How to Create a Collage in Lightroom

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  By Arnel Hasanovic
How to Create a Collage in Lightroom www.sleeklens.com

A single image can be great for most purposes, but what happens when you do not have any other software besides Lightroom to make a collage or multiple images in one file or even edit with amazing warm tones? Sometimes it’s great to use for displaying your work or even making a contact sheet for your customer. So today, we are going to learn how to take images you like and how to make a collage in Lightroom.

1 – Starting Point

I first start out by culling my photos down to the select few that I think I might want to put in a collage. The way I generally rate my favorites is by giving the images a 5-star rating, you can do this by simply hitting the #5 key on your keyboard. Once I have gone through and selected all of my favorites, I then go to the Filter section (right above your film strip and select “Filter based on rating” and click the 5th star. We have an article on how to select the different image using things such as keywords. You can see below on my film strip that I only have images and each one is rated with 5 stars.

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2 – Print Module

The second step in our How To Make a Collage in Lightroom tutorial is to get to the next step we have to go into the Print Module, which is at the top. Once you click the module, you will see a screen similar to this. This is where the rest of the steps will take place.

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3 – Layout Style

Under layout, style selects the Custom Package option. This will allow you to create your own layout and it will not be a single image. To get the images into the layout, start pulling the images from your film strip on the bottom into the canvas space.

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4 – Exporting

Once you have the image in place how you want them, then it’s time to export. If you try going to File> Export, what will happen is the image selected in your filmstrip will the image exported and not your actual collage. To get around this problem, you have to go to the Print Job section and select “JPEG File” under the ‘Print to” section. This will enable you to export a JPEG anywhere on your computer.

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5 – Saving

When you have made all of your selections in the Print Job section, then you can export your file. To export the collage all you have to do is “Print to File…”, which will open up a dialog box allowing you to select the location where you want to export your finished file. And this is the final step in our How To Make a Collage in Lightroom tutorial.

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6 – Conclusion

As you can tell the module is mostly aimed at printing the image, but this is a nice little workaround to be able to make a collage without having to leave Lightroom. This article was aimed at making JPEG collages, but obviously, it can also be printed out. The steps are the same except for the settings needed to print the image. There are a lot of options to dig into when it comes printing and you can experiment to find what works best for you! – And if you want to add a stunning effect to these collages, don’t miss this guide on how to create an old 1800’s retro effect; the ideal companion for vintage layouts! Read here to know more about lightrooom and for presets, check this link.

Rating: 5.00 based on 5 Ratings
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Hi! I am originally from Bosnia and Herzegovina. I currently live in Atlanta, Georgia. If it's one thing I fear (aside from heights) it's that I will be left without water. If you see me, you can bet that liquid is nearby. While I am not downing inhuman amounts of water I create images. My go to tools for creating are my Nikon camera, Photoshop and Lightroom. My favorite images to capture are portraits and lifestyle. Aside from photography, I do graphic design and video which can be seen on my website. When I'm not creating I like to be outside exploring nature. Currently working at companies such as CNN, HP and many startups, as well has having work featured on BuzzFeed, SkillShare, Get Inspired Magazine and much more.

Comments (2)

  1. Richard Guest
     

    how do you save a collage for editing later? or to make another collage and return to other collages later?

  2. dotun55 Guest
     

    Simple. Thanks for sharing!