How to Build Holiday Photo Templates in Lightroom (Starting in Photoshop)

How to Build Holiday Photo Templates in Lightroom (Starting in Photoshop)

Every December I get the same texts from photographer friends: “Hey, do you have a holiday card template I can borrow?” For years I pointed them toward whatever Canva had on offer, which always felt like handing someone a gas station sandwich. The real answer is that you can build something far better yourself, and it starts before you ever open Lightroom. In this KelbyOne tutorial, educator Scott Kelby walks through a workflow for creating holiday-themed photo templates by pulling stock graphics into Photoshop, isolating them properly, and setting them up so Lightroom can use them with any client photo you drop in.

How to Use Stock Holiday Graphics as Lightroom Overlays (Without It Looking Cheap)

How to Use Stock Holiday Graphics as Lightroom Overlays (Without It Looking Cheap)

Every December I end up with the same client request: make this portrait feel festive without it looking like a greeting card from 2009. For a long time my answer was a wreath Lightroom border or a cheesy preset with fake snow. Neither felt right. What I actually wanted was a way to drop tasteful supporting graphics around a photo, keeping the image itself as the hero while the decorative elements did quiet, intentional work around it.