If I could hop in a time machine and give my younger photographer self one piece of advice, it wouldn’t be about lighting, posing, or pricing.
It would be this: Do not buy presets.
And while we’re at it, be very suspicious of most templates too.
I say this as someone who has fallen for the preset gambit more times than I care to admit.
The Preset Trap We’ve All Fallen Into
You know how it goes. You’re scrolling online and stumble across a preset pack with sample images that look amazing. Perfect skin tones. Creamy highlights. Moody shadows. Everything looks like it belongs in a high-end magazine.
So you do what any hopeful photographer does. You drop a hundred bucks, download the presets, load them into Lightroom, apply one to your image… and immediately think, What the heck happened?
Instead of magazine-worthy magic, your photo looks muddy, orange, gray, or like it was shot through a pair of sunglasses from a gas station rack.
Here’s the thing no one tells you early on: Presets are built for the way the preset maker shoots — not the way you shoot.
Different lighting. Different lenses. Different exposure habits. Different white balance. Same preset, wildly different results.
That’s not the preset maker’s fault. But it is your credit card’s problem.
Why Presets Rarely Age Well
Even if you do find a preset that sort of works, chances are you won’t be using it a year from now. Your style will evolve. Your taste will change. You’ll get better at shooting and editing.
And suddenly that preset you swore was “your look” feels dated, heavy-handed, or just… not you anymore.
If you see a style you love, you’re almost always better off figuring out how to recreate that look yourself in Lightroom or Photoshop. You’ll learn more, your edits will be more consistent, and you won’t be dependent on someone else’s sliders to define your work.
Templates: The Cousins of Presets
Templates are a similar story — maybe even worse.
I’ve spent an embarrassing amount of money over the years on “cool” templates. And the truth is, most of them never got used. Some were used once. And on rare occasions, I would find that magical unicorn template I'd be able to use over and over again.
But that’s maybe one template out of fifty.
And that gritty, vintage gym you can composite your senior into might look awesome on the sales page. In reality? You’ll use it once, maybe twice, and then realize you can’t stick every senior you photograph into the same old gym without it getting weird.
The One Legit Exception
There is one time buying presets or templates actually makes sense — when you’re buying a system, not a style.
If you already understand exposure, lighting, and editing fundamentals, a preset can act as a starting point instead of a crutch. In that case, it’s not defining your look — it’s simply saving you time by getting you closer to where you were headed anyway.
The same goes for templates. When they support a workflow you already use and understand, they can add efficiency and consistency. When they’re just “cool,” they usually end up forgotten in a folder.
The rule of thumb is simple:
If you’re buying something to replace learning, skip it.
If you’re buying something to support a process you already understand, that’s the exception.
Or put another way: Presets should save time — not supply talent.
The Bottom Line
This isn’t to say never buy a preset or template. It’s to say: be very intentional.
Before you click “buy,” ask yourself:
- Will this actually fit my style?
- Can I realistically see myself using this more than once?
-
Would I be better off learning how to create this effect myself?
Your future self — and your bank account — will thank you.
Because while presets promise shortcuts, the truth is the best “look” you’ll ever have is the one you build slowly, intentionally, and on your own terms.
And no one sells that in a bundle — no matter how good the sample images look.
PS That said, be sure to drop some cash on SeniorInspire's awesome mega-bundle of presets and templates, on sale today only.
