How to Remove Grain in Lightroom Without Losing the Soul of the Image

Let’s be honest—grain isn’t always the enemy. Sometimes it’s part of the charm. In digital photography, however, digital noise often appears as unwanted grain or distortion, especially in low-light conditions. But when it muddles the mood or dulls the detail, it’s time to step in.

I’ve worked with images shot in fog-soaked alleyways, low-lit industrial ruins, and moonlit tundra—places where noise is inevitable. In these situations, using a high ISO can push the camera's sensor to its limits, resulting in more visible grain and digital noise. So here’s how I remove grain in Lightroom without erasing the essence of what I saw.

Understanding Digital Grain (and When to Keep It)

Grain, or noise, usually sneaks in when you’re pushing your ISO too high or shooting in poor light. It comes in two flavours: luminance (those grey, pixelated speckles) and colour noise (the blotchy, random rainbow mess). Luminance noise is a common issue in noisy images, especially those shot at high ISO or in low-light conditions. Sometimes it works for the scene—adds grit, texture, a little cinematic nostalgia. But sometimes, it’s just distracting. Noisy areas in an image can draw attention away from the subject and negatively impact the quality of the final image.

Before I do anything, I ask myself: Is the grain adding to the story or detracting from it?

The New Era: Lightroom’s AI-Driven Denoise Tool

This is where things get interesting. Adobe’s recent AI-powered Denoise tool has completely changed the game. Available in both Adobe Lightroom and Lightroom Classic, this tool brings advanced AI denoising to your editing workflow. Unlike the older method, where noise reduction was done destructively and created a second, duplicated DNG, the new Denoise works non-destructively, right inside your editing flow. It’s not only smarter about how it cleans up the noise, but it also preserves detail far better than before.

Lightroom offers both traditional noise reduction sliders and the new AI-powered Denoise feature, providing multiple options to reduce noise while maintaining image quality effectively. To access it, head to the Develop module, right-click your RAW image, and choose Enhance > Denoise. Lightroom will analyze the file, provide a preview, and allow you to adjust the level of denoising aggressiveness. And no, it doesn’t wipe away your texture or make everything look plasticky like the old tools sometimes did. This new version is hands-down the most natural-looking noise removal I’ve used. It’s a game changer for the noise removal process in digital editing.

Still Using the Detail Panel? Here’s the Traditional Workflow

If you’re not using the new Denoise feature—or want more control—the Detail panel is still your friend. Lightroom offers a manual noise reduction option in the Detail panel, where you can adjust sliders for luminance and colour noise reduction by fine-tuning the correct settings for your image. Integrating these steps into your editing workflow and selecting the optimal settings can significantly improve your noise reduction results. Here’s how I use it:

Step 1: Zoom to 1:1

I always start by zooming into the image at 1:1. There's no point in editing grain you can’t see.

Step 2: Head to the Detail Panel

In the Develop module, scroll to the Detail panel. This is where both Sharpening and Noise Reduction live. Don’t skip sharpening—it plays a significant role in making the image look clean without appearing too sharp.

Within the Noise Reduction section, you'll find the luminance sliders, colour sliders, and contrast sliders. These controls enable you to target and reduce various types of noise in your image, allowing you to fine-tune the balance between detail and smoothness.

Step 3: Adjust Luminance

Slide the Luminance control to the right until the noise starts to fade. Increasing this slider reduces luminance noise, which is the monochromatic grain often seen in digital images, especially in low-light or high ISO settings. However, applying too much will blur finer details in your photo. Use the Detail slider below it to claw some of that back, and Contrast to maintain some bite. Note that applying more noise reduction can lead to a loss of image detail, so it's essential to balance the settings for the best result.

Step 4: Tame the Colour Noise

Colour noise is often more distracting than luminance. Slide the Colour slider just enough to clean up the splotches. Fine-tune with Detail and Smoothness—subtle tweaks go a long way here. The colour noise reduction process utilizes the colour sliders and the smoothness slider together to minimize colour blotches and mottling, thereby preserving overall image quality while reducing unwanted colour variations.

Step 5: Reintroduce Sharpness

After noise reduction, your photo might look soft. That’s expected. Use the Sharpening section above. A gentle balance of Amount, Radius, and Masking can give your edges life again, without over-sharpening flat areas like skies or shadows. The masking slider is handy after removing noise, as it allows you to target sharpening only to areas with detail, thereby preventing unwanted sharpening in smooth regions. For bringing back detail in specific areas, the Texture slider can be a better tool than simply increasing sharpness.

Advanced Techniques I Use Regularly

Sometimes I don’t want to reduce noise globally. In those cases, I use Lightroom’s masking tools—such as the Brush or Select Subject—to apply noise reduction only to areas that need it. With selective adjustments, you can achieve local noise reduction by using the adjustment brush and the noise slider in the Masking panel to target noisy areas, such as deep shadows under a bridge or a moody sky that’s buzzing a little too much.

You can also stack local adjustments with sharpening—reduce noise in the background while cranking the clarity in the subject. Selective noise reduction is beneficial for preserving detail in key areas of the image, such as faces or textured subjects, while reducing noise in less critical regions. It’s that kind of precision that separates flat images from final prints.

Troubleshooting Common Issues

Even with Lightroom’s powerful noise reduction tools, sometimes things don’t go as planned. Perhaps you’ve applied noise reduction, and suddenly your image looks too soft, or weird colour patches start to appear. Don’t worry—these are everyday bumps in the editing road, and they’re easy to fix once you know what to look for.

1. Loss of Detail: If your image starts to look mushy after reducing noise, you’ve probably pushed the luminance slider a bit too far. Try dialling it back and use the Detail slider to bring back some of the finer textures. The trick is to find that sweet spot where you reduce noise without sacrificing the crispness that gives your photo life.

2. Over-Smoothing or “Plastic” Look: It’s tempting to crank up noise reduction for a clean, noise-free image, but too much can make skin or skies look unnaturally smooth. Use the Contrast slider in the noise reduction section to add some bite back, and don’t be afraid to leave a little grain for a more natural feel.

3. Colour Shifts or Blotches:Sometimes, reducing noise can introduce odd colour patches, especially in shadows or low-light areas. If you notice this, adjust the Colour slider and fine-tune with the Smoothness control. This helps even out colour noise without dulling the whole image.

4. Uneven Noise Reduction: If some parts of your image still look noisy while others are too smooth, try using Lightroom’s local adjustment tools. The Brush or Masking features allow you to apply noise reduction only where needed, enabling you to target specific problem areas without affecting the entire photo.

5. Banding or Artifacts: Heavy-handed noise reduction can sometimes create unwanted artifacts or banding, especially in gradients like skies. If this happens, ease off on the sliders and consider using the AI Denoise tool, which often handles these transitions more gracefully.

Remember, reducing noise is all about balance. Keep checking your image at 100% zoom, and don’t be afraid to back off if you notice a decline in image quality. Lightroom provides you with great tools to fine-tune your edits—use them with a light touch, and your images will retain their soul, even as you clean up the noise.

Best Practices That Go Beyond Editing

Here’s something many overlook: the best way to handle noise is to avoid it in the first place. I always try to shoot at the lowest ISO possible. Adjusting the shutter speed can also help reduce the need for high ISO settings, thereby minimizing noise in your images. I steady my camera, even if that means using the roof of my van or leaning against a lamppost. I expose properly. I shoot RAW. Working with raw files gives you more flexibility for noise reduction in post-processing. These decisions matter more than any slider ever will.

But when I can’t avoid noise—which is often the case in real-world, non-studio shooting—Lightroom’s tools give me what I need. Full-frame cameras perform better in low light and produce cleaner night photos, but even then, challenging conditions can introduce noise. Many photographers use additional software or a noise reduction plugin in conjunction with Lightroom for challenging images, especially when shooting nighttime photos or working with high ISO raw files. Especially now, with the AI-driven Denoise feature, I can salvage detail from even the most unforgiving conditions.

Final Thoughts

Grain is no longer a dealbreaker. Between Lightroom’s traditional noise reduction and the powerful new AI Denoise tool, you’ve got options—intelligent, intuitive, and non-destructive ones. The key is knowing when to lean into the grit and when to refine it.

I’ve edited thousands of photos where I had to make that judgment call. And more often than not, it’s not about removing grain completely—it’s about preserving the feeling of the shot. That’s what I chase in my work. Not perfection—truth.