If you’ve wondered how to create a matte effect in Lightroom or Photoshop, this tutorial is for you. Today, I will show you how to achieve a beautiful Matte Effect in just two easy steps.
The matte effect is a fun and stylish way to transform your photos. Especially if you want your photo to have a more moody, dreamy and artistic look.
The secret to creating the matte effect is using the CURVE TOOL. Whether you use Lightroom or Photoshop you can find the curve tool inside the editing software.
The curve tool is one of the most powerful editing tools available. You can create so many styles with just this one tool but today we will focus on creating the matte effect.
So let’s get started.
How To Achieve A Beautiful Matte Effect In Just Two Easy Steps
Before you start playing wit the matte effect, I recommend that you do some basic editing to your photo and then let the matte effect be your final step in the editing process.
Adjust exposure, saturation, contrast, vibrance, clarity, and the white balance. When you are happy with your image proceed with the curve tool to add the matte effect.
To get started with the matte effect open up the curve box and follow the instructions shown in the images below.
How To Create The Matte Effect In Photoshop
How To Create The Matte Effect In Lightroom
You might find that the matte effect works better for some photos and not so well for others. The only way to find out is to experiment and be playful.
And remember; when you work with the curve tool “a little goes a long way”. You only have to do a small pull on the curve to get a huge effect.
Being thankful is incredible empowering. The healing power of gratitude will fill your life with miracles and silence your inner critic like nothing else.
Celebrating attention to gratitude isn’t just something that sounds nice at Thanksgiving – it’s a lifestyle and mindset choice that will drastically change your life and your creative business.
For something to change in your life, one of two things has to happen: your life changes, or you do. Waiting for life to change is a passive solution.
When you shift your focus away from everything that is scary, difficult, hard, and unfair to a gratitude practice, all of a sudden things start to fall into place. Being a creative soul means being proactive, not passive, and being grateful is one of the fastest ways to generate positive change.
Adopting a gratitude practice takes you out of problems and toward a solution. It removes you from complaining mode and into a best-outcomes mindset. That’s a skill you need in your life and in your business decision-making.
When you’re grateful you will INSPIRE people with your contagious positive energy.
And people simply love to be around people with a gratitude attitude.
Gratitude is energy, and everyone is either bringing some to you or draining it from you.
The marvellous thing about practising gratefulness is that it´s (according to psychology research) the fastest way to turn off your negative thinking and grow your confidence.
Spending just 10 minutes a day thinking or writing about things, events, and people you are grateful for can save you a lot of heartache and pain.
You can use gratitude to reframe your thinking. For example, if I hear my inner critic say:
“Christina You are fat and lazy, you should lose a few pounds!”
Then I immediately answer back:
“Yes, maybe, but you know what; I´m super grateful for my body; I have given birth to three wonderful children, I can walk on two strong legs, I can dance the boogie woggie and I can breathe freely. It´s absolutely wonderful – what a miracle!”.
Gratitude can SILENCE your inner critic like nothing else!
The truth is that to re-connect with yourself and find more peace and calm in life, you don’t have to make BIG changes. Think baby steps – choose gratitude. Just breathing deeply and becoming present in the moment is enough to activate calmness and positive change.
Pay attention to the small stuff. When you take little moments during your day to notice these “small” everyday things, you will automatically reduce your fast pace and live more mindfully and gratefully.
To be honest, I’m a very impatient women. As soon as I get an idea, I want to bring it to life. I love that I don´t have to ask anyone for permission, I can do exactly what I want when I want. I´m my own boss.
But I wasn’t always like that. I was raised to be a people pleaser, to be the good girl. In school, I was afraid to speak up or even raise my hand. When I later was accepted into to art school, I was afraid to show my work. I was afraid I wasn´t good enough. And throughout my childhood, I was working really hard for applause and approval – yet it never came, and it limited me big time.
I knew deep in my soul something was wrong with my life. I wasn´t meant to be a quiet girl. I was meant for bigger things. I felt a wild lion inside of me just waiting to break out, but I kept it locked up. I was afraid of the lion, not realizing it was my passion – my fire, my soul´s driving force.
I used so much energy locking my inner lion up that I became depressed. I wasn´t turning into the person I wanted to be. I was constantly directing and designing my life after other peoples agenda and expectations, striving to be the good girl – the people pleaser.
But one day I just had enough. I decided to let the lion out and from that day on my life completely changed. I gave myself permission to be me, allowing myself to speak up, be wildly creative and go after my big dreams.
You see, we humans tend to wait for permission, and for those perfect circumstances to fall into place. Before we know it, life has already passed us by. We wait for approval from people who think they have our best interest at heart—we’re crushed when it never comes. We miss the amazing life that could be ours while we wait for someone to show us the “go” sign.
We think we need permission to live the way we want to live. We believe that all the stars have to align before we can change things. We think that we have to be at a certain point, or that the circumstances have to be just right.
It’s time to stop waiting!
Give yourself permission to live a big life. You are meant to thrive and expand, not stay small and scared because of limiting beliefs. You are meant to dive fully into what this incredible journey has to offer you. You have so many gifts that you can use to create fulfillment and love.
The resources you have within you (your passions, talents, desires) are meant to come forth.
Your purpose is to share these resources with the world rather than play it safe and stay within your comfort zone. You are meant for great things, but first, you must give yourself permission to SHINE and live your full potential.
Give yourself permission, and you will see who you truly are. A magnificent being that is always worthy of love no matter how often you fall. Your amazing spirit is here for a limited time, and you owe it to yourself and the world to live a big life.
Go ahead, start today. Make a promise to yourself to move past your limiting thoughts, shed all worries and step fully into the world with greatness and courage.
You’ll never live up to the standards of what “everyone” wants you to be, so why fight a battle you can never win. Instead focus on being MORE of who you’re meant to be and focus less on what THEY think you should be. You might not see your own beauty but if you continue to conceal and hide who you are, the people that’s right for you won’t be able see it either.
Regardless of how you view yourself, regardless of your past experiences, regardless of your personal story—you can start over today!
The past has gone, and the past does not define how your future looks. You are not your past, and every second, every day, you can make a new decision about who you want to be and how you want to show up in your life.
Go shine and show the world your light.
Unleash your inner LION and become unapologetically YOU!