Color grade a photo

Films get their mood from color grading: a cool tint in the shadows, a warm one in the highlights. Pick a hue for each and set how strongly it shows.

Choose a photo to grade or drop it here, or paste it

Free, no sign-up. Your photo stays on your device. Try it on a sample photo

How to color grade a photo

Choose or drop a photo. It opens with a blue tint already in the shadows.
Pick a Shadow hue and a Highlight hue on the rainbow sliders, and set each amount.
Use Balance to decide which tint takes more of the midtones, then save from Export.

Opposite hues, such as teal shadows with orange highlights, give the classic blockbuster look.
Keep amounts low: 15 to 30 reads as mood, more reads as an effect.
The Teal orange and Golden hour looks are good starting points to adjust from.

What is color grading?

Giving a photo a deliberate color style, usually by tinting shadows and highlights differently.

How is it different from white balance?

White balance makes colors accurate. Grading makes them expressive.

Will it change skin tones?

A little, since faces span both midtones and highlights. Warm highlight tints flatter skin; green ones rarely do.