Export a LUT as a Lightroom preset: what the .xmp and .dng from ChromaMimic are for
You matched a look for your footage and now you want the stills from the same shoot to agree with it. Lightroom does not open .cube files, so ChromaMimic gives you two other files alongside the LUT. Here is what each one is, and the one Adobe workflow that does put a real .cube inside Lightroom.
The four exports
| File | What it contains | Where it goes |
|---|---|---|
| .cube | The full 3D LUT: the reference match plus every grade control adjustment, baked in | DaVinci Resolve, Premiere Pro, Final Cut Pro, Photoshop (Color Lookup layer), CapCut, OBS |
| .xmp | A Lightroom and Camera Raw develop preset carrying the grade control values (temperature, tint, exposure, contrast, saturation, vibrance, shadows, highlights, fade). Not the reference match itself, which has no slider equivalent | Lightroom Classic, Lightroom, Camera Raw, Photoshop's Camera Raw filter |
| .dng | A 16 bit linear DNG of your graded original still, with the full match and grade applied | Lightroom, Camera Raw, Capture One, any raw editor, as a reference or a deliverable |
| .png | The graded still as an 8 bit image | Anywhere, for sharing and comparison |
Why the .xmp is "grade only"
A Lightroom preset is a list of slider positions. The reference match in ChromaMimic is a 3D transform (every colour moves independently) and there is no set of sliders that reproduces it exactly. So the .xmp carries the part that maps cleanly, the grade controls, and leaves the match to the .cube. Apply the .xmp to your stills and they will share the exposure, contrast and colour balance of the footage grade; they will not carry the full palette shift unless you also bring in the LUT as a profile, below.
Importing the .xmp
- Lightroom Classic: Develop module, Presets panel, click the plus, Import Presets, choose the .xmp.
- Lightroom (cloud): Edit panel, Presets, the three dot menu, Import Presets.
- Camera Raw: Presets tab, the three dot menu, Import Profiles and Presets.
Getting the actual .cube into Lightroom: a profile
Adobe supports LUTs inside Camera Raw profiles, and profiles work in Lightroom. This is the one route that carries the full match:
- Open any raw image in Camera Raw (Photoshop, File, Open, choose a raw file, or Filter, Camera Raw Filter on a smart object).
- Go to the Presets panel. Hold Alt (Windows) or Option (Mac) and click the new preset button. The dialog that opens is New Profile instead of New Preset.
- Under Color Lookup Table, tick the box and choose your ChromaMimic .cube. Set the space to sRGB or Adobe RGB to match how the LUT was built (ChromaMimic builds in sRGB / Rec.709).
- Name it and save. It appears under Profiles in Camera Raw and, after a restart, in Lightroom's Profile browser.
Apply the profile and the .xmp preset together and your stills carry the whole footage grade.
What the .dng is for
The .dng is not a preset. It is your original frame, graded, as a 16 bit linear file. Three uses:
- A reference in your raw editor. Open it next to the stills and match by eye or by sampling, with far more precision than an 8 bit PNG.
- A deliverable. A frame grab from the film that prints and edits like a photograph.
- A check. Compare the .dng with the footage after the LUT is applied in your editor. If they differ, the editor is doing something else in the chain, usually colour management.
Build the set
ChromaMimic exports all four from one match. The .cube and .png are on the free tier; the .dng and .xmp export alongside them in every format on Pro, and the free account's three monthly downloads can be spent on any of them.
Questions
- Can Lightroom open a .cube file directly?
- No. Lightroom and Camera Raw accept LUTs only inside a profile. Create the profile in Camera Raw with Alt or Option click on the new preset button, tick Color Lookup Table, and choose the .cube.
- Why not just convert the .cube to an .xmp?
- Because an .xmp preset is sliders and a .cube is a full 3D transform. A converter has to approximate, and the approximation is often worse than no conversion. The profile route carries the real LUT.
- Will the .dng open in Capture One?
- Yes. It is a standard 16 bit linear DNG. Capture One does not read Adobe profiles or .xmp presets, so the .dng is the way to carry a ChromaMimic look into that workflow.