Use Color Lookup to Create Dramatic Photo Effects with a Single Click

Color enhancements such as cross processing and various blending techniques can make a photo what it is by setting a tone and mood. While most color changes are quick and easy, they still take several clicks to accomplish. These days we’re all about speed and efficiency, so what if I were to tell you that you can create dramatic color tones with a single click? Since Photoshop CS6, quietly waiting within the adjustment layers menu, Color Lookup has been waiting for you to discover it. Let’s take a closer look.

I grabbed this excellent photo of a skateboard park at sunset from Unsplash. You can download the same photo here.

From the Layers panel, Click the Adjustment Layer icon and choose “Color Lookup”.

You’ll see the Color Look up panel appear under the Properties tab. There is a lot to choose from, so you’ll want to spend some time playing around an familiarize yourself with some of the amazing color tones that can be created with a single click. I chose TensionGreen for this photo, which gives it a nice cool tone and makes the sunset stand out nicely.

But you don’t have to stop there. Simply click the Adjustment Layer icon again and choose “Color Lookup” once more. You guessed it, these color tones blend! For this second Color Lookup I chose Turquoise-Sepia under Abstract. I adjusted the opacity of this layer to 80%. This gave the image a nice washed out effect.

I love the power and ease of this adjustment layer and will definitely incorporate it into my workflow. I hope you find this tip useful and have fun experimenting with it! Feel free to share some of your results using the comment fields below.