to the white balance, tone curve, and individual colors like blue and orange.
Tray Radcliff is a travel and landscape photographer known for his work with HDR and his unique post-processing style. I’m including four presets from his free preset bundle. The first is A Beautiful Release. This preset gives a bright but slightly desaturated look to your images. Contrast punches the detail.
There are also changes to the white balance, tone curve, and noise reduction. Colors are further shaded with changes in split toning and the HSL panel.
Hotel of Budapest is a preset by Tray Radcliff included in his free preset bundle. While many landscape presets increase contrast, this preset reduces contrast to create a smooth, dreamy look. A light sepia effect bathes the photo in warm light.
There are also changes to the tone curve, split toning, noise reduction, and the HSL panel. A slight post-crop vignette finishes the look.
Alkaline Storm, a preset by Tray Radcliff included in his free preset bundle, is not for the faint of heart. This preset brings a strong yellow, otherworldly cast to your images. There’s no feel-good warmth in this preset. It’s a full-on sun blast.
There are also changes to the white balance, tone curve, noise reduction, and the HSL panel. A slight post-crop vignette is also added. But it’s the changes in the split toning that makes the look.
The landscape preset bundle from CreativeTacos includes some definite keepers. I’ll talk about four. The first is Landscape Effect 16. This is a preset that seemingly changes little yet has a big effect. The muted colors give a rainy-day feel to the image.
There are changes to the white balance and tone curve, but it’s the split toning creating the color cast.
Landscape Effect 25 in the CreativeTacos bundle cools down your scene, emphasizing blues and reds in a unique way. There’s a richness to this preset that I love.
There are changes to the white balance, tone curve, and split toning with a slight post-crop vignette.
Aged Film found on Preset Love desaturates the image while retaining all the detail and contrast.
Changes to the white balance warm the image. There are also changes to the tone curve, split toning, and the HSL panel. Grain and a post-crop vignette are added, and extra sharpening brings out the details.
The Nature Lovers by Fix the Photo is a dark, nearly monochrome preset. The preset retains some golds and yellows but with a cool steeliness of a cloudy day. The blacks are punched in this preset.
The largest changes are in the HSL panel, with a unique recipe of color changes. There are also changes to the white balance, tone curve, and split toning with some added grain.
Autumn Vintage, found on Preset Love, is for all those vintage lovers. The preset desaturates and warms the image. The added bit of lightness simulates a faded image.
Changes to the white balance and split toning warm the image. There are also changes to the tone curve and the HSL panel. All colors are saturated—some more than others.
Desaturated Cinema is a preset from Contrastly. Landscapes come in all moods and weather conditions. This preset mutes the colors, much like the colors on a cloudy winter day.
There is also a bit of split toning and post-crop vignetting.
A couple of CreativeTacos’ presets create a reddish color cast to your landscape. Landscape Effect 2 is one of these. The whites and highlights are downplayed, creating a moody pastel look.
There are changes to the white balance, tone curve, and split toning with a slight post-crop vignette.
Preset Pro has another take on the cinematic style with its Cinematic Film preset. Decreasing contrast, highlights, and whites give the image a dark and moody look. Extra sharpening and grain add to the grungy flavor.
There are also changes to the tone curve and split toning with some added sharpening.
There are a lot of quality presets in Film Speck One bundle. I especially like what they do to my astrophotography images. I usually have a spin through all the presets, but I’ll recommend three from the set. Alhena takes a subtle approach with just a touch of contrast to bring out the colors.
There are also changes in split toning to bring out the blues.
The Brandenburg preset in the Film Speck One bundle increases the contrast and darkens the overall effect.
There’s also a bit of grain added to the image.
The Terebellum preset in the Film Speck One bundle is the strongest I’m recommending. I like the way my night sky pops.
There is a strong change in the tone curve.
It’s important to include a few black and white presets in my recommendations. If you’re looking for a good black and white preset, you can’t go wrong with CreativeTacos Landscape Effect 21. The preset emphasizes much-needed contrast in a monochrome conversion.
There are changes to the tone curve, split toning, and sharpening. A paint overlay post-crop vignette completes the look.
If you’ve downloaded the Film Speck One bundle, check out the black and white presets. There are many winners in this bundle. Monoceros gives your images a strong dark look.
The tone curve and B&W filter panel have also been changed.
The Broken Photocopier preset by Tray Radcliff brings a sepia monochrome look to your photos. Your images will look like an old-fashioned photo losing detail with age. Increasing noise reduction smooths out the details. Tray achieves this look through a unique black and white filter mix.
There are also changes to the white balance and tone curve. And noise reduction is strengthened. Colors are shaded in split toning and in the Black & White filter mix panel. A heavy post-crop vignette is also added.
Maybe you’re looking for a way to quickly create an aged black and white landscape. If so, it doesn’t get better than Nicolesy’s Aged B&W Print preset. The preset lightens the image through filters and a light post-crop vignette. You’ll even get a slight rounding on the corners of your image.
I’m always on the lookout for a good black and white infrared preset. My current favorite is one found at Gumroad. This preset darkens the blues and lightens the greens for the infrared look we love. The settings are changed through an embedded profile.
Preset Love has an interesting black and white infrared effect. Color is removed, but strong contrast and detail remain. The infrared effect is created in the B&W panel by lightening colors such as green and darkening colors such as blue.
There are changes to the white balance, tone curve, split toning, and the B&W filter panel.
Sometimes my scene screams for a sun flare or another special effect. I keep a few special effects Lightroom presets on hand for such occasions. These special effects are sometimes what you need to add a bit of interest to your landscape photography.
The Sun Flare preset by PresetPro uses the gradient filter to warm and lighten the left side of the image. This simulates a strong light source just off-frame.
There are further changes to white balance, tone curve, and noise reduction. Split toning and changes in the HSL panel highlight the pastel colors in the scene.
I’m not sure if Nicolesy intended her Sun Flare preset to work with landscape photography, but I like the result. This preset sharpens detail and creates a bright, soft glow in the highlights.
There are changes to the tone curve and split toning with a paint overlay post-crop vignette.
Phlearn has come out with a light leak and flare bundle. Play with all the presets, but my favorite is Light & Flare Red Line Left. The description is in the title. A red vertical light leaks from the left side of the frame. The effect is created using gradient filters.
These are my 35 Lightroom landscape preset recommendations. But I’m always discovering new presets.
The results of these presets vary depending on your subject and lighting. Feel free to tweak them for a more personalized and scene-specific edit.
