Create LUT from Photo

You load a reference photo and the tool builds a 3D color lookup table, or LUT, in the standard .cube format. It compares each color channel with the photo's brightness, tone by tone, and turns that into a red, a green and a blue curve. That captures color casts and split toning, such as warm highlights with cool shadows, while a neutral photo gives a LUT that barely changes anything. It does not capture changes to one hue only, such as shifting greens alone, because each channel is handled separately.

Click the Upload Reference Image area and choose one photo in any format your browser can open, such as JPG, PNG or WebP. Once it is selected, its name appears and the LUT Generation panel shows a Grid Size slider set to 33. Move the slider to the size you need, then press Generate .cube LUT. The file downloads straight away as generated_lut.cube, ready to import into your editing software. To build a LUT from a different photo, choose a new image and generate again.

The slider offers 17, 33, 49 and 65. Grid size is the number of sample points along each color axis, so a larger grid describes color changes more finely but produces a bigger file. 33 is the most widely used size and a safe default for photo and video work. 17 suits lightweight or older software, while 49 and 65 are useful when you want maximum precision. Because this tool builds smooth curves, 33 already captures its result well in most cases.

The .cube format is a text-based LUT standard supported by most color grading, video editing and photo editing applications that work with 3D LUTs. You typically load it through a LUT, color lookup or profile option in your software. Because it is plain text, a .cube file is small, easy to share with collaborators and works on both Mac and Windows. Files from this tool are titled Generated LUT and include a comment naming the photo they were made from.

Photographers use LUTs to apply a consistent color treatment across a set, to match stills with video from the same shoot, or as a starting point that they refine with other adjustments. Many apply a LUT at reduced opacity to keep the effect subtle. A LUT built from a normal photo works best on images that are already in a standard color space, so convert log footage first. For a full personal editing style across entire shoots, Imagen learns from your own past edits instead of relying on a single lookup table.

Yes. The tool is free, needs no software and adds no watermark. Your reference photo is read in your browser on your own device and is never uploaded anywhere, and the LUT is created and saved directly to your computer. Access requires one quick step: confirm you are a photographer and create or log in to a free Imagen account, which unlocks every tool in the collection.