Do you ever wonder why you're getting a green cast on your skin tones? Do you want to know how to get those lovely sage greens?

We're asked about greens all the time in the Mastin Labs Community, and we're going to talk about it all!

Every other week, our founder, Kirk Mastin, hosts a Facebook Live Editing session to help you overcome editing challenges.

During our Live Edits, Kirk edits photos submitted by the Mastin Labs Community on Facebook, head to our Mastin Labs Facebook Page to find out about our next edit and how to submit your photos.

HOW TO EDIT GREENS IN LIGHTROOM WITH MASTIN LABS PRESETS

In this video, Kirk walks through tons of scenarios with green skin and foliage and provides solutions to control the greens in your images and get the tones you want.

Lots of Green & Fuji Pushed 400H (4:09)

Before & After. Edited with Mastin Labs Fuji 400HN +1 preset

Fuji is known to give you more of the sage greens because of its red/cyan base, but much of the color of the greens will depend on the color of the foliage itself. Foliage that has a higher yellow base will still have some yellow tones.

You can also get closer to those lovely sage greens by using the Fuji 400H Blue preset, available in the Fuji Original Pack. 400H Blue is the only preset made by Mastin Labs that isn't replicating an actual film but is designed to give you the cool greens many are looking for. 

Lessons on Green Reflections (13:54)

Highlighting areas of split tones of green and magenta.

When you have a mixture of light from two different colors, you have to make a choice. 

• Correct for the natural light from the sun.

OR

• Correct for the green reflected light from the foliage.

What's Happening? (18:05)

Kirk using a whiteboard to explain light reflection, color cast, and camera balance.

Sunlight bounced off the grass and foliage and back onto the subject with a green reflection. The AWB in the camera tries to correct this by adding the opposite of green, magenta.

You're now in a mixed lighting situation, and you have to make the above editing choice: correct for the natural sunlight or the green cast.

Beyond editing for the majority color, the only other thing that you can do for an image like this is to slowly brush in greens or magentas in either Lightroom or Photoshop. It's a tedious process, especially if you have to do an entire shoot, but there are ways to keep this from happening altogether. 
 

Tips for Shooting on a Golf Course (21:10)

A golf course at high noon is the worst-case scenario for a photographer. The high sun shines straight down, bounces off the grass, and shines green light all over your subject. Here are a few ways to avoid this:

• Avoid shooting at high noon, if at all possible.
• Shoot on the golf cart track to avoid green reflections.
• Have subjects stand on a large reflector or some other neutral surface.

Editing Green in Mixed Lighting

Edited with Mastin Labs Portra 400 preset

In a mixed lighting situation, correct for what the majority skin color is. If more skin is green, add magenta. If more skin is magenta, add green. (28:05)

Green on Green. Ain’t no Thang (34:41)

There are tons of greens, but because it's late, with diffused light, you can still get great skin tones.

Before & After. Edited with Mastin Labs Fuji 400HN preset

• Dial in skin tones based on the majority skin color.
• Use highlight soft to bring highlight tones into uniformity.

Kirk's Tips on Blemishes (38:31)

Kirk demonstrates how to quickly and easily reduce razor burn. Edited with Mastin Labs Fuji 400HN preset.

• Don't make them look like plastic.
• Fix major impermanent blemishes.
• Make sure that the person still looks like themselves.

Shooting Later in the Day

Before & After. Edited with Mastin Labs Fuji 400HN +1 preset.

• Shooting closer to sunset helps to ensure even light and even color temperature.
• Because the sun isn't high in the sky, there is much less of a chance of reflected greens hitting your subjects.

Three Things for Perfect Greens (45:05)

• What time of day are you shooting at?

Sunrise, sunset, and the blue hours produce the best skin tones.

• What is your subject standing on? 

The sun reflects color. Be mindful of what your subject is standing on and what's around them as objects may cast colored light onto them.

• Find it in real life.

If you're looking for beautiful, sage-colored foliage, go to where it is or bring it to you.

How to Get Sage Greens in Lightroom

In the Fuji Original Preset Pack, there is a preset called Fuji 400H Blue. It's the same as 400H, but it takes the greens to a bluer tone. (47:55)

Be sure to watch the full video for all the details, and if you have questions, you can leave a comment below or talk to us on the Mastin Labs Community Page.