Many photographers save hours when processing their photos by creating presets. But beyond enabling you to edit photos quicker, you can also share your presets with others—and potentially get paid to do it!

In this article, you will learn how to create presets with Lightroom and sell them online. You will also discover the best tips for promoting your art.

How to Export a Preset in Lightroom

If you need help making your Lightroom presets, be sure to check out our complete guide to creating your own presets in Lightroom.

Once you've made your Lightroom presets, you'll need to export them before you can begin selling. Here's how to do that:

  1. If you use a Mac, press Control + trackpad on the preset you want to export. Windows users can right-click.
  2. Select Export when the dropdown menu appears.
    Export a Preset in Adobe Lightroom
  3. Choose where you want to save your preset. For the sake of simple access, it's worth making a new folder to store all of these in.
    Save a Preset in Adobe Lightroom

Where to Sell Your Lightroom Presets

You've got endless options for places to sell your Lightroom presets. You should choose a platform that you find easy to use or learn, and it's also important that you consider potential trade-offs. For example, while using an online marketplace involves an easier set-up, you may have to deal with lower profit margins. In these cases, fees that you wouldn't encounter on your own website will normally apply.

Below is a list of places where you can consider selling your Lightroom presets, along with the advantages and disadvantages of using them.

1. Your Own Website

Lightroom Presets for Sale on a Photographer's Website

Having a website as a photographer is useful for showcasing your portfolio. You can also use your site to grow an audience that loves what you do, such as by blogging regularly.

Selling presets on your website means that you often keep more of the money you make. However, you may still need to deal with transaction fees. There are several website builders for online stores to choose from, while many others have plugins available. As a result, you can ensure an easy checkout and seamless shopping experience for your customers.

The Pros of Having Your Own Website:

  • People are coming specifically to you, meaning you don't have to compete with others in a marketplace.
  • You often don't need to pay marketplace fees, which can have a notable impact on your profits over time.
  • More customization options.

The Cons of Having Your Own Website:

  • If you don't already have a large online audience, you may struggle to attract paying customers.
  • The learning curve is much steeper. You're going to need to learn a host of other skills, such as SEO and digital marketing.
  • It's not guaranteed that you won't need to deal with fees.

Consider Selling Presets on Your Website If:

  • You have a decent-sized online presence.
  • You're willing to learn SEO and website-building (or have existing knowledge).

Even if you don't yet have a large online presence, it's still a good idea to upload your presets to your online store anyway. Then, as you attract more followers, they can buy your products without you needing to do all the set-up work later. There are several other ways you can build a photography business without a big social media following, too.

If you do decide to create a photography site, see our guide on the things to include on your photography website.

2. Gumroad

Lightroom Presets Listed on Gumroad

Gumroad is an online marketplace where users can sell several kinds of digital products, including Lightroom Presets and Notion templates. When you sell presets on Gumroad, others can search for your products—but it's also possible to promote your work elsewhere (we'll talk more about that later).

When using Gumroad, you can integrate Stripe and other payment methods. It's free to sign up for an account, but the platform will take a chunk of your profits when you make a sale.

Pros:

  • Easy to set up and use.
  • No initial set-up fee.
  • A good degree of customization.

Cons:

  • You must pay a 10% fee each time you make a sale.
  • You might also need to pay payment processing fees whenever someone makes a purchase.

Consider Using Gumroad If:

  • You have little or no experience selling digital products.
  • You want to test and see if there's a market for your presets.

3. Etsy

Lightroom Presets Listed on Etsy

Etsy is another marketplace aimed at creatives, and you can sell both physical and digital products. Like Gumroad, users can search for your presets—meaning that you still need a basic understanding of SEO.

When you upload your presets to Etsy, you'll need to pay a $0.20 listing fee. With this in mind, it might make sense to batch a lot of your presets together. Various other fees also exist, which you can read about on Etsy's Fees & Payments Policy.

Pros:

  • Easy to set up.
  • A powerful search function.
  • Sell physical products later if you want to further increase your presence.

Cons:

  • A $0.20 listing fee, in addition to a 6.5% transaction fee and various other possible payments.

Consider Using Etsy If:

  • You're new to selling digital products.
  • You might want to later sell physical products (e.g., posters).

If you decide to use Etsy, consider trying these strategies to market your Etsy shop.

4. Shopify

Shopify is one of the most popular eCommerce platforms in the world, and it's a great place to consider selling your Lightroom presets. You can use the tool to set up your own website, which makes it an ideal starting point if you don't yet want to use a more comprehensive site builder.

Another benefit of Shopify is that you can use the plugin with several website builders, making it easy to use if you already have a site.

Pros:

  • Integrate Shopify with several websites.
  • Create a standalone website with Shopify if you want.
  • Low transaction fees.
  • Scalable as your photography business grows.

Cons:

  • Requires a monthly or annual subscription.

Use Shopify If:

  • You have the budget to pay for the monthly subscription.
  • You want something more complex than an online marketplace.

How to Promote Your Presets

Once you've created and uploaded your presets, it's time to let the world know about your work. All of these are long-term options, meaning that it's essential to choose something you enjoy and not just what you think will have the quickest payoff.

1. YouTube

You should strongly consider starting a photography YouTube channel if you want to build your photography. It's an excellent platform for spreading your message and building more awareness of your work—even if building a channel takes time.

You can grow your YouTube channel by producing valuable and entertaining content. Tutorials, photography vlogs, and composition tips are good places to begin. Subtly mention your presets in videos and leave a link in the description for people to check out if they're interested. We've got some tips to help you get your first 1,000 subscribers if you're a complete beginner.

2. Social Media

Pinterest Pins Related to Lightroom Presets

Social media is another place to promote your Lightroom presets, and these platforms are also beneficial for connecting with your audience. Instagram, Pinterest, and X (formerly known as Twitter) are just some of your possible options.

When promoting your presets on social media, you'll need to once again focus on providing valuable content. If you do that, you'll build an audience over time and the material success (i.e., selling your presets) will follow.

It's worth using the pin feature on X and Instagram to promote your presets.

3. Word of Mouth

Do you have friends and family who always wonder how your photos look so good? Well, they'll know as soon as they've bought your presets.

When selling presets and other items online, your immediate circle is a great place to start. Even if they're not too interested in photography, they'll likely still want to support you. Or, they might know someone who is into taking pictures and will refer you to them.

4. Blogging

A blog with person's photos added

Writing is another great way to reach your target audience and, eventually, promote your Lightroom presets. You can contribute to major photography blogs, but it's also worth starting your own. Besides sharing your experiences, you can offer insights on topics you're particularly knowledgeable about—such as booking consistent client work.

Before starting, consider following our new blogger checklist.

Everything You Need to Know About Selling Lightroom Presets

Lightroom presets are a great way to streamline your photography workflow, but you can also use your presets to help others.

You can sell Lightroom presets in numerous places online, and you have just as many options for promoting your work. The most important thing is that you choose a platform you like and adopt a long-term approach.