The sky is perfectly exposed, but the trees in the foreground suddenly lose their details. Exactly these kinds of situations are solved by the range masks in Lightroom Classic. With them, you can apply corrections not just to the whole photo, but specifically to areas that are selected based on their color or brightness.
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A sunrise at the Rakotzbrücke in Kromlau serves as the example. The bridge is at risk of collapse and must not be walked on, as the speaker in the video also expressly emphasizes. So make sure to follow the local rules when taking your own photos.
Key Takeaways
- Range masks create selections based on color or luminance (brightness).
- You can combine them with the graduated filter, brush, and radial filter.
- With the eyedropper and the overlay display, you keep the selection under control at all times.
- Amount and smoothing ensure that the transitions look realistic.
Step-by-Step Guide
Step 1: Assessing the Original Image
The photo was deliberately taken underexposed so that the details in the bright sky are preserved. In the Develop module, you therefore start with the basic editing. First get an overview of which areas are too dark and which are too bright before you touch the individual sliders.
Step 2: Adjusting Shadows, Exposure, and Highlights
Pull the shadows slider up significantly to bring back the lost details in the shadows. Then raise the exposure by almost two stops. Since this makes the sky too bright, you lower the highlights, to about -66 in the example. This way the cloud detail is preserved.
Step 3: Correcting the White Balance
While taking the photo, the speaker had no time to take care of the settings. Since the photo is in RAW format, the white balance can easily be changed afterwards. Pull the slider to about 14,000 Kelvin so that the colors of the scenery look the way you remember the sunrise.
Step 4: Fine-Tuning Tint, Contrast, and Vibrance
Shift the tint slightly toward pink and red so that the morning sky looks warmer. Then adjust contrast, black, and white values. Vibrance increases color intensity without oversaturating all colors at once. You should use clarity carefully. In the example, a value of about +30 brings out the structures in the trees well.
Step 5: Sharpening and Masking with the Alt Key
Sharpen the image with the default amount of 80. Then hold down the Alt key and drag the masking slider to the right. The screen then shows the sharpening as white areas. Only these areas are sharpened; everything black remains untouched.
Step 6: Profile Corrections and Camera Calibration
In the profile corrections, activate the option for removing chromatic aberration. Then switch to the camera calibration. Here you shift the Blue Primary slightly to the negative and bring more red tones into the image via the Red Primary, while reducing the saturation of blue somewhat. You shift the Green Primary to the negative and increase the saturation so that the trees look more autumnal.
Step 7: Brightening the Shadows
Overall, the image still looks a bit dark in the shadow areas. Therefore, pull the shadows to +100. This makes the overall image significantly more balanced, and you have a solid basis for the next steps.
Step 8: Setting a Graduated Filter for the Sky
Select the graduated filter and first reset it to zero by holding down the Alt key. Then drag the gradient exactly straight from top to bottom while holding down the Shift key. Lower the exposure and the highlights in the sky until the clouds clearly stand out. Make sure not to overdo it.
Step 9: Identifying the problem
When comparing before and after, you notice that the graduated filter also darkens the treetops located at the top edge of the image. In the past, you would have had to uncover these areas again with the brush. Range masks offer a much more elegant solution for this.
Step 10: Activating the range mask and selecting the color
In the graduated filter panel, activate the range mask and select the Color option. Then take the eyedropper and, while holding down the mouse button, drag a color area across the sky. The selection is automatically narrowed down to similar hues. This excludes the trees from the correction. With a wider selection you capture more colors, while with a narrower selection you work more precisely.
Step 11: Checking the selection and adjusting the amount
Activate the option "Show Overlay for Selected Mask" to see which areas are masked. In the example, there is still a slight blending into the trees because the light is reflected there. If you reduce the amount, the correction affects only the sky again. A value of about 40 turned out to be a good result in the video. Then finish the mask with "Done".
Step 12: Applying range masks to the radial filter
Range masks work not only with the graduated filter, but also with the brush and the radial filter. To do this, drag a large radial filter over the trees. Increase exposure and contrast to brighten the trees. For better visibility in the video, the values were deliberately exaggerated. You will now notice that the sky is affected as well.
Step 13: Excluding the sky with the luminance mask
Select the range mask again, but this time with the Luminance option. Since the trees are dark and the sky is bright, this difference in brightness can be put to good use. Drag the right slider down so that the bright areas are excluded. However, some bright spots in the trees disappear as well. The overlay display helps you check the result.
Step 14: Using smoothness for natural transitions
The mask looks a bit rough at first. Therefore, increase the smoothness until the transitions become softer. Afterwards, the edit looks much more realistic, and the sky remains free of the correction. Finish this mask with "Done" as well.
Summary – Range masks in Lightroom: Editing sky and trees selectively
Range masks are a powerful tool that lets you restrict corrections precisely to colors or brightness levels. You start with a clean basic edit, then apply graduated filters or radial filters and limit them with color or luminance masks. The overlay display, the amount, and the smoothness are your most important controls here. Range masks don't solve every problem, but for skies, trees, and other clearly separated image areas, they save you an enormous amount of time. It's best to try out the technique on your own photos right away.
FAQ
What are range masks in Lightroom Classic?Range masks create selections based on color or brightness, so that corrections affect only certain areas of the image.
How do the color mask and luminance mask differ?The color mask selects areas by their hue and is suitable when colors differ clearly, such as green and red. The luminance mask works with brightness and helps with large differences in brightness, such as between a bright sky and dark trees.
How do I see which area is masked?Activate the option "Show Overlay for Selected Mask", and the selected areas will be highlighted in color.
Can I also use range masks with the brush or the radial filter?Yes, range masks can be applied to graduated filters, brushes, and radial filters.
What does the amount of the mask do?The amount determines how far the correction is transferred to similar areas. At low values, it remains limited to the sky.
What is smoothness for?Smoothness softens the edges of the mask and ensures that transitions look more natural.
Do range masks replace Photoshop?No, they don't solve all problems. In many situations, however, they save a lot of time and replace elaborate selections.
