Cinematic – Free Lightroom Preset | Movie-Like Color Grading

Transform your photos into movie scenes with the Cinematic – Free Lightroom Preset. Inspired by the legendary color palette of Kodak cinematic film, this preset delivers rich, deep colors, a soft tonal range, and an atmospheric mood straight out of Lightroom.

Introduction

The Cinematic – Free Lightroom Preset applies a warm, narrative-driven aesthetic to your digital images. It draws inspiration from the rich color grading techniques used in modern motion picture film, particularly the renowned stocks used in top-tier Hollywood productions. While digital cameras capture data, cinema film captures emotion. The Cinematic preset brings this narrative-driven aesthetic to your photography, balancing deep mid-tones with a golden hue to create a polished, movie-like atmosphere in just one click.

Kodak Cinematic History
Film Characteristics
Lightroom Preset Details
Where to Download
Conclusion
FAQs

History of Kodak Cinematic Film

Kodak’s Motion Picture films have been the gold standard for cinema for over a century. From the early days of Technicolor to the modern mastery of the Vision3 line, Kodak stocks are prized for their wide exposure latitude and natural color rendition. Directors like Christopher Nolan and Quentin Tarantino continue to shoot on Kodak film because of its unique ability to render skin tones naturally while maintaining rich, atmospheric shadows—a look that digital sensors often struggle to emulate without the right cinematic color grading.

Film Characteristics

Here’s what defines the aesthetic of modern Cinematic Film and this preset:

Mid-tones: Enhanced with a golden hue to ensure skin looks healthy and radiant.
Shadows: Subtly cooled to create a classic color separation that adds depth to the frame.
Highlight Rolloff: A gentle adjustment to mimic the wide dynamic range of cinema cameras.
Contrast: Boosted to add drama while keeping the transition between light and dark smooth.
Organic Texture: Reduced digital sharpness to provide a more organic, filmed feel.

Cinematic – Lightroom Preset

The Cinematic Preset is designed to give your digital images the gravity and mood of a film frame. It achieves this by reducing digital sharpness while enhancing mid-tones with a golden hue, resulting in a richer look. The color grading subtly shifts shadows toward cooler tones to create professional color separation, helping your subject pop against the background. Use this style to turn ordinary snapshots into cohesive, professionally graded movie stills.

Movie-Like Atmosphere: Instantly adds a narrative, high-budget feel.
Radiant Skin Tones: Warm mid-tones ensure subjects look their best.
Dramatic Contrast: Smooth transitions between light and dark for added drama.
Organic Finish: A softer highlight rolloff mimics high-end cinema sensors.

Conclusion

The Cinematic – Free Lightroom Preset is more than just a filter; it’s a tool for visual storytelling. By emulating the characteristics of high-end motion picture film—rich colors, golden mid-tones, and organic texture—it transforms standard digital files into compelling, movie-like stills. If you want your photography to look like scenes from a film, this is the preset for you.