Split Toning in Lightroom: Step-by-Step Tutorial for a Cinematic Look

by Brian Terrill | May 6, 2026 | Uncategorized

What Is Split Toning in Lightroom and Why Should You Use It?

Split toning is one of the most effective ways to add mood, atmosphere, and a cinematic quality to your photos. At its core, split toning lets you apply different colors to the highlights (bright parts) and shadows (dark parts) of an image independently. The result? A rich, film-inspired look that transforms flat photos into something that feels like it belongs on a movie screen.

If you have ever admired the warm golden highlights and cool blue shadows of a Hollywood blockbuster, you have already seen split toning in action. And the good news is that Adobe Lightroom makes it surprisingly easy to recreate that look on your own portraits and landscape photos.

This split toning tutorial for Lightroom will walk you through every step, from choosing the right tones to fine-tuning the balance slider, so you can achieve professional cinematic results in minutes.

Split Toning vs. Color Grading in Lightroom: A Quick Note

If you are using a recent version of Lightroom Classic or Lightroom CC, you may have noticed that the old Split Toning panel has been replaced by the Color Grading panel. Adobe made this change back in late 2020, but the concept is identical. In fact, Color Grading is even more powerful because it adds a Midtones wheel on top of the traditional Highlights and Shadows controls.

Everything in this tutorial applies whether you see it labeled as “Split Toning” or “Color Grading” in your version of Lightroom. The sliders, the logic, and the cinematic results are the same.

Feature	Split Toning (Legacy)	Color Grading (Current)
Highlights control	Yes	Yes
Shadows control	Yes	Yes
Midtones control	No	Yes
Balance slider	Yes	Yes
Color wheels	No (sliders only)	Yes
Compatible with old presets	Yes	Yes (100%)

Before You Start: Prepare Your Image

Split toning works best when you build it on top of a solid foundation. Before touching the Color Grading panel, make sure your image has proper basic adjustments in place.

Correct your exposure. Make sure the image is neither too bright nor too dark.
Set your white balance. A neutral or slightly warm white balance works well for cinematic looks.
Adjust contrast. Slightly reducing contrast (or lifting the blacks) can give you that classic faded film base that pairs beautifully with split toning.
Fine-tune the tone curve. A gentle S-curve adds dimension. Lifting the bottom-left point of the curve creates that signature matte shadow look common in cinema.

Once your base edit looks clean, you are ready to add your cinematic split tone.

Step-by-Step Split Toning Tutorial in Lightroom

Step 1: Open the Color Grading Panel

In the Develop module of Lightroom Classic, scroll down on the right-hand panel until you find Color Grading. In Lightroom CC (cloud version) or Lightroom Mobile, look for the same panel under the editing tools.

You will see three color wheels: Shadows, Midtones, and Highlights. There is also a Global wheel, but for split toning we focus primarily on Shadows and Highlights.

Step 2: Choose Your Shadow Tone

Click on the Shadows color wheel. This is where you decide what color your dark areas will take on. For a cinematic look, these are the most popular choices:

Teal or Blue (Hue 190-220): The classic cinematic shadow tone. It creates a cool, moody feel.
Deep Green (Hue 160-180): Gives a slightly vintage, organic mood.
Purple (Hue 270-290): Adds a dreamy, twilight atmosphere.

Drag the dot on the color wheel toward your chosen hue, or click the small bar beneath the wheel to use the traditional Hue and Saturation sliders for more precision.

Pro tip: Hold down the Alt key (Option on Mac) while moving the Hue slider. This temporarily shows a high-saturation preview so you can clearly see which color you are applying before dialing in the final saturation.

Start with a low saturation value between 10 and 25. Subtlety is key. You can always increase it later.

Step 3: Choose Your Highlight Tone

Now click on the Highlights color wheel. This controls the color cast in the brightest parts of your image. For cinematic color grading, complementary or contrasting tones to your shadows work best:

Warm Orange or Amber (Hue 30-45): The most popular pairing with blue shadows. This is the iconic teal-and-orange cinematic combo.
Soft Yellow (Hue 50-60): A more natural, golden-hour feel.
Warm Pink (Hue 350-10): Creates a romantic, soft warmth in skin tones and bright areas.

Again, keep the saturation subtle. A value between 10 and 20 usually produces the most natural-looking results.

Step 4: Adjust the Balance Slider

The Balance slider sits between the Shadows and Highlights controls. This is one of the most important and most overlooked parts of split toning.

Move it to the left (negative values): The shadow color becomes more dominant and spreads further into the midtones.
Move it to the right (positive values): The highlight color takes over more of the image.
Leave it at zero: An even split between the two tones.

For portraits, try shifting the balance slightly toward the highlights (+10 to +25) to keep skin tones warm and flattering. For moody landscapes, shift it toward the shadows (-10 to -20) to emphasize that cool, atmospheric feeling.

Step 5: Fine-Tune with Midtones (Optional but Powerful)

Since the Color Grading panel gives you a Midtones wheel that the old Split Toning panel did not have, take advantage of it. Adding a very subtle warm tone (low saturation, around 5-10) to the midtones can act as a bridge between your shadow and highlight colors, making the overall grade feel more cohesive.

Step 6: Use the Luminance Sliders

Each color wheel in the Color Grading panel has a small Luminance slider (the vertical slider next to each wheel). This lets you brighten or darken the tonal range independently:

Dropping the shadow luminance slightly deepens your blacks for a richer look.
Raising the highlight luminance a touch can add a gentle glow to bright areas.

These adjustments are subtle but they add a layer of refinement to your cinematic grade.

Step 7: Review with Before and After

Press the backslash key ( \ ) in Lightroom to toggle between your edited version and the original. You can also use the Y key to see a side-by-side comparison. This is crucial for making sure your split tone enhances the image without going overboard.

Best Split Toning Color Combinations for a Cinematic Look

Not sure which colors to pair? Here are proven combinations that deliver cinematic results consistently:

Look	Shadow Hue	Highlight Hue	Best For
Teal and Orange	200-210 (Teal)	35-45 (Orange)	Portraits, urban scenes
Blue and Gold	220-230 (Blue)	45-55 (Gold)	Landscapes, golden hour
Green and Peach	160-175 (Green)	20-30 (Peach)	Nature, editorial
Purple and Amber	275-290 (Purple)	35-40 (Amber)	Nightscapes, moody portraits
Cool Blue and Warm Pink	210-220 (Blue)	350-5 (Pink)	Fashion, creative portraits

Split Toning on Portraits: Special Tips

When applying split toning to portraits, skin tones are your top priority. Here are some things to keep in mind:

Keep saturation low on highlights. Over-saturating warm tones in highlights can make skin look unnatural or overly orange.
Use the Balance slider wisely. Shifting balance toward highlights ensures that skin in well-lit areas stays warm and healthy-looking while shadows pick up the cool cinematic tone.
Check skin tones at 100% zoom. What looks fine zoomed out might reveal unwanted color casts when you zoom in on the face.
Consider using luminance masking. If you want the split tone to affect the background more than the subject, use Lightroom’s masking tools to selectively reduce the effect on skin.

Split Toning on Landscapes: Special Tips

Landscapes give you more creative freedom because there are no skin tones to worry about. Take advantage of that:

Push saturation slightly higher (up to 25-30) for more dramatic effects.
Lean into the cool shadow tones. Landscapes with water, mist, or fog look incredible with blue or teal shadows.
Match the mood to the weather. Overcast scenes pair well with desaturated blue-green shadows. Sunrise and sunset shots shine with warm highlight tones.
Use the Midtones wheel to add warmth to transitional areas like the horizon line.

Common Split Toning Mistakes to Avoid

Too much saturation. This is the number one mistake. If your image looks like it has a colored filter slapped on top, pull the saturation back.
Ignoring the Balance slider. Leaving it at zero when your image is predominantly dark or predominantly bright means one of your tones barely shows up.
Choosing clashing colors. Complementary or analogous color pairings work best. Random hue combinations often look muddy.
Skipping the base edit. Split toning amplifies what is already there. If your exposure, white balance, and contrast are off, the split tone will look wrong too.
Forgetting about black and white. Split toning is not just for color photos. It works beautifully on B&W images to add a subtle duotone or sepia effect.

How to Find Split Toning on Lightroom Mobile

Many photographers wonder where split toning is in the mobile version of Lightroom. Here is how to find it:

Open your photo in Lightroom Mobile.
Tap the Color icon in the editing toolbar at the bottom.
Scroll the options and tap Grading (it may also appear as “Color Grading”).
You will see the same three color wheels: Shadows, Midtones, and Highlights.
Tap on each wheel to adjust the hue, saturation, and luminance, just as you would on desktop.

The mobile experience mirrors the desktop version closely, so all the techniques in this tutorial apply there as well.

Save Your Split Tone as a Preset

Once you have dialed in a cinematic split tone that you love, save it as a Lightroom preset so you can apply it to future photos with one click.

In Lightroom Classic, go to the Presets panel on the left side of the Develop module.
Click the + icon and select “Create Preset.”
Give it a descriptive name like “Cinematic Teal Orange Grade.”
Check only the boxes for Color Grading (and optionally Tone Curve if your curve is part of the look).
Click Create.

Now you can batch-apply your cinematic grade across an entire shoot. You will still need to tweak individual images, but the heavy lifting is done.

Before-and-After: What Split Toning Actually Does

To understand the real impact of split toning, consider what happens to a typical flat, ungraded portrait or landscape:

Before Split Toning

Colors feel neutral and somewhat lifeless
Shadows are plain gray or black with no character
Highlights are clean white with no warmth or mood
The overall feel is “accurate” but uninspiring

After Split Toning

Shadows carry a cool teal undertone that adds depth
Highlights glow with warm amber that draws the eye
The image immediately feels more intentional and polished
There is a cohesive color story that ties the photo together
The mood shifts from documentary to cinematic

The difference is often subtle in isolation but unmistakable when you compare the two side by side. It is the same reason movies go through extensive color grading in post-production: the colors tell the story as much as the subject does.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you do split toning in Lightroom?

Open the Color Grading panel (previously called Split Toning) in the Develop module. Select a color for the Shadows wheel and a different color for the Highlights wheel. Adjust the saturation to control how strong each tone appears, then use the Balance slider to control how the two tones blend across your image.

Did Lightroom get rid of split toning?

Adobe replaced the Split Toning panel with the Color Grading panel in late 2020. The new panel is fully compatible with old split toning settings and presets. It adds a Midtones wheel and Luminance controls, making it strictly more powerful than the original tool.

What is the split toning technique?

Split toning is the technique of applying one color to the highlights and a different color to the shadows of a photograph. It originated in darkroom photography where chemical toning processes would add color to silver-based prints. In digital editing, it is used to create mood, add a cinematic quality, or achieve a vintage film look.

Where is split toning in Lightroom Mobile?

In Lightroom Mobile, tap the Color editing tool, then select Grading. You will find Shadows, Midtones, and Highlights color wheels that function identically to the desktop version.

What is the best color combination for cinematic split toning?

The most popular cinematic combination is teal shadows with orange highlights. This mirrors the color grading used in many Hollywood films and works exceptionally well for both portraits and landscapes. Other strong pairings include blue and gold, purple and amber, and green and peach.

Can I use split toning on black and white photos?

Yes. Split toning on black and white images is a fantastic way to add a subtle color wash. Classic choices include warm sepia tones in the highlights with cool blue in the shadows, creating a rich duotone effect that adds visual interest to monochrome images.