A gradient is when something has full strength in one location and zero strength in another.
It is a powerful tool that you should be using in the post-process editing of your photos.
Many people think of Photoshop when referring to intricate edits.
However, Lightroom has a few tricks up its sleeve as well.
One of those tricks is the ‘Radial Gradient Tool.’
Here are a few facts that you may not have realized about the Radial Gradient Tool in Adobe Lightroom:
- You can use it to enhance color in one specific area of your photo.
- You can critically adjust the exposure of a small area of an overly light or too dark image.
- You can accomplish minute tweaks of contrast to adjust your composition.
- You can create white balance adjustments to repair a problem or create a unique effect.
- You can stylize a vignette.
- You can stack radial gradient masks for multiple effects.
- You can infinitely change a radial gradient mask using the Brush.
These topics are just the tip of the iceberg for this magical and technically useful tool.
In this article, Kevin Landwer-Johan will show you step by step how to…
- Adjust the color in a single portion of a flower.
- Recover detail in an overexposed shot of a blacksmith at work.
- Fix a portrait background with localized contrast, texture, and clarity edits.
- Remove unwanted color balance problems from a public shrine.
Once you understand the Radial Gradient Tool, you will undoubtedly question how you ever got along without it.
Download the gorgeous PDF version below.
Photo Credit: Kevin Landwer-Johan
