Most "film filters" fail for the same reason: they lay a texture over a finished picture. Real film looks the way it does because of how the image was made: tones roll off gently in the highlights, colours shift in particular ways, and the grain is part of the picture rather than sitting on top of it. You can get much closer to that from a RAW file, if you build the look in the right order.
1. Start with tone, not texture
Before adding any grain, get the tones right. Film rarely clips: bright areas roll off softly and shadows tend to hold a little colour. Pull the highlights down, lift the shadows slightly, and keep the blacks just above pure black. If the picture doesn't already feel softer and more forgiving at this stage, no amount of grain will fix it.
2. Shift the colour like a film stock would
Each film stock has its own colour signature, such as warmer skin tones, cooler or greener shadows, or muted blues. Use a colour grade (shadows, midtones and highlights) rather than a blanket saturation change. In Sablefilm, the 173 film-inspired looks are a quick starting point, and each one is just a set of adjustments you can see and change.
3. Add grain that follows the image
Real grain is more visible in the midtones and less in the deepest shadows and brightest highlights, and its size depends on the film speed. Keep it subtle at first, check it at 100%, and match the size to how the photo will be viewed. A phone screen needs finer grain than a print.
4. Halation: the red glow around highlights
Halation is the soft, reddish-orange glow that appears around bright light sources and hard highlight edges on film, caused by light bouncing back through the film base. On digital it's what makes a streetlight, a sunset edge or a bright window feel like film. Use it sparingly: it should be noticed only where the light is brightest.
5. Bloom: a gentle highlight glow
Bloom is a softer, broader glow that lifts the brightest parts of the frame. A little of it takes the clinical edge off digital sharpness. Too much looks like a dream sequence.
6. Keep the original safe
Do all of this non-destructively, so you can come back and pull the grain back for a different use. Sablefilm saves edits in a small file beside each photo and never changes the original RAW.
Doing it in Sablefilm
- Open the folder with your RAWs and pick a photo.
- Choose a film look from the Looks tab as a starting point, or start from your own Lightroom preset or Fujifilm recipe.
- Adjust tone and colour, then set grain, halation and bloom in the film section.
- Use a mask if you only want the effect in part of the frame.
- Export to JPEG, HEIC or TIFF.
Sablefilm is a RAW editor for Mac. £9.99 once, no subscription (introductory price until 30 November 2026). Get Sablefilm
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Film looks are inspired by classic film stocks and are not made or endorsed by any film company.