What is a Photoshop Action?
Everyone loves a shortcut, and photographers are no different.
Photoshop Actions were invented to help make image editing easier. Rather than editing your photos for hours, Photoshop Actions can correct them or apply effects in a single click – they automate routine tasks, and can add special effects at a stroke. They’re magic fixes that are useful to have on hand, as you can always go deeper and edit them further.
If you're a Lightroom user, we guess the nearest equivalent is presets, and we've got a list of the best free Lightroom presets too.
Here is our round-up of some of the best free Photoshop Actions to download in 2018.
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1. Sun Kissed Photoshop Action
Let's kick off this action extravaganza with the perfect set for the summer. These sunny effects will give a touch more warmth to your image and and are great for old-fashioned finishes.
2. Shutterpulse HDR Photoshop Action
HDR can be controversial in the photography world; some love its clarity, others think its tacky. Regardless of your view, this ShutterPulse effort is top class and useful for a subtle effect as well as a dramatic one.
3. Photoshop Colour Actions
Colour is often the most important thing in a photo. With this action pack you can splash any shade onto your images in an instance, and completely transform your shots.
4. Cross Process Action
Cross-process - x-pro for anyone more familiar with Instagram - is very in right now. This is one of the best cross-process action packs you'll find on the internet right now, and the fact it's free, makes it even better of course.
5. Glitch Action
For photo editors seeking something a little futuristic, this glitch pack is a nice little novelty for your snaps. It's simple but colourful, and can be masked over certain parts of your image if need be.
6. Halftone Action
For a real, comic-esque feel to your photos, this halftone action can provide you with a printed, dotty pattern overlay. It's adjustable and useful as an alternative for adding noise.
7. Lomo
Lomography-style filters are up there as one of the most Googled effects for your shots; this is definitely an action worth searching for too, with a subtle adjustment to your image, but a defined style.
8. Carbonium B&W Actions
This classy set of actions produces beautiful monochrome with clear contrast and gorgeous tone. It's perfect for your black and white snaps and easy to tweak.
9. Vintage Light Leak Action
This vintage light leak action really evokes the feel of an analogue camera without losing any of the quality. It's a cool option either as a final finish or to build on with adjustments.
10 Greater Than Gatsby
This pack of actions come as a bundle of Greater Than Gatsy's best from across their sets. There are vintage, portrait and radiant actions included, and they're a great springboard for you to discover more styles.
11. Landscape Photo Actions
Landscapes can be some of the hardest photos to edit, as they require a boost in colour and contrast, but with a degree of subtlety. These actions are a great start point for and can inject some feeling into your vistas.
12. 2-Strip Technicolour
Split tone effects can be really powerful and this pack can create just that effect. They're adept at adding warmth and can be reduced in opacity, should you wish to strip the effect back slightly.
13. Desert Dust
Vintage shots are part and parcel of modern photography, and this desert dust action is one of the most nostalgic-looking around. It's good for summery images and can evoke the past with just a click.
14. Break Of Day
Break of Day is a light leak action, strictly speaking, but it's so subtle that it doesn't really seem it. It just throws a gentle golden tone over the corner of your image, making it pretty versatile for your pictures.
15. Abbey Road
This free pack is perfect for nature shots, keeping your contrast sharp and your saturation deep. It contains a PSD too for even more control.
16. Blue Evening
Light leaks are often red, orange or yellow, so this blue evening action is a lovely alternative for an autumnal shot, or just a bit of a purple tint to work on further in your picture. Useful for modern-looking images or retro snaps.
17. Portrait Photoshop Action
This portrait action is a desaturating, slightly sharpening fix for your portraits to really bring the tone to the fore. Use it as an overlaying layer itself for an HDR effect.
18. Red Lips Action
Exactly what it says on the tin, this action will help you correct all kinds of model shots. Why not think outside the box and see what else you can turn red with this action?
19. Purple Night
This action is a gorgeous cross-process style effect that can really deepen your images and transform the darker colours in your image. It's great for retro photos but can be reduced in opacity and used as a split tone-style effect.
20. Create Snow
Guess what this one does? Since the weather never does what it's asked to do, this action can come in very handy when it comes to giving wintery images that added touch of pizazz.
21. Retro Style Filters
You can never have too many retro filters for your images, and this pack contains a complete range from the old school brown overlay to the colour pop of a toy camera.
