Lightroom Editing: Before & After: Heidelberg, Germany
RAW Photo. Lightroom Edit is shown below at the end of the article.
1. Starting point
This photo was taken on a foggy morning at the Old Bridge in Heidelberg. When I arrived at the riverbank, the whole scene was wrapped in mist — the castle hidden, the bridge barely visible, and a lone swan drifting through the soft grey water.
The unedited image captured the atmosphere, but it lacked structure. The fog was so dense that the buildings in the background dissolved into a flat mass. The water had no depth, and the swan almost disappeared in the shadows. My goal was to keep the softness of the mist while giving the photo more clarity, separation, and emotional weight.
Exposure and basic adjustments
Basic Adjustments in Lightroom
The edit began with balancing the overall exposure. I slightly darkened the image (Exposure –1.35) to make the fog feel denser and more cinematic. Then I lowered the Highlights (–45) to keep the white areas of the mist under control while brightening the Shadows (+30) so that the swan and the darker water could emerge more clearly.
The Whites (+74) were lifted to bring some definition back to the fog, and the Blacks (–33) were deepened to give the river more contrast without losing its softness.
Texture (–24) and Clarity (–21) were reduced to maintain the natural smoothness of foggy conditions. Dehaze stayed at 0 to avoid destroying the atmosphere — this is one of those images where the mist is the story, not something to “fix.”
Tone curve in Lightroom
Tone curve — shaping the mood
The tone curve follows a subtle S-shape to define the depth of the photo without adding harsh contrast. The lifted midtones help the bridge and surrounding buildings emerge gently through the fog. The darker shadows give the river a deeper, smoother look, creating separation from the misty background. This small tonal shift makes the entire scene feel more intentional — as if the viewer’s eye moves naturally from the water to the bridge and then into the fog.
HSL Adjustments – refining colors through subtle control
The HSL adjustments focus on fine-tuning the cool morning tones. In the Hue panel, only the Blue channel was shifted slightly (–19) to push the water toward a neutral blue-grey rather than a pure blue. Saturation was used to balance the color palette. Reds (+8) and Blues (+32) were gently increased for the architecture and water. Greens and Yellows were heavily reduced (–69 / –42) to avoid muddy tones in the trees and background. Magenta and Purple were pulled down significantly to keep the fog neutral and clean. For Luminance, the warm tones (Orange +54, Yellow +33) were lifted to give the buildings more visibility, while Blue (–62) and Purple (–36) were darkened so that the river feels deeper and more atmospheric.
Color Grading – balancing cold and warm light
Color grading gives the final emotional character to the image.
The Shadows (Hue 200 / Sat 7) were given a cool blue tone to reinforce the cold morning feeling on the water. The Midtones (Hue 196 / Sat 9) carry a similar hue, creating a consistent cool atmosphere across the river and the lower half of the scene. The Highlights (Hue 83 / Sat 5), however, received a soft warm tint. This adds a gentle contrast to the mist and suggests the first hint of sunlight behind the clouds. This combination creates a balanced, cinematic mood: cool water, warm fog, and a calm transition between the two.
Final thoughts
This edit shows how fog doesn’t need to be corrected — it needs to be shaped. By lifting certain luminance values and adding subtle color grading, the image keeps its quiet atmosphere while gaining depth and structure. The swan becomes a focal point, the bridge stands out more clearly, and the fog feels less like a blanket and more like a story.
It’s a reminder that editing foggy scenes is not about clarity, but about emotion. The softness is the strength — and the edit simply helps reveal it. Further Before and After Articles can be found here.
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