New PRO! Advanced Cinematic & Film Effects in Photoshop and Lightroom

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Advanced Cinematic & Film Effects in Photoshop & Lightroom

by Aaron Nace
September 26, 2025
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Difficulty

Advanced
Length

4.25 hours
Videos

11
Software

Photoshop

Description

Master the art of cinematic and film effects! In this tutorial we’ll show you how to bring authentic film grain, light leaks, and imperfections to your digital photos using Photoshop, Lightroom, and Adobe Camera Raw. You’ll learn advanced color grading, how to create beautiful film borders, and make stunning double exposures, all with included textures, presets, and sample images.

THIS COURSE INCLUDES

42 Sample Images
16 Sample PSDs
27 Textures
2 Lightroom Presets

1 | Course Preview

01 - What You’ll Learn

4:32m

2 | Learn The Basics

01 - Lightroom Film Effects

34:23m
02 - Using Manual Tools

24:40m
03 - Adding Simple Textures

22:22m
04 - Black & White

15:23m

3 | Your Skills In Action

01 - Dust & Scratches

31:14m
02 - Adding Light Leaks

27:02m
03 - Film Borders

22:47m
04 - Polaroid Effect

19:45m
05 - Sepia Toning

27:50m
06 - Double Exposure

17:22m

Course Downloads

Authentic Film Effects

AFTER

BEFORE

The Art of Film and Grain

Using cinematic and film effects can be a game-changer when it comes to enhancing your photos. It’s how you transform a simple digital image into a captivating work of art with the soul of classic film. In this tutorial, we’ll teach you how to add authentic grain, light leaks, and unique color tones to evoke emotion and create a truly unique visual style that will make your work stand out.

Beyond a Single App

Dive deep into a multi-app workflow designed for maximum creativity! We’ll use Lightroom Classic to effortlessly apply consistent effects to an entire series of photos, then switch to Photoshop for total control, letting you add unique textures and perform pixel-perfect color grading. This powerful combination gives you the versatility to bring any cinematic vision to life.

The Power of Lightroom

Explore the power of batch processing in Lightroom Classic. You’ll learn how to sync edits across a whole series of photos, mastering techniques like color grading with the Tone Curve, adding vignetting and grain, and using the Remove tool for a perfectly consistent, professional film look on every image.

AFTER

BEFORE

Adobe Camera RAW

Discover how Adobe Camera Raw can help you create cinematic effects directly inside Photoshop! We’ll show you how to use tools like the Tone Curve, vignetting, and lens blur. The tutorial also covers combining multiple textures with blending modes and color adjustments for a truly unique and professional look.

Classic Black & White

Black and white photography is an art form all its own. In this tutorial, you’ll learn to control the light levels of individual colors, add a sepia tint, and use tools like vignettes, levels, and grain to create a high-contrast or low-contrast look that evokes classic film.

Blending Textures

Adding textures is key to a true film look. This tutorial teaches you to seamlessly integrate the 27 included textures, including dust, scratches, and light leaks—using blending modes like Multiply and Soft Light. You’ll also learn to use Levels and Hue/Saturation to perfectly match the color and tone of the texture to your photograph.

Add Contrast & Style

Capture The Light

Learn to add realistic light leaks using Screen blend modes, then use Camera Raw for final color grading, grain, and a custom vignette.

AFTER

BEFORE

Adding Film Borders

Create stunning, authentic film looks by adding borders to your photos! You’ll begin with a film border template and use the Magic Wand tool to make a precise selection. Then, you’ll create a refined layer mask to perfectly place your image within the border, capturing the natural, imperfect edges of real film.

Match Light & Color

Learn to seamlessly match your photo’s light and color to any film border. Using a Levels adjustment layer, you’ll discover how to match the black and white tones and introduce a subtle color cast by fine-tuning the red, green, and blue channels. This process is essential for making your final images look like a single, authentic piece of film.

Using Smart Objects

Smart Objects can drastically improve the way you work in Photoshop, providing a non-destructive way to transform layers and apply effects that can be changed or removed at any time. This tutorial will guide you in creating and effectively utilizing Smart Objects to make your edits easier than ever!

AFTER

BEFORE

Create a Double Exposure

Learn to create stunning double exposures by combining two images in Photoshop. You’ll discover how the Screen blend mode blends a subject with a second image, using high-contrast areas to reveal your portrait. This simple technique lets you produce artistic, transparent effects, mimicking a traditional film technique with digital precision.

Hands-On Learning

This tutorial includes an incredible learning package! You’ll have over 40 sample images at your fingertips, giving you a huge variety of subjects to practice on. Plus, with 26 downloadable PSDs, you won’t just learn how to create these effects; you’ll get a behind-the-scenes look at exactly how they’re built, layer by layer. This hands-on resource is designed to help you master every technique, making your own photo editing journey faster and more effective.

Special Effects Learning Path

Explore more effects with our Special Effects Learning Path. Discover how to transform ordinary photos into extraordinary masterpieces. From watercolor paintings to pop art explosions, realistic sketches to glitchy wonders, we’ve got you covered.

Aaron Nace

PHLEARN Founder – Class Instructor

Aaron Nace is a photographer, Photoshop artist and founder of PHLEARN. He is the #1 Photoshop instructor in the world with millions of YouTube subscribers.

View More Classes by Aaron Nace

Special thanks to Maeva Vigier, Ish Frndz, Willian Justen de Vasconcellos, Zhenyu Luo, Hiroshi Kimura, Sean Sinclair, Morefun Boy, Simon Humler, Karsten Winegeart, Chermiti Mohamed, Annie Spratt, Ashkan Forouzani, Detlef Hansmann, João Vítor Duarte, Kiwihug, Marjan Blan, Max Fuchs, Paul Lichtblau, Resource Boy, Sj Objio, Thomas Heintz, Valeria Reverdo, Wesley Tingey, Yan Ots, Zoshua Colah, Evie S, Lawrence Krowdeed, Mohammad Alizade, Nathan Kelly, Sean Sinclair, Emilia Rahmatullina, Mohammad Amin, Brooke Balentine, Ian T, Kambria Trout, Iryna Marmeladse, and Dominik Mecko.