Lightroom how to: Using Negative Clarity to create depth and atmosphere

While most photographers associate Clarity with adding punch, that’s not the only way you can use this tool in Lightroom. It also happens to be surprisingly effective when applied negatively and selectively as a depth tool.

By strategically applying negative Clarity in selected areas, you can push parts of an image back to reduce distractions, enhance depth, and simulate atmospheric separation.

And, unlike targeted blur, this technique only reduces midtone contrast, not sharpness. That means it preserves edge definition, making it my preferred approach for images with plenty of texture I want to retain, but not distract.

Let’s take a look at how it works with this portrait of my nephew Llewyn.

1) Identify background areas that compete with the subject

Firstly, you’ll want to look for areas in your image with texture or contrast that pull attention away from the main subject. With this portrait it’s obviously the foliage, but things like distant hills, or busy foregrounds can have the same effect on your image.

2) Create a background mask

Next, open Masking and choose Select Subject, then Invert the mask. Or, depending on your subject, you may need to use the Linear or Radial Gradients, or the Brush for manual control.

Your aim is to select all the areas that are pulling attention away from your main subject. If you do use the Brush, I also recommend you use a feathered edge to avoid any horrible haloing around your main subject (adjusted via the dropdown arrow on the right).

3) Reduce Clarity in the masked area

Now, we’re going to lower Clarity to somewhere around –20 to –60. This softens midtone contrast without blurring detail, helping the background recede naturally. You can experiment with more extreme values, but these have a habit of looking artificial – although they should show you how much impact the changes can make, so give them a try.

4) Adjust Dehaze carefully if needed

In this image, even with the Clarity reduction, the background still feels a little heavy. A very small amount of negative Dehaze (–2 to –8) helps mimic atmospheric haze and also increase depth separation.

5) Balance with local Exposure or Blacks

Finally, you may like to fine-tune the effect by slightly lowering Exposure or lifting Blacks to prevent the background from feeling muddy.

For most portraits, I also like to warm the colour temperature just a little to add a dash of colour to my subjects’ skin and lift the feel of the image, which I’ve done here too.

Toggle the mask on and off to see your results, while also double checking the subject remains the clear focal point, and you’re done.