Presets are the smart photographer's backdoor for retouching hundreds of photos with a single click. Adobe Lightroom CC (and Adobe Lightroom Classic CC) has its own default set of presets, including several for pleasing black and white photography.

But you can extend your collection with free presets made by other photographers too. Use one of these free black-and-white presets for Adobe Lightroom to create a fantastic black-and-white photo from any color photo.

Samuel Zeller Presets

Swiss photographer and a Fujifilm ambassador Samuel Zeller created this 12 preset pack specifically for Fujifilm cameras. But it works for any other camera brand and photo that you bring into Adobe Lightroom. The 12-pack includes two black and white presets.

  • BW Soft: Gives a hazy soft look to portraits.
  • BW Noir: Gives a very punchy black and white look to well-contrasted images.

The presets are free though you can pay what you want if you like them.

2. Silver Lining

Silver Lining Preset

This Lightroom preset is just what it sounds like. Run the preset on a color photo and you get a cool monochrome finish with a subtle bleached out look. The preset can save you the manual labor of split-toning a photo for a similar effect.

You have to subscribe to Nicole S. Young's newsletter. Then you can access her free downloads section where this preset is available for free download along with several others.

3. HDR Landscape Presets

HDR Landscape Preset

HDR and landscape photos go well together. But if the light isn't on your side then you can turn color landscape photos into beautiful black and white ones. Loaded Landscape is a site for the outdoor photographers and they have a bunch of presets you can choose from. This  HDR black and white preset can add some dynamic contrast to your landscape photos.

Adobe Lightroom presets are not only shortcuts. They also help you give your images a consistent look. If you prefer your own editing workflow, you can easily create your own custom preset out of it and offer it to others for free.

Image Credit: pe3check/Depositphotos