Color Grade with Wheels

The color grading wheels work like those in video grading software such as DaVinci Resolve. This recipe builds the popular "teal and orange" look, but the same steps work for any palette.

You'll work in Color → Color Grading in the Adjustments panel (D).

1. Get the basics right first

Grading is the finishing touch, not a fix. Before you touch the wheels:

Set Exposure so the midtones look right.
Recover highlights and shadows if needed.
Neutralize the White Balance with the picker, so you start from a clean base.

2. Open the wheels

In Color Grading, the 3-way view shows Midtones at the top, Shadows bottom left and Highlights bottom right. Click Toggle Sliders to see exact Hue and Saturation numbers under each wheel. That makes it easy to use the values below.

3. Shadows toward teal

Drag in the Shadows wheel toward teal, Hue about 190 to 200, Saturation about 20 to 35. Hold Ctrl while dragging to change only the hue, Shift to change only the strength.

The dark areas get a cool tint.

4. Highlights toward orange

In the Highlights wheel, Hue about 30 to 40, Saturation about 15 to 30. Bright areas, skin and sunlit surfaces get warmer.

5. Midtones: careful

Midtones cover most of the image, so even a small push changes the whole photo. For teal and orange, leave them neutral or add a hint of orange (Saturation 5 to 10).

6. Blending and Balance

Blending (default 50): how softly the zones flow into each other. 60 to 70 gives a smooth, cinematic grade; 20 to 30 gives a more graphic, separated look.
Balance (default 0): negative lets the shadow color reach further into the midtones, positive lets the highlight color reach further down. Use it when one color dominates too much.

7. Zone brightness (optional)

The slider below each wheel (sun icon) brightens or darkens that zone:

Shadows −10 to −20 for deeper, moodier shadows.
Highlights +5 for a bit more glow.

8. Compare and fine-tune

Press B. Right-click the before/after button and choose Split Left / Right to see both halves at the same time while you tweak.

Strong grades add saturation. Bring it back with Vibrance −5 to −15 if skin looks too orange.

9. Save it

Save the grade as a Style preset (P → +). See Presets.

Other looks

Look	Shadows	Midtones	Highlights	Extra
Teal & Orange	Hue 195, Sat 30	neutral	Hue 35, Sat 25	Blending 65
Warm Film	Hue 30, Sat 15	Hue 40, Sat 8	Hue 50, Sat 20	Curves: lift black point
Cold Cinema	Hue 215, Sat 35	Hue 200, Sat 8	Hue 190, Sat 10	Saturation −15
Bleach Bypass	Hue 190, Sat 10	neutral	Hue 70, Sat 10	Saturation −40, Contrast +25
Vintage Magenta	Hue 320, Sat 20	Hue 330, Sat 5	Hue 55, Sat 15	Curves: matte black point

These are starting points. Every photo reacts differently.

When to use Global

The Global tab has one wheel for the whole image. Use it to tint everything a little, for example a slight warm cast over a summer series. It combines with the 3-way grade.