# Black and white LUT: a consistent mono look on a shoot

> What a black and white LUT does, how it differs from desaturating, how to choose one, and how to apply one mono look across a whole set of photos and clips.

Canonical: https://batchtone.com/blog/black-and-white-lut

20 October 2026 · 4 min read

A black and white LUT converts colour to monochrome with a fixed recipe: how bright each colour becomes in grey, plus a contrast curve and sometimes a tint. Unlike a saturation slider, it decides that skies go darker or skin goes lighter, so the result has shape. Apply it after a Rec.709 conversion, then use it on the whole set and lower its strength only where a frame needs less contrast.

Turning a photo black and white takes one slider. Turning a whole shoot black and white so it looks like one body of work takes more thought. A black and white LUT is the quickest way to get there, as long as you know what it is doing.

## What does a black and white LUT do?

It maps every colour to a grey, by a fixed recipe. The recipe has three parts:

| Part | What it decides |
|---|---|
| Channel mix | How bright each colour becomes: red, green, blue, and what is between them |
| Tone curve | Where black and white sit, and how hard the midtone contrast is |
| Tint (optional) | A warm, cool or sepia cast on the grey |

The channel mix is the part that makes black and white interesting. Think of the filters film photographers used: a red filter darkens a blue sky and lightens skin; a green filter does the opposite with foliage and lips. A LUT bakes in one of those choices.

## Why not just desaturate?

Desaturating, or setting saturation to zero, keeps the brightness each colour already had. Red and green of the same brightness become the same grey, so a red jacket on green grass disappears into it. The result often looks flat.

A black and white LUT chooses the mix, so the jacket and the grass separate, and adds a curve, so the image has punch. That is why a good mono LUT looks better than the saturation slider on the same frame.

## How do you choose a black and white LUT?

Pick by what is in your frames, not by the name of the LUT:

- **Portraits:** a mix that lightens reds and oranges keeps skin smooth and bright.
- **Landscapes and sky:** a red-leaning mix darkens blue skies and makes clouds stand out.
- **Street and documentary:** a punchy curve with deep blacks, mix close to neutral.
- **Weddings and events:** a softer curve that keeps detail in white dresses and dark suits.

Test a LUT on your hardest frames: a bright window, a dark suit, a face in mixed light. If it holds those, it will hold the rest.

## Which order: conversion first, mono second?

If the footage is log, convert it to Rec.709 first and then apply the black and white LUT. A mono LUT built for normal images, applied to flat log footage, gives grey mush, because its curve expects normal contrast. [Log footage](https://batchtone.com/blog/log-footage) explains why.

Fujifilm shooters have another route: Fujifilm's film simulation LUTs include Acros, a monochrome look, for F-Log2 footage. [Fujifilm LUTs](https://batchtone.com/blog/fujifilm-luts) covers which file to use.

## How do you keep a black and white set consistent?

Mono is less forgiving than colour. In colour, a slightly brighter frame still reads as part of the set. In black and white, contrast differences jump out, so:

1. **Correct exposure first.** Get every photo to a similar brightness before the LUT.
2. **Use one LUT for the whole set.** Two mono recipes in one gallery look like two photographers.
3. **Lower the strength on high-contrast frames.** A backlit shot that already has deep shadows can block up under a punchy curve, and a lower strength often fixes it without changing the look.
4. **Check skin.** A mix that turns faces dark grey is the wrong mix for people.

Step 3 is the one most tools make slow. [LUT intensity](https://batchtone.com/blog/lut-intensity) shows how each app handles it.

## How do you apply a black and white LUT to a whole shoot?

BatchTone does it on a Mac, photos and clips in one batch:

1. Drop the folder in. JPEG, PNG, HEIC, TIFF and common video formats go in together.
2. Import your mono LUTs once. Each is previewed on your own first frame, so you compare mixes on your actual photos.
3. Lower the strength on any file that needs less. Hold a key to see the colour original.
4. Export JPEG, PNG or H.264 MP4 to a folder you choose. Photo metadata such as capture date and camera carries across from JPEGs, and originals are never touched.

A clip at 50% lands on the same values as a photo at 50%, so video and stills from the same day match. It does not develop RAW and has no local adjustments, so do dodging and burning on the few hero frames in your editor.

Only your own files and LUT pack can show whether it fits, which is why the seven-day trial has everything unlocked: video, unlimited batches, no watermark. After that it is one in-app purchase, not a subscription.

[Download BatchTone free on the Mac App Store](https://batchtone.com/download)

## Common questions

### Are there free black and white LUTs?

Yes, many creative packs include mono looks, and some editors ship one. [Free LUTs](https://batchtone.com/blog/free-luts) covers how to judge a pack before you trust it.

### Can a LUT make a partially black and white image?

A LUT can desaturate everything except one colour range, which gives a selective colour effect. It cannot keep colour in one object only, since it does not know where objects are. That needs a mask in an editor.

### Does a black and white LUT work on video?

Yes. LUTs work the same way on video frames as on photos, so one mono LUT can cover stills and clips from the same shoot.

### Is shooting in monochrome better than converting later?

Converting later keeps your options open: you can choose the mix afterwards, and still have the colour version. Shooting mono in camera commits you to the camera's mix.

**About this article.** Written by the team that builds BatchTone, a macOS app that applies .cube LUTs to whole folders of photos and video. Spotted something wrong or out of date? Write to [support@batchtone.com](mailto:support@batchtone.com).

## Read next

Explainers 19 September 2026 · 4 min read

## [What is a LUT? The whole idea in five minutes](https://batchtone.com/blog/what-is-a-lut)

LUT stands for lookup table. In video and photo editing, a LUT is a file that says, for a grid of input colours, what each one should come out as. Applying a LUT means looking up every pixel in that grid and interpolating between the nearest entries.

[Read it](https://batchtone.com/blog/what-is-a-lut)

How-to 20 October 2026 · 5 min read

## [Colour grading photos: one look across the whole set](https://batchtone.com/blog/color-grading-photos)

Colour grading photos means giving them a deliberate look after they are corrected: a palette, a contrast curve, a mood. Correct exposure and white balance first, then build the look on one representative photo. Save it as a LUT or a preset, apply it to the whole set, and turn it down on the few photos it does not suit.

[Read it](https://batchtone.com/blog/color-grading-photos)

How-to 8 October 2026 · 6 min read

## [LUT intensity: how to apply a LUT at less than 100%](https://batchtone.com/blog/lut-intensity)

LUT intensity is how much of the LUT's change reaches the image, as a mix between the graded and the original picture. Most tools control it with an opacity, mix or intensity slider: Final Cut's Mix, Premiere's Look Intensity, a node's Key Output Gain in Resolve, layer opacity in Photoshop. Lower it on a creative look; leave a conversion LUT at 100% unless one shot needs less.

[Read it](https://batchtone.com/blog/lut-intensity)

## One look. A whole shoot.

BatchTone applies your .cube LUTs across photos and video at once, with a strength dial on every file. Seven-day trial, everything unlocked.

[Download for macOS](https://apps.apple.com/app/batchtone/id6821727167)