How can I create a soft, bright child-portrait look with punchy color?
Asked 2/7/2013
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I like the soft, bright portrait style often seen in child photography: airy highlights, slightly washed blacks, gentle glow, and colors that still pop. Is this mainly created with lighting/exposure in camera, or is it mostly post-processing? I usually shoot with a 50mm f/1.8 and would like to know what techniques or edits can get me close to this look.
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
13y ago
2 Answers
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Such effects are mainly done in post processing. You can find a great number of Photoshop actions (search on "soft pink photoshop action" for example).
To roughly recreate this in Photoshop:
duplicate your layer, set blend mode to screen, adjust opacity to between 20-30%
add solid colour layer, select a light pink or peach as the colour, and again adjust the opacity to a fairly low value, around 20%. Set blend mode to Soft Light (but experiment with other blend modes)
you may want to use a mask to remove the effect from some areas that you don't want colorized or lightened
If you like the images that look more washed out, you may want to raise the black levels in the image before you start (move the Blacks slider right in Camera Raw or Lightroom Develop module)
Here is a quick example, before and after. I set one layer to 40% opacity in screen mode, then a light pink (#f4d6fa) solid colour, soft light blend mode, opacity 60%.
Originally by user4191. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user4191
13y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
This look is mostly created in post-processing, though it helps to shoot with the final edit in mind.
Common ways to get close:
- Lighten the image and soften contrast a bit.
- Raise black levels slightly for a faded, airy look.
- Add a soft glow using a duplicated layer set to Screen at low opacity, or use a soft-focus/Orton-style effect.
- Add a subtle warm pink/peach color layer at low opacity (often Soft Light blend mode) to give the image that creamy warmth.
- Some flare can help; shooting without a lens hood may increase flare in backlit scenes.
- Color/luminance adjustments can shift greens toward a yellowish tone, which is common in this style.
In Lightroom/Camera Raw, you can also brighten exposure and lift blacks. In Photoshop, masking helps keep the effect off areas you don’t want overly softened or colorized.
The key is also capture: if you know you want this look, control scene brightness carefully so important features like the face are brighter than distracting elements. Your 50mm f/1.8 is fine for this; the look is more about editing and lighting balance than the lens itself.
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