Best Luminar Presets in the Skylum Marketplace

There are a lot of reasons for investing in Skylum Luminar. Not only is it one of the easiest pro-level photo editors to use in 2024, but there are also a number of great presets available.

Luminar Neo will even suggest the best presets to use on the current images using AI. How great is that?

While this feature is a great time saver, I also like to discover my options on my own and make the decision myself. That’s why I explored the Marketplace to find what I believe are the best presets it currently offers.

These presets run the whole gamut of styles and genres, from from portrait enhancements and film-inspired looks to specialized looks for landscape photography.

Using the best Luminar presets can really streamline your workflow, especially if you tend to make similar choices in your editing style.

They can also provide inspiration when you’re feeling a bit blocked or are unsure what changes would really bring out the best in a photo.

Luminar Neo comes with many presets installed, but if you find that you want to branch out beyond these, you’re in luck. Luminar’s Marketplace has a number of options.

Here’s a list of the ones that I think are the most useful.

Best Luminar Presets in the Marketplace

These ten sets of Luminar Looks are some of the most versatile offered through Skylum’s Marketplace.

While there used to be free and paid preset packs in the marketplace, now there are only paid options. This is probably because Luminar Neo already comes packed with presets when you subscribe.

Also, Skylum launched the X membership, which is meant to complement your Luminar Neo subscription by giving you access to tons of assets, including presets, LUTs, etc.

However, you can still find free Luminar presets outside the Marketplace. Many websites and photographers offer free resources; those presets will be perfectly functional once you upload them to your Luminar Neo software.

I won’t touch on those presets in this article, though. I’m now focusing on the presets sold through the Marketplace.

Remember that even if some of the presets were designed for Luminar’s previous versions, they can still be used with Luminar Neo.

However, if you’re using an old version of Luminar, you won’t be able to use a preset designed for Neo. You can check the compatibility of each preset right next to its description before you purchase.

You can access the Marketplace to purchase any of these items from within Luminar or through Skylum’s website.

That being said, let’s get to the presets themselves.

1. Cinematic Bespoke (Compatible with Luminar 4, AI, Neo)

This preset pack is ideal for street photographers who enjoy cinematic looks. The collection was created by Justin Lim – a portrait, wedding, and event photographer.

His unique style has consistently ranked him as one of the top creators in Asia for over two decades. In Cinematic Bespoke, he created an indie look based on toned colors that are perfect for street portraits.

He explained that his intention was to “make something dramatic, yet also subtle and soft.” If this look sounds intriguing, you should definitely check out this twelve-piece collection.

2. Capture Your Wanderlust (Compatible with Luminar 4, AI, Neo, and Lightroom)

This preset pack was designed by Marco Grassi, who is an award-winning landscape photographer and Skylum ambassador. These twelve templates are meant to enhance different types of nature scenes.

From snowy mountains to green valleys, these presets are versatile and can cut down your processing time regardless of where your wanderlust takes you.

This is also a widely compatible set, as you can use it with any Luminar version from Luminar 4 up, as well as with Lightroom.

• Related: Luminar vs Lightroom for Photo Editing

3. Neon Portraits (Compatible with Luminar AI, and Neo)

If you’re a sci-fi fan, enjoy cyberpunk aesthetics or simply like the effect of alternative light sources on your portraits, this is the preset pack for you.

Designed by the Skylum team, these ten templates will help you create vibrant images with saturated colors. Within the pack, you’ll find Shangai Nights, Gotham, Dual Tone, and Neon Sunset, among others.

You can always regulate the intensity of the effect with the simple use of a slider. By processing your portraits with these presets, you’ll ensure your images impact the viewer, leaving them wanting more.

4. HDR Portrait (Compatible with Luminar Neo)

Another jewel I found in the Marketplace was the preset pack HDR Portraits by Jakub Bors. These templates were created recently as they’re only compatible with Luminar Neo.

In this pack, you’ll find ten different presets to enhance textures, intensify colors, and add impact to portraits with contrasting light.

If you often work with challenging lighting, this pack will allow you to make the most out of your portraits. It will certainly add depth and a pop of color to your images.

Learn more about HDR photography here.

5. Frosty (Compatible with Luminar Neo)

If you’ve taken a lot of photos with snow or ice, you know how hard it can be to get them looking just right in post-processing.

That’s where Luminar’s Frosty collection of presets designed by Jakub Bors comes in.

This set of ten Luminar presets includes everything from a ‘Polar Palette’ with faded highlights to an ‘Arctic Chill’ filled with vibrant blue tones.

This pack isn’t just useful if you take landscape pictures in winter. It’s also perfect for winter portraits.

• Related: What are Luminar Extensions?

6. Four Seasons (Compatible with Luminar AI and Neo)

Another hit from the Skylum team is the Four Seasons set of 24 presets designed to cover your every need. Whether you shoot on a bright summer day or a gloomy winter night, you’ll find the ideal preset for your picture.

As a preset pack, there’s something for both beginners and advanced Luminar users. It’s a great collection for effortlessly adding mood and atmosphere to your shots.

With a single purchase, you can elevate your images year-round, crafting moods that range from dramatic to soothing and capturing moments from sunrise to sunset.

7. B/W Classic Filters (Compatible with Luminar 4, AI, Neo)

Love black and white photography but having trouble figuring out how to bring out the best in your photos? Or maybe you just don’t like the time it takes to play around with each filter and slider?

This set of 12 Luminar presets will make finding the perfect B&W look much easier.

This collection, designed by Rene Ledrado, includes all the different color filters as well as natural and artistic options. Once you find the ones you like, these can definitely save you time in your workflow.

8. Bold Experiments (Compatible with Luminar Neo)

If you like adding individual flare to your photos, you’ll probably love Luminar’s Bold Experiments collection by the Skylum team.

What’s awesome about this ten-preset pack is that each look can be used on a variety of different types of photos. The idea behind these templates is for you to get creative by adding light leaks, flares, window reflections and other elements.

Personally, these are some of my favorite Luminar presets out there for creating artistic-style photos.

• Related: Luminar Neo vs Luminar AI: What’s the Difference?

9. Monochrome Tonality (Compatible with Luminar AI and Neo)

If you like the looks of the old darkroom techniques, you’re going to love the Monochrome Tonality preset pack created by the Skylum team.

Pure black and white is beautiful, timeless and elegant, but you can experiment with variations of sepia, blue, red, or green tones and emulate the work of the masters in photographic history.

This set of 10 templates works well with architecture photos, portraits, landscapes and basically all photography genres. You can make artwork or social media content – these monochrome looks will open the door to a whole new world of experimentation.

10. Travel Photography Essentials (Compatible with Luminar Neo)

Created by travel photographer and PhotoHound co-founder Mathew Browne, the Travel Photography Essentials pack has templates for the most common travel situations.

Based on the experience gained on his multiple photographic trips, Browne put together 15 presets that cover all the most common travel scenarios from the aurora to architecture to street portraits.

The presets have built-in masks, so you can adapt them further to your own photographs.

How to Purchase and Install Luminar Presets

All Luminar presets are easy to install, especially the Looks collection from Luminar’s marketplace.

To install a Looks Collection from the Luminar Marketplace

1. Open the Marketplace by going to the Presets panel on Luminar Neo. On the right side, under the “For this Photo” panel, click on the button “Get More Presets”. This will launch the Marketplace. Alternatively, you can visit the Marketplace on any browser by following this link.
2. Browse the collections by using the filters on the left. You can filter by Compatibility, Topic, or Author. Click on the desired categories – you can choose more than one. Then, click “Apply”.
3. On the thumbnail, you can see the author and the price. You can use the shortcut icons to save your favorite preset packs or add them to your cart. You can also click on them to see more information about the collection.
4. Once the preset pack is in your cart, proceed with the purchase.
5. To install your new presets, go to the Presets workspace. Then, click on “Purchased – Add” under the “For this Photo” panel. This will open a browser window. Find your file and double-click it. Remember that Presets for Luminar Neo have a .lnpc extension.
6. Alternatively, go to File > Add Luminar Neo Preset Collection.

Final Words

Regardless of what subjects you like to photograph, using Luminar presets will save a lot of editing time, especially once you get accustomed to the Looks you really like.

A Luminar preset can help you see what’s possible if you’re a beginner. If you’re an advanced editor, try using them with the different blending modes for a whole other set of creative options.

If you’re interested in more Luminar presets – including free ones – there are plenty of third-party options available. (Here, I’ve just covered those offered through Skylum’s marketplace.)

Some are sold as single Luminar presets, and others as collections.

There are also several awesome premium collections created by other excellent photographers like Trey Ratcliff and Jim Nix – e.g., Nix’s Magic Hour pack.

(If you use Aurora HDR, Trey also has some amazing HDR presets, including some free Luminar presets.)

In the end, the best Luminar presets will be the ones that match your photography style. For me, these are often the ones that keep my images looking realistic while offering enhancements that really bring out the best in my photos.

Remember, each Luminar preset is designed to be a starting place. Most, if not all, will need some fine-tuning adjustments afterwards to get them looking just right.

Still, compared to the time it would take to come up with all these adjustments from scratch, using presets saves a lot of time.

Best of all, you can use these presets as a starting place to create your own.

What do you think? Do you have any favorite Luminar presets? Which would you recommend?