With Adobe Lightroom, you can make your photos look like they were shot on a vintage film camera
| Photo Credit:
Sahana Venugopal [Image edited in Adobe Lightroom]
A blogger or Instagrammer who wants to make their crystal-clear digital photos look fifty or so years older might use a preset, slap on a yellow filter, fade the colours a bit, and hit ‘Post.’ But these fixes may look clumsy and overdone to those who truly want to evoke the feel of 35mm film rolls when editing their photos.
With a free version of Adobe’s Lightroom mobile app, you too can make your photos look like they were shot on the film camera from your (or your parents’) childhood days.
Once you learn how to achieve a basic 35mm film look, you can use Adobe Lightroom’s colour grading tools to bring out the specific shades and hues you require to achieve the look of a particular film you had in mind. But to start off, this guide will teach you how to use basic lighting and colour effects for a generic film photo look.
Remember that photo editing techniques are highly subjective and that every photographer will edit their images differently. Some prefer shadowy photos filled with grit while others may want impressionistic sun-washed scenes. After learning the basics, you can explore Lightroom’s settings until you find your own aesthetic and artistic style.
A collage showing how one photo can be edited in multiple ways in Adobe Lightroom to achieve the look of vintage or expired 35mm film photos
| Photo Credit:
Sahana Venugopal [Image edited in Lightroom and compiled as a collage on Canva]
(For top technology news of the day, subscribe to our tech newsletter Today’s Cache)
A screenshot showing how to edit with the curves in Adobe Lightroom
| Photo Credit:
Adobe Lightroom
How to make your photos look as though they were shot on film
Download the Adobe Lightroom mobile app and sign up for free. While some features will be locked behind a paywall, most light and colour editing tools will remain available. However, using the desktop version of Lightroom will require users to pay after a few days.
Import the photo you wish to edit from your camera gallery. It is best to pick a high-resolution shot without blurriness.
Navigate to ‘Edit,’ then choose ‘Light,’ and from there tap ‘Curve.’
When faced with the diagonal white line, drag the lower end upwards about 1/3 of the way, in order to add a white cast to the image. Do not cross the halfway point, as this will introduce distortions or wash out the image.
Next pull down the centre of the line. This is to reintroduce shadows while fading out the colours, and will lend your image a dark and dramatic effect.
However, if you wish for a bright and over-exposed film roll look, simply pull the centre of the line upwards instead to make it lighter. Do not overdo, as this will introduce distortions.
Continue to toggle the two points until you achieve a slightly faded look that is either dark or light (based on your preference). Long tap the image to compare the before/after shots.
Tap ‘Done’ and proceed to ‘Color,’ where you will see the temperature and colour tint sliders.
Raise the temperature by a few points until the yellow warmth of the image is to your liking. For a natural effect, do not go past 10 or 15.
Optional step: increase the tint by several points to add a subtle rosy haze to the image that is a staple in Indian family film photos. About 15 points or less should do. After crossing 50, pink or purple will be the dominant colour in the image.
Navigate to ‘Effects’ and select ‘Grain.’ Grain is what gives most film photos their imperfect yet unmistakable identity. Raise the amount of grain to 50, increase the size to 25, and raise the roughness to 50. For finer-grained images, reduce the size and amount of grain alone. Choose finer and fewer grains for images you mean to print or share on Instagram, so that they do not end up looking dusty.
Select ‘Vignette’ and move the amount slider to the left until you just begin to sense a darkness around the edges. Do not cross 50 unless you are aiming for a toy camera-like effect.
Click the three-dot icon on the extreme top right and tap ‘Save copy to device’ to download your image.
Your “film” photo is ready to be shared with the world!
