How to Create Linear Camera Profiles and Why They Are Essential for Your Photography

As a photographer or photo editor, you want your shots to be as accurate and detailed as possible. You work with colors, brightness, and contrast that need to be perfectly balanced to achieve the desired look. This is where linear camera profiles come into play. But what exactly are they, and how do you create them for your camera?

On the left side, the image has been edited with the Kodak Portra 400 EV +1 preset from the Classic Film Presets 2021. White, black, and exposure were set using the auto function I mentioned in the last blog post. The camera profile is Adobe Standard. On the right side, we see the same settings, but with a linear camera profile.

What Are Linear Camera Profiles?

A linear camera profile is a custom profile that allows you to capture an image without additional edits or adjustments to contrast or tones. Unlike standard profiles, often embedded in cameras or editing software, everything remains neutral in a linear profile. This means you get a “pure” image as close as possible to your camera's raw data—without any software automatically adjusting colors or brightness.

Why Are Linear Camera Profiles Important?

If you want to bring your image editing to a professional level, linear profiles are a game-changer. Here are some of the main benefits:

1. Maximum Flexibility in Post-Processing
With a linear profile, you have full control over the editing process. Since nothing is pre-processed, you can make all adjustments—such as contrast, brightness, and colors—from scratch without any automatic changes affecting the image data.

2. Better Color Reproduction
Linear profiles provide the most realistic and accurate colors directly from your camera, which is crucial when aiming for a natural representation or working with precise color matching.

3. More Dynamic Range
Since the linear profile doesn't automatically adjust contrast, details in both shadows and highlights are better preserved. This gives you the opportunity to make finer adjustments and extract more detail than with standard profiles.

4. Perfect for Film Emulation
If, like me, you work with film emulation presets—such as those we offer in our shop—linear profiles are an essential tool. They allow you to replicate the specific characteristics of film accurately without unwanted color shifts that could distort the final result.

Tony Kuyper may already made a lineare profile for your camera. You can download it for free here. But you can also built your own. It's easy.

How to Create a Linear Camera Profile in Adobe DNG Profile Editor

Creating a linear profile might seem complicated, but with the right software and a few steps, it’s quite straightforward. Here's a step-by-step guide on how to do this using Adobe DNG Profile Editor:

1. Download and Install Adobe DNG Profile Editor
Make sure to download and install the software from the Adobe website. It's free.

2. Prepare a RAW File
Open a RAW file from your camera in Adobe Lightroom or another program and export it as a DNG file. This is necessary as the DNG Profile Editor only works with DNG files.

3. Open the DNG File in DNG Profile Editor
Launch the Adobe DNG Profile Editor and open the exported DNG file.

4. Adjust the Tone Curve
Go to the “Tone Curve” tab. Here, you can disable the standard curve adjustments and set a linear curve. To do this, click on "Base Profile" and drag the points on the Tone Curve so that it forms a straight line—this ensures no automatic tonal adjustments are applied. This is the key step in creating a linear profile.

5. Optional: Fine-Tuning
If you are working with a ColorChecker or similar color reference tool, you can make adjustments in the “Color Tables” tab. However, this is not necessary for creating a linear profile—the most important part is the Tone Curve.

6. Export and Use the Profile
Once you’re satisfied, export the profile by going to “File” > “Export Profile.” Save it in a location you can easily remember. The profile can now be imported into your editing software, such as Lightroom or Capture One.

What If You Don’t Have a ColorChecker?

You can still create a linear camera profile without a ColorChecker by simply adjusting the Tone Curve. The advantage of using a ColorChecker is that it ensures colors are as accurately matched to real-life reference colors as possible. However, if your primary goal is a linear, rather than a color-calibrated profile, adjusting the Tone Curve alone is sufficient.

Conclusion

Linear camera profiles allow you to take your photography to the next level. They give you the freedom to edit your images exactly the way you want and prevent pre-set adjustments from distorting your raw data. Particularly for photographers working with film emulations or those who want maximum control over their edits, linear profiles are an essential tool.