Buying LR Presets...?

Harlequin565

Harlequin565

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8,375
Name
Ian
Edit My Images
No
Some people sell presets for a lot of money. Some people give them away.

Have you ever paid for Lightroom presets? Would you?

What has prevented you searching online for someone like Filmbot who are trying to provide free film emulation presets (linky) vs the (in my opinion) extremely expensive VSCO presets?

Do you think you could pursue a successful copyright breach against someone who used "similar slider settings" to you?

Personally, I think it's a bit cheeky, selling LR presets. Do you have an opinion?

[/controversy]
 
I haven't bought any, haven't found the need so far. However, I don't see why it should be regarded as cheeky for someone to sell them. If you don't want to buy them you don't have to, and they have gone to the trouble of creating and packaging them. Why shouldn't they sell them if someone is willing to pay?

Your time might be valuable - if they are providing something that you want and will cost you less to buy than it would to create yourself then it would seem to be a no-brainer.
 
There appears to be a market. So why wouldn't someone sell them?
 
I wouldn't buy them myself, but theres more to some presets than just altering a few sliders, tweeking the curve and all the various colour options, grain, vignnette ect could take a bit of time to get 'just right'.
I don't have a problem with someone charging for that, the issue with any bought preset (or free for that matter) is they are really intended for one image.
A preset thats just perfect for, lets say my wedding pic may look terrible on your images, simply because of the way different people shoot, add in even slightly different camera variations, lighting and it makes a difference to the outcome. Thats why I won't buy a preset, ok a free one may still look dreadful but at least it was free, if I'd spent £50 on it and it looked awful I wouldn't be a happy bunny.
 
With something like the VSCO sets (which are expensive!), for each 'effect' you get:
  • 'A set of sliders' that are specifically matched to your camera model.
  • A camera calibration profile matched to your camera model and the effect you are trying to achieve
  • A point curve mapping for the tone curve matched to the film effect you are trying to achieve
Now, while it's nothing you can't replicate for free, I work on the assumption that something tied more specifically into my camera model will give me a closer starting point to the desired look than one of the generic 'apply these sliders to a RAW'. It's still just a starting point through and I'm not convinced I could bring myself to part with cash just yet. I can see how others might be prepared to pay though - VSCO have put some effort in their side, so it's not unreasonable to charge! I'd probably buy them at £20 a set, but at $119 per set (and there are six of them), it's too rich for me.
 
Harlequin565 said:
Personally, I think it's a bit cheeky, selling LR presets. Do you have an opinion?

[/controversy]
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not sure i agree. something like vsco does abit more then adjust sliders. not sure whats wrong with charging. you dont need to buy
 
I find it interesting that some people give them away and some charge for them. I suppose it's all down to the effort put into creating them (which VSCO certainly appear to have done with their camera profiles). The thing that prompted this post was the fact that when I compare the results between free and expensive, my (un?)trained eye can't spot $120 worth of difference.

swanseamale47 said:
A preset thats just perfect for, lets say my wedding pic may look terrible on your images, simply because of the way different people shoot, add in even slightly different camera variations, lighting and it makes a difference to the outcome.
Click to expand...

In my mind, Wayne's comment is the main reason I choose not to pay for them - same as I wouldn't pay for (and rarely use) photoshop actions. I can imagine a photography business might find a use for them as a "quick fix batch edit" sort of thing though so maybe it's a horses for courses thing.
 
Yes a preset that looks great on one image may look terrible on another, so I don't tend to buy them. And many of the effects are so far fetched, why would you want that look? However, now and then I've gotten some pretty nice ones for free and they've been a good learning tool, i.e. how did they do that? And then I can apply the concept but not the exact settings to my own images.
 
Not bought any but got quite a few freebies that I've tweaked and saved to suit my own preferences.
 
I have purchased some of the VCSO sets and I think they are great and have helped to streamline my workflow. As already said nothing you cant do yourself with a bit of time but for me the ease of having it just ready to go was worth the price.
 
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