10 Common Wedding Photography Editing Mistakes (And How to Fix Them)
Capturing a wedding day is a high-pressure, magical experience. But the work isn't over after the last dance. The editing process is where you truly define your style and deliver a timeless gallery. However, it's also where many well-meaning photographers make critical errors that can cheapen their work.
Are you making any of these common wedding photography editing mistakes? Let's find out how to spot them and, more importantly, how to fix them.
Mistake 1: Unnatural "Plastic" Skin
In an attempt to remove blemishes and soften skin, it's easy to push the "Clarity" or "Texture" sliders too far down. This removes all-natural skin texture, making people look like porcelain dolls.- How to Fix: Use spot healing for major blemishes. For general softening, use an adjustment brush to select the skin (avoiding eyes, lips, and hair). Then, subtly decrease the Texture or Clarity. The goal is to soften, not erase.
Mistake 2: Incorrect White Balance
This is the most common error. A photo that is too "warm" (yellow/orange) or too "cool" (blue) looks unnatural and unprofessional. A white wedding dress appearing yellow or blue is a dead giveaway.- How to Fix: Shoot in RAW format, which gives you full control. In Lightroom, use the White Balance Dropper tool and click on a neutral gray or white area (like the edge of the dress, but not a blown-out highlight). From there, adjust the "Temp" and "Tint" sliders manually until the skin tones look natural.
Mistake 3: "Crushed" Blacks or "Blown" Highlights
You lose all detail when an area of your photo is pure black ("crushed") or pure white ("blown"). This is common in black suits and white wedding dresses.- How to Fix: Watch your Histogram. In Lightroom, use the "Shadows" slider to lift the blacks just enough to see texture in the suit. Use the "Highlights" slider to pull back the whites and regain detail in the dress or clouds.
Mistake 4: Unnatural Skin Tones (The "Oompa Loompa" Look)
This often happens when trying to achieve a "warm" or "tan" look. Pushing the saturation or warmth sliders too far can make skin tones look bright orange and unnatural.- How to Fix: Use the HSL/Color panel. The "Orange" slider controls the majority of skin tones. Instead of increasing saturation, try slightly increasing the "Luminance" (brightness) of the Orange channel. This gives a healthy glow without looking fake.
Mistake 5: An Inconsistent Gallery
This happens when you edit each photo one by one without a common theme. The result is a messy-looking gallery where one photo is bright and airy, and the next is dark and moody.- How to Fix: This is all about workflow. Edit your photos in batches (e.g., all ceremony photos, all reception photos). The best way to ensure consistency is by using a high-quality preset as a starting point for every photo in the batch.
How to Fix Inconsistency Fast
The fastest way to achieve a consistent, professional look across an entire wedding gallery is by using high-quality presets as a starting point. A preset applies the same base set of color, tone, and light adjustments to every photo. You still need to tweak exposure and white balance, but the core "feel" remains the same. If you're looking for a complete toolkit, The Ultimate Wedding Bundle includes over 5,000 professional presets for both mobile and desktop. You can find styles from Bright & Airy to Moody, ensuring you can deliver a consistent gallery your clients will love.Mistake 6: Over-Using the Vignette Tool
Adding a dark (or light) vignette around the edge of a photo is often used to draw attention to the subject. However, when overdone, it looks dated and obvious.- How to Fix: Be subtle. If you add a vignette, make sure the "Feather" is high so the transition is very gradual. It should be unnoticeable unless you're looking for it.
Mistake 7: Crooked Horizons
Nothing screams "amateur" faster than a tilted horizon, especially in landscape or ocean shots. The same goes for photos with strong architectural lines (like in a church) that aren't straight.- How to Fix: Use the Crop tool in Lightroom. It has a "Straighten" tool (often an angle or ruler icon) that lets you draw a line across the horizon, and it will automatically level the image.
Mistake 8: Selective Color
This is the dated 90s trend of making an entire photo black and white except for one object, like a red rose or a blue tie. It's cheesy and distracts from the moment.- How to Fix: Don't do it. A timeless photo is either full, beautiful color or a powerful, intentional black and white.
Mistake 9: Not Correcting Lens Distortion
Every lens subtly warps an image. Wide-angle lenses can make things near the edge look stretched or "barreled."- How to Fix: This is a one-click fix. In Lightroom, scroll down to the "Lens Corrections" panel and check the box that says "Enable Profile Corrections." It will automatically detect your lens and fix the distortion.
Mistake 10: Relying 100% on a Preset
This is the opposite of Mistake #5. A preset is a starting point, not a one-click-and-done solution. A preset doesn't know if your photo was overexposed or had a weird color cast.- How to Fix: After applying a preset, always adjust the basics. You will almost certainly need to adjust the "Exposure" and "White Balance" sliders to make the preset fit your specific photo perfectly.