WTF is Midtone Contrast? (MAJOR Upgrade)

Upgrade your photo game with this simple yet powerful editing technique. In this photo editing tutorial you'll learn to unlock the secrets of midtone contrast in Adobe Lightroom to add POP and get deeper colors in your images. Perfect for beginners and pros, this photography tutorial video shows you step-by-step how to edit your images using this awesome Lightroom adjustment layer masking technique to add contrast to the midtones of your photos. Let's do it!
Thanks @davey_gravy for the banger photos!
#lightroomediting #photoediting #lightroom #photography
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[@SignatureEdits]

Thanks youtube.com/@davey_gravy for the banger photos! *DOWNLOAD FREE PRACTICE FILES HERE** signatureedits.com/free-raw-photos **CHECK OUT THE LIGHTROOM AI PRESET TOOLKIT HERE!** shop.signatureedits.com/?coupon=AI-CURVES-3487YT34

[@the_daniel_life]

thank you very much. Daniel

[@SignatureEdits]

You bet Daniel! Thanks for the comment :)

[@blakemarvin]

this was fantastic. Thanks!

[@olegmindru4168]

Amaizing tips!!

[@hurleygreen927]

Great info...thanks for this video! :)

[@hajiaibrahim7482]

This is great. I have been looking for a editing solution like this . So thank you

[@SignatureEdits]

Glad you liked it!

[@johnnyc.5979]

Wow, my mind is blown. Never knew about these techniques. Will try them soon, thanks. Subbed.

[@SignatureEdits]

Right on Johnny! Thanks for the sub!

[@marios739]

never used this bevore, thank you!!

[@johnstewart3391]

thanks for sharing!

[@remembershooting2064]

Superb technique and demonstration. Can't wait to try this out. Thanks!

[@SignatureEdits]

Glad it was helpful! Thanks for watching + commenting!

[@LucBequette]

This is so brilliant yet so basic at the same time that I’m mad I didn’t think to do this before. Definitely going to try this!

[@SignatureEdits]

Beauty! Glad it's given you a new simple way of combining these tools. I'm with you Luc! The best tips I come across are the ones that in hindsight I say to myself "now why didn't I think of that?" 😂

[@MustangNismo]

I love the way you teach. I'm ADHD and get bored easily. This is not only fast paced but packed with useful information. Every video I watch I learn something else. Even when it's a repeat of something from another video I always find another way to use the same tool or a trick to use it better. Right now my sole focus is to improve my understanding of lightroom and how the different tools work, what sets them apart from similar tools, the order that you should (I use that term loosely) use them in. I'm learning so much about the different ways to mask right now. I usually avoid the unfamiliar. You make learning this so easy. If you did a video on all the masking tools that would be amazing! Also the calibration settings throws me off. I understand they're there to correct the in camera shot, but my brain says the temp and tint does the same. I feel like calibration should be done first. Of course I don't feel like know anything in the grand scheme of things but I'll get there. 😂

[@SignatureEdits]

Oh man I relate to ALL of this on so many levels 😂 Thank you for watching and for this amazing comment - So glad to hear the videos aren't too fast for people to follow, which is feedback I get all the time! I'm like you - If it's too slow, I check out. These are fantastic suggestions for future videos, I'm writing em down! I'm actually trying to create a more detailed + in depth course on LR right now, so IF you'd be up for connecting via email I'd love to pick your brain a bit! Send me a message via the contact button on my website (signatureedits.com) and we'll set something up!

[@MustangNismo]

@@SignatureEdits I will do that!

[@nollattacykel]

Couldn't agree more! A lot of Americans (ducking 😊) are waaay too slow. Just adjust one slider can be a ten minute clip. Thanks for this tip, I'm a heavy user of LR and very picky. This makes a difference!

[@ChillyCrispin]

Same girl same, this comment is meeee

[@voiceonearts]

This!

[@bjfg]

Thanks!

[@Keith-n7b]

Another GREAT tutorial which reminds me just why I am subscribed to your channel. Thank you so much!

[@SignatureEdits]

Wow thanks so much! It can be hard figuring out what to post because I don't want to let people down with content that isn't helpful... Appreciate the watch and continued support!

[@matthewblakejohnston]

Midtone grading has been my cheat code for years. Good to finally see KZbinrs discovering the secrets of the trade… good shit

[@goldspike1]

No I didn't know about this....excellent tutorial! Keep them coming. And thanks to Davey-gravey as well.

[@SignatureEdits]

Glad to hear it! Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@EricAdeleye]

This tutorial is amazing, it's a game changer. Thank you for making this video.

[@baelavay]

Thank you for coming straight to the point. Appreciated!

[@LarryManiccia]

Great technique here! Will definitely add to my workflow for contrast adjustments.

[@dangitalvin3]

Wow can't believe I did not know about this. Thanks for the tutorial!

[@SignatureEdits]

RIGHT?! This was my reaction too haha! Thanks for watching :)

[@brianmarkie4667]

That's an excellent tutorial, many thanks.

[@SignatureEdits]

Glad to hear it helped you! Thanks Brian!

[@longboardfella5306]

Thanks! Just a small tip: if you hold the Alt or Option key while adjusting the highlight or shadows you will see when you start clipping. Also I you bring up the shadows too much you bring up the noise - so its good to check that and use denise if needed after your shadow edits. Also I find the new color mixer so much easier than shifting colors via tint or temp. It’s specific and easier to use

[@SignatureEdits]

All fantastic tips! I agree - color mixer gives you WAY more options and control. For me it comes down to whether I need to use it or not to get the result I'm after. It's definitely better than tint, but if I only need something simple that tint is fine for, I'll save the time and stick with the more basic tool.

[@ggstylz]

Don’t forget the calibration tool. It can often produce a special kind of pop.

[@stevenwaldstein2249]

Thank you. Great to know about these techniques.

[@rolithesecond]

Can we all agree to just call denoise Denise from now on? It sounds so much nicer.

[@user-kj3ch3ke8m]

@@rolithesecond 😂

[@gordonenns8084]

Wow, you showed me a lot in just a few minutes. Thanks a bunch!

[@pasqualray1337]

Brilliant. Will definitely use this technique next time I’m in Lightroom!

[@csvapeldoornjeugd3853]

I love all the examples you show. Continue the good work ❤

[@SignatureEdits]

Glad to hear it! I know it helps me when there are more examples too :) Thanks for watching!

[@DDHDTV]

thank you! This video popped up in my recommendations. So glad I found this. Never ever have I stumbled over Luminosity masks and this will help a lot! Edit: I'm amazed by what I'm learning and love your teaching style. Subbing!

[@SignatureEdits]

So good! Thank you KZbin recommendation feed 😂 And thanks for the sub!

[@davey_gravy]

Thank you for the shoutout!

[@SignatureEdits]

Thanks for the A+ bangers!

[@martindoersch]

Hi! At 3:25 the reason is the "curves" that are behind the contrast slider. As someone knows, flat course result in gray regions. Let's say you select a luminance range and add contrast, you add this just "inside" this range. So concentrate just on the lower part of this curve (added by contrast). You flatten the darker regions and as so you loose details there. (Remember: flat curve = no detail = luminance values are becoming the same). So be careful when editing images in general: never go so far that the (underlying) curve gets flat = horizontal. This always ends in loosing information.

[@romalibra_books]

I’m so glad you posted this, I used to do this all the time and somehow forgot about it when I got a little too excited with tone curve 😅

[@SignatureEdits]

Oh man I can relate to this! 😂 Learning a new thing in Lr can be a bit like a dog seeing a new squirrel.... haha

[@Jonathantuba]

I can really see the potential of this technique. I think you could dial in even more precisely using intersects. Makes an alternative to using object masks. I will try on my images. Thanks for sharing!

[@SignatureEdits]

100% Jonathan! I didn't want to go too deep down the masking rabbit hole, but combining with intersects would be an awesome addition + option

[@JohnEboyee]

Super valuable info explained extremely well. I've been working with luminosity masks in PS for about a year and still find it fairly complex and time consuming. This should provide a much needed speed boost to my workflow before bringing the near final image to PS for final tweeks if needed. Many thanks!

[@SignatureEdits]

Sweet! Glad it's added some more efficiency to your workflow John, that's awesome :)

[@General111100]

didnt know about that adding colors until now at 12:15. Tnx for the tip!

[@SignatureEdits]

Beauty! Glad you got a bonus technique out of it 😊 Thanks for the watch!

[@woodygreen6826]

I don't know why I hadn't thought of this before. I look forward to giving this technique a try. Thanks. :)

[@SignatureEdits]

RIGHT?! Me too! Haha. Hope it helps you!

[@codymarsden]

This was a great technique! Thank you ❤

[@SignatureEdits]

Thanks so much Cody! Glad you got something out of it 😊

[@PenGious]

Wow I didn’t realize you could do this in Lightroom now! One tip is five is to never use the highlight slider to adjust the brights of the sky! It adds too much saturation in an unnatural way. Use the exposure slider first and then the highlight/white if you notice some spots that are tough to bring down! Great tips nonetheless.

[@SignatureEdits]

absolutely! glad it brought something helpful to try :) and i agree - exposure is better where possible :)

[@rickguzman9463]

Nice tutorial! Lightroom Classic is my primary tool for managing my photography, but I sometimes in conjunction with Luminar AI, since the latter has separate sliders for shadow contrast, midtone contrast and highlight contrast. I'd prefer to keep everything in Lightroom, so will give this technique a try. Even though it's a touch more cumbersome, I like the amount of control it gives. Thanks for sharing!

[@v_stands_for_value124]

Dude made clarity with 10 sliders

[@SignatureEdits]

Why use 1 slider when you can use 10? ;) Thanks for the watch!

[@BIGDAUE1]

Hey great video, i noticed you used Signature edits " Base Sets " are these for sale by any chance. I did look on the site but couldn't see them?

[@SignatureEdits]

Hey! Thanks for watching :) The Base Sets is a NEW preset toolset project I've been working on and am getting ready to release. Stay tuned! If you want to know when they come out, easiest way is to enter your email at the bottom of this page! shop.signatureedits.com/

[@DutchDiederik]

Useful to know: the "clarity" slider is essentially a built-in contrast slider for midtones without the range-control.

[@wilhelmvongloeden]

SO useful!!! Thanks!!!

[@SignatureEdits]

🙌🏻🤝🤍 thanks for watching Wilhelm!

[@SueFerreira75]

Great video about Lightroom, but you have set my soul aching to return to the Canadian Rockies.

[@SignatureEdits]

You should! Fav place in the world for me :) Thanks so much for the comment Sue and for watching! I hope even if you can't BE THERE that the photos helped you relive some of your memories :)

[@dronemetrics5853]

Lovely....thanks a lot!

[@SignatureEdits]

Thank YOU for watching!

[@halir4408]

Your channel has quickly become my favourite resource for learning all of the subtle yet powerful tools that Lightroom has to offer, that I previously hadn’t discovered. I think a lot of us get stuck in our routine workflows (especially for client work), and don’t take the time to play with all of the tools we aren’t already familiar with. I’m definitely going to experiment with these in my next batch of edits. Thanks so much!

[@fsmelo87]

Great video man, thank you

[@SignatureEdits]

Glad you liked it!

[@lifeinthemiddle55]

I wish I had your energy!

[@SignatureEdits]

😂 Thanks! And thanks for watching!

[@MartinV.]

Great Video!!

[@SignatureEdits]

Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for the comment Martin!

[@CalvinMennyweathers]

Very helpful

[@SignatureEdits]

Glad to hear it! Thanks Calvin!

[@MrD3000]

Very good tips, man. Constructive feedback: you need to change your mic settings and have a sip of water, because the mouth noises in this recording are absolutely awful.

[@lukystaify]

aaa so awesome :D

[@SignatureEdits]

Thanks Luky!

[@ianneilson-o9r]

Great info; however, slow down a little, because you loose me whilst talking too fast! Merry Christmas....Ian

[@testowykana1763]

After working with Davinci Resolve and observing what great the tools for color grading it has I thought: why it's not available in PS or LR? Now I see some of these tools are available, but in a different form (I'm still on LR 5.6 which doesn't have the luminosity range tool).

[@brianhamilton4357]

Great Tutorial. Is it possible to utilize Luminance and color masks within a subject mask? If I only want the luminance of my subject affected, is there a way to make this happen? I'm looking for a way quicker way to select portions (color or luminance) of my subject without using the brush mask tool. I could always subtract with a brush the portions of the image I don't want, but again, I'm using the brush tool. Thanks!

[@hughchisholm-ns]

Just discovered your channel. Great information! Your pace is a bit hectic for me but I managed to follow along reasonably well anyway. 🤪

[@RobjeFromTheBetuwe]

Didn't know this, but this is really awesome. I already have a couple of photo's in my mind I just want to re-edit using this technique :). Thanks for sharing!

[@KosmatiBohem]

HAHAHA ... crazy about this technique is how bizzarely it is and how late from the competition ... where competition has this implemented years ago as one click / slider method or sophisticated layers system with luma mask. The proof anyone still using Adobe must really know why ...

[@flealove]

Really useful tip. A cool think to note is that the raw editor, Darktable, has had this tool for years. Theyre called parametric masks. You can target the hues, tones, and more. A lot of creativity for what kind of blending and feathering you might want to use as well

[@SignatureEdits]

Super cool! Will check it out :) Thanks for watching!

[@warnerwildernessphotography]

Bro, did you just steal my video title? 😂🎉

[@paulm8157]

High energy, useful content, clearly illustrated. (Name mention at start, a plus, Ryan😊.) Prudent of you to translate title “WTF” to “What the Heck” in vid😂. Learned new technical term “smoosh”. Kidding aside, will definitely give these masking and control techniques a go, particularly with skin tones, and selective saturation. If RAW file is edited to a B&W, are controls for selection and adjustment of color and luminance values different - am thinking that in such an image tonal values can be adjusted by moving certain color sliders (e.g., calibration panel)? BTW, Ryan, saw where 12/1/23 item in e-mag Shutterbug covered your Tone Curves post - congrats.🎉 Ever do a segment about LR vignette styles - when and how best to use them? Seldom a YT topic, am sure your approach would be welcome, indeed❤. Cheers!

[@SignatureEdits]

Haha thanks Paul! Put the name mention in there at the suggestion 😊 Glad I'm adding to your technical vocabulary ;) That's actually a great question with B&W. While LR won't change your photo back to color, it WILL still select the same color range, even though your photo is being displayed in B&W. So this technique should work exactly the same for you! Lmk if you find out otherwise Cheers and thanks for the future vid topic suggestion - Always looking for new ideas to test out!

[@another8470]

Talks too fast to be useful, but just enough to show off. Otherwise a good informational video on what's possible if you can keep up.

[@malenky4057]

Really cool idea. I managed to take this approach but the inverse, to combat harsh mid day shadows on people and instead remove contrast, without the overall image feeling too flat.

[@fordprefect5027]

What are the advantages in comparison to the tone sliders in Lightroom? If I deal with multiple masks now instead and even with one additional strength slider for each mask I am afraid I will have got problems tracing back how I received a particular result. Reproducibility and efficiency is important to me as well to work as quick as possible

[@bryan3am]

I had to unsubscribe and subscribe again because this is soooo useful! Thank you!

[@peterkenyonjr]

Good Job. Like the technique

[@danielarmstrong2144]

you dont need to use the color range mask to select skin tones when you can use the adaptive masking to select peoples skin way easier and more accurately

[@smokycrab7771]

Thanks man. Great tutorial.

[@lighthousereflectionsphotograp]

Curious…is it possible that this technique could be done for interior photos instead of using a 5shot 2 stop hdr blending or maybe add this technique to the blended photo?

[@rhodopsn1]

Thank you mate, amazing video.

[@geoffreykingston4866]

Great video and found it really useful. Have experimented with this technique and am amazed at the results. By the way, you mention a Signature edit - SE 0000 05 at circa 13.21. Where are these available and are they compatible with Adobe Camera Raw?

[@JeffreyTadlockPhotography]

Wow! That highlights, shadows, whites, blacks instead of the contrast slider on the mountain image was great! Nice tip!

[@SignatureEdits]

Thanks Jeffrey! Glad it was helpful for you - thanks for watching + commenting!

[@car4nthir860]

It’s so much fun to keep learning new things, thank you!

[@SignatureEdits]

I agree! Thanks so much for watching!

[@willogaz9606]

Can I just do this one technique to an image or do I need to use all the other tools? That’s what gets me is there’s so many tools!! 😅

[@Barberhearts]

Tbh this is super super helpful

[@erickdabandan76]

Anyone how to do this is Lightroom mobile?

[@realMysta]

What was that skin color change at 12:25?

[@ramoreacher5322]

So helpful ! Thank you

[@JonathanRobinson11]

Super good tutorial. Thanks! You can also subtract the Sky Mask from the Range Mask so it doesn't get caught up in the war of the sliders.

[@SignatureEdits]

Thanks! Haha “the war of sliders ;) I love it

[@gooner-n5]

Really helpful mate 👍🏻

[@PistaKralovic]

is this different to dehaze?

[@jacobleetech]

Dude as soon as you selected luminance I was like "why have i never figured this out?" fantastic tip. thanks!

[@SignatureEdits]

I know the feeling 😅 Glad I could help!

[@quicktastic]

You may want to experiment with the dehaze slider after you make your selection. It is similar to contrast, but works a bit better IMO. Just don't get carried away with it, as with any of the sliders.

[@SignatureEdits]

I'll give it a shot and see! Thanks for the idea :)

[@orvvro]

I think dehaze basically equals pulling down the curve in the middle, in my experience at least

[@GrimDuskEntertainment]

Can you do this for video?

[@cosminthunde]

instantly subbed. Love ur "smuglessness" and respect for the viewer's time.

[@SignatureEdits]

Thanks mate! Appreciate the sub + good to hear that feedback! Thanks for watching :)

[@hilleviupmanis8687]

Thank you for the

[@westwingaero]

the algorithm gods sent this to me to humble me, just when I thought I couldn’t learn anything new super nice dude 🔥 🔥 🔥

[@SignatureEdits]

This comment is hilarious 😂😂😂 Thanks man!

[@CHoudijk]

This is just what I needed! Struggled with this lately, but it was right before my eyes... Nicely explained and applicable!

[@SignatureEdits]

Sounds like great timing! Glad it helped and thanks for watching!

[@mikebarker9187]

Why use the word “fuck” in a post regarding Lightroom techniques?

[@SignatureEdits]

Hey Mike! Apologies if the wtf title rubbed the wrong way! KZbin has this silly game of showing videos to your audience based only on the click through rate of the thumbnail. If my thumbnail doesn't grab attention, noone clicks, and if noone clicks, youtube doesn't show it to anyone (Even if the content is great, and even if they're a subscriber!) So I'm caught in this game of choosing a title that hopefully stays true to the topic of the video, while also trying to make it interesting enough to stand out and get clicks. Not my preference, but that's the logic! And while I did put wtf in the title, I'm pretty sure there is nowhere in the video that actually includes curse words. Trying to keep it all age appropriate!

[@BugLightGeek]

Love this technique! care for a challenge? I have a shot of some waves crashing against a jetty wall & shooting up into the air. Shot was taken on an overcast day so the waves & the sky are almost exactly the same color. I'm trying to enhance the waves but can't quite make a natural looking selection of ONLY the waves. Would love to send you the raw file to see what you (or anyone else) can come up with!

[@SignatureEdits]

Very cool! You can share your raw file by going to signatureedits.com/free-raw-photos and clicking the upload link. I'll take a look and if it makes sense might do a video sometime!

[@Daniel_Scott89]

Wow this was SUPER helpful. Especially with photos where the sky is a little blown out versus the rest of the image. I’m able to dial in the sky and make it better! Thanks for these tips

[@SignatureEdits]

Right on Daniel! Thanks for watching :)

[@lidiasanchez7044]

Thank you!

[@davey_gravy]

Holy Smokes! You edited these pictures wayyyy better than I could!

[@longboardfella5306]

Your photos re very nice!

[@SignatureEdits]

It's true! Davey is massively more talented than I am 😂

[@SignatureEdits]

What a man, what a legend! Appreciate you! FOLLOW THIS GUY

[@davey_gravy]

@@longboardfella5306 Thank you!

[@khengteoh4318]

This is really interesting as i generally use exposure/hilights/shadows to try balance my dynamic range

[@SignatureEdits]

Perfect! Give this a shot and see if it helps your images feel more natural :)

[@luis_soares_photography]

Great technique! Thank you for sharing!

[@SignatureEdits]

You bet! Glad it helped!

[@d1m18]

Very close to Dodge and burning perhaps?

[@SignatureEdits]

Similar! This just does the masking part for you automatically :)

[@germaingresl1563]

Oh my!!!!! Can't wait to learn and try this!!! Thank you!!

[@SignatureEdits]

Right on - Have fun! Thanks for watching + commenting!

[@carlomure]

why I feel that using this kind of mask ruin more fast the image than using normal adjustments panel?

[@SignatureEdits]

Everything in moderation! The examples here are more extreme to make it more obvious. I’d say sometimes results will be better with other methods - it’s more about having one more tool in your toolbox!

[@anasmhimd4902]

Another amazing video by such a bright talented photographer as yourself! Thank you so much for such educational videos 🙏🏽

[@SignatureEdits]

Glad you enjoyed it Anas! Really appreciate the kind words + taking the time to watch 😊

[@anasmhimd4902]

@@SignatureEdits it's always a pleasure to watch your videos. I hope we meet in person next time you are in Dubai and shoot in some cool locations

[@bruce-le-smith]

fun to see your examples and process, thanks. it's true that just playing around and seeing what happens is a good practice, it's very easy to erase all the edits and start over if you don't like it. i use snapshots in my process, so i don't have to roll back all the way to the unedited image if I get too creative towards the end of the editing process

[@SignatureEdits]

Snapshots are great! 100% agreed that playing around is the fastest way to learn for me and make sure it actually STICKS. Thanks for the watch!

[@ScottVanManen]

So many times I have wished that there was a way to increase contrast within a color -- and here it is! Thanks so much.

[@SignatureEdits]

Me too! Thanks for the watch Scott :)

[@Paeblits]

Perfect video tutorial! I've been watching many different photography tutorials and yours are some of the best.

[@theJoeFagan]

Great uses of luminance and color range masks!

[@SignatureEdits]

Thanks Joe!