Split-tone your shots

Jason Parnell-brookes uses classic cc’s powerful split toning panel to stylize images

Try out Lightroom Classic CC’S powerful Split Tone panel

af ter following our series on the new Lightroom CC for the past few issues you may be wondering when and where you’d use Lightroom Classic CC. Well, since it’s computer-only software (not on smartphone or tablet) and stores files locally (not on the cloud) it’s remained a mainstay of the pro photographer. It also has a few tools and uses that Lightroom CC has yet to offer at the time of writing, and with its rather old-school layout, which is almost identical to its predecessor, may feel a bit more complex to some users.

However, Classic CC still has some tricks up its sleeve and Split Toning is one of them. By splitting the shot into Highlights and Shadows it allows you to add a colour tinge to bright areas and darker areas. This means you can add one colour cast across the bright sections and another in the dark.

We’ve opted to warm up this portrait image with some yellows in the highlights and reds in the shadows to create a tonally interesting shot. We’ve also biased the image towards the highlights, meaning that the colour cast in the shadows is somewhat reduced, so that the model (the brighter part of the image) stands out. To see what we did, follow our simple steps below.

Classic CC still has some tricks up its sleeve and Split Toning is one of them