How to Remove Red Eyes in Lightroom Mobile

Why do red eyes appear in photos

Red eyes in photos usually happen when a camera flash goes off in a dark place. The light enters your eyes and bounces off the back, where there's a lot of blood, making them look red. It mostly happens when your pupils are wide open because of low light. Since the flash is so quick, your eyes don’t have time to adjust. That’s why red eyes pop up in pictures taken with a flash.

How to get rid of the red eyes in Lightroom using selective edits

Selective edits in Lightroom let you apply adjustments to specific parts of your photo instead of the whole image. You can use tools like brushes, radial gradients, or linear gradients to target certain areas. This is useful for brightening a subject, darkening a background, or removing the red eyes without affecting the entire picture.

Follow these steps to get rid of the red eye in the Lightroom app:

STEP 1
1. Open your photo

Download and install the Lightroom mobile app.. Then open it and select the photo you want to edit.

STEP 2
1. Access selective edits

Tap on the "Selective" tool (represented by a circle with a dotted outline) located in the toolbar at the bottom of the screen.

STEP 3
1. Select the brush tool and fix the red eye

Tap the "+" icon to add a new selection and choose the "Brush" option. Zoom in on the eye area and carefully paint over the red portion, adjusting the brush size for precise correction.

STEP 4
1. Adjust color settings

After selecting the red area, tap on the "Color" option. Reduce the "Saturation" slider to remove the red hue. If necessary, fine-tune the "Tint" and "Temperature" sliders to match the natural eye color.

How to get rid of the red eye in Lightroom using the healing tool

The Healing tool in Lightroom helps you remove unwanted objects or blemishes from your photos. It provides two modes: Heal, which blends the area naturally, and Clone, which copies pixels exactly from another part of the image. You can use it to clean up skin, dust, distractions, or remove the red eyes for a smoother look.

Follow these steps to use Lightroom mobile for red eye correction

STEP 1
1. Open your photo in Lightroom mobile

Launch the Lightroom app and open the portrait image with red-eye. Tap on the "Edit" icon, then zoom in closely on the affected eye for better control.

STEP 2
1. Select the healing tool

From the toolbar at the bottom, tap on the "Healing" brush icon. You’ll now see three options—choose the "Clone" option instead of "Heal" to directly copy pixels from a clean area of the eye.

STEP 3
1. Resize the brush and set the target area

Adjust the brush size to slightly larger than the red-eye spot using the size slider. Carefully tap and drag over the red portion of the pupil. Lightroom will automatically select a source area, but you can drag this source circle to a natural black or dark brown part of the eye.

STEP 4
1. Blend and adjust the clone source

Make sure the clone source matches the surrounding iris or pupil in tone. If needed, reduce the "Feather" slightly for sharper blending and fine-tune the "Opacity" for a natural finish. This will darken the red area without leaving visible brush marks.

Common mistakes to avoid while fixing the red eye in Lightroom

Even though Lightroom is a powerful tool, certain editing habits can affect your final results. Here are some common mistakes to avoid when correcting red eye in Lightroom:

• Overhealing spots

Applying too much healing can make the eye area look overly smooth or fake. Try to use just enough correction to remove the red without erasing natural detail.

• Wrong eye tone

Choosing the wrong color while correcting the red eye can leave eyes looking dull or unnatural. Always try to match the original eye color for a more realistic result.

• Large brush use

Using a brush that's too big might spill edits onto surrounding areas. Stick with a smaller, more precise brush to target only the affected spots.

• No feathering

If you don't use feathering, edits can leave harsh edges. Softening the brush helps blend the correction smoothly into the rest of the image.

• Ignoring catchlights

Accidentally, removing natural reflections or catchlights in the eyes can make them appear flat or lifeless. Be careful to preserve or reintroduce these subtle highlights to keep the eyes looking realistic.

While red eye removal in Lightroom mobile is effective, it can be a bit tricky for beginners. It requires manual precision and can be time-consuming, which isn't ideal for quick edits. For a simpler and faster experience, you can switch to the CapCut desktop video editor.

A simpler and faster way to remove red eyes in photos on PC: CapCut

CapCut desktop video editor is an advanced tool specially designed to enhance video content with ease. Whether you're looking to remove red eyes or adjust facial features for a professional look, its AI-powered tools make the process quick and smooth. You can also eliminate flickers, adjust lighting, and improve overall video quality. With its user-friendly interface and smart features, CapCut is a reliable choice for both casual creators and professionals.

Key features

• Change eye color with a click

CapCut lets you instantly switch eye colors in your videos, which makes it perfect for creative edits or correcting eye color under poor lighting.

• AI-based facial retouching

CapCut's AI-powered face retouching tools automatically enhance facial features by smoothing skin, removing blemishes, and adding digital makeup.

• Efficiently change skin tone

With smart adjustment tools, you can easily correct or change the skin tone of subjects in your video, ensuring a balanced and professional appearance.

• Rich collection of video filters

CapCut provides a wide range of video effects and filters to quickly stylize your footage with cinematic, vintage, or trendy looks.

• Easily color grade videos

You can fine-tune your video's colors using intuitive sliders, a color wheel, and LUTs, which help enhance its overall aesthetic.

How to change the red eye color in photos using CapCut

To remove red eye color in videos, follow the steps below. If you're new to CapCut, start by downloading the editor using the button below and installing it on your device.

STEP 1
1. Import the photo

Open CapCut and enter the editing interface. Click "Import" to upload the photo from your device and drag it to the timeline.

STEP 2
1. Change the eye color

Tap on "Video" > "Retouch" > "Makeup" > "Eye Color" and choose the shade that best fits your image. The effect will be applied automatically. To refine the look, go to "Features" > "Eyes," where you can adjust eye distance, size, and brightness for better definition. You can also explore facial tools and apply makeup options to enhance the overall appearance further.

STEP 3
1. Export your photo

After completing your edits, click the three-bar menu located above the editing panel and choose "Export still frames." Select your preferred resolution (4k or 8k) and file format (PNG or JPEG), then click "Export" to download the edited image to your device.

Conclusion

Now you know how to fix the red eye in Lightroom mobile. This app is perfect for enhancing images, and by keeping a few key points in mind, you can add a professional touch to your photos.

However, if you're working with videos and need to remove red eyes or adjust facial features, the CapCut desktop video editor is an excellent choice. With its AI-powered tools, you can easily correct eye color, refine facial details, and enhance photo and video quality.

FAQs

1
1. Are there limitations to red eye removal in Lightroom?

Yes, there are some limitations when using Lightroom mobile for red-eye removal. The tool in Lightroom Classic may not detect red eyes effectively in cases where the red coloration is faint or the eye is partially closed. Instead, you can use the CapCut desktop video editor, which provides AI retouch tools and advanced effects and filters to remove red eyes from both videos and photos.

2
1. Does Lightroom provide an automatic way to fix the red eye?

Yes, Lightroom provides an automatic red-eye correction feature. In Lightroom Classic, you can use the Red eye correction tool, which includes an "Auto Correct" option. This feature automatically detects and corrects red eyes in your photos, streamlining the editing process. However, if you're looking for a more advanced tool to remove red eyes from both photos and videos, the CapCut desktop video editor is an excellent choice.

3
1. How fast is red eye correction in Lightroom mobile?

Since Lightroom mobile lacks a dedicated red-eye correction tool, the process is manual and can be time-consuming. Users must rely on tools like the Healing or Selective edit brushes, which require precision and can be less efficient. For a quicker and more intuitive solution, consider using the CapCut desktop video editor, which provides instant tools to remove red eyes from both photos and videos.