If you’re using Lightroom you’re probably using presets in the develop module to speed up your processing. If you’re not, you need to. Presets are not only a huge time-saver, but also a great way to preview creative possibilities for your images.

You can make and save your own presets, which I recommend doing, especially once you establish your own unique style, but you don’t have to make your own. You can download presets from lots of different websites—some for free, some you need to pay for. Beware, free presets don’t always mean good presets.

I suggest downloading from reliable sources that have dedicated some time to making killer presets you know you’ll use. One such source I’ve downloaded from is X-Equals.

After downloading their Creative Production Presets, I discovered they take the dedication thing to an entirely new level. In this preset pack, X-Equals teamed up with LifeInDigitalFilm to create some of the best and most useful presets I’ve used to date.

Before I get to some examples, take a look at what’s included in the pack: 75+ presets in four categories.

  1. Creative Holga Emulations
  2. Creative Presets
  3. Film Emulations
  4. Monochrome Toolkit

Here are some examples of a handful of my favorites from the set.


While you may not use every single preset, there’s bound to be a favorite or two, or 20. I’ve got several favorites just in the Monochrome Toolkit. Don’t be afraid to use the presets as a starting point for your own creative processing. Click a preset and then continue tweaking in the develop module to create your own unique look. Once you nail it, be sure to save it as your own custom preset.

That’s a total of 75+ presets—very good and useful presets, mind you, for only $14.99. Head over to X-Equals today to buy ’em and you’ll get 10% off your entire purchase by using the code DEALS4ME at checkout. This deal is only good for a short time, so snap to.

If you’re hesitant, download the free sample presets at X-Equals and try them first. They have a few freebies available here (scroll down a bit).

Head over X-Equals to buy now »