Photographer spotlight · Gabe McClintock

Gabe's signature style: a perfect match for MyPHAiTO

See how accurately PHAiTO has learned from Gabe's signature style, and fits seamlessly into his post-production workflow.

Couple holding hands on the rocky shore of a still mountain lake, the golden peaks mirrored in the water
Couple crossing a glacier below a snow-streaked peak wrapped in cloud
Bride in her partner's arms, her face lit by low warm light
Couple on a rocky ledge beside a deep blue lake, the water catching the last light
Couple kissing on a grassy clifftop above a turquoise bay under a heavy grey sky

01 · Signature style

Trained on his edits, not a generic preset

Gabe describes his style as natural but still with a distinct look: a lot of light, shadow and contrast, a little darker overall, with rich tones, natural skin tones and consistency throughout the gallery.

He didn't want something that just slapped a generic preset over everything. MyPHAiTO was trained on roughly 6,500 of his own edits, so it's learning how he edits rather than deciding what his work should look like.

“Honestly… I was pretty shocked. There were a lot of images where I opened them and thought, okay… I really don't need to do much here.”

— Gabe McClintock

From Gabe's portfolio

The look MyPHAiTO learned

  • Couple standing small beneath a thundering waterfall
  • Couple silhouetted against a roaring beach bonfire at night
  • Woman in a flowing red dress on a mossy clifftop
  • Close-up of a couple about to kiss, sunlight through her hair
  • Couple on a rocky ledge above a turquoise mountain lake
  • Couple sharing umbrellas in the rain beside a grey lake
  • Couple walking through rising steam and cloud
  • Couple at sunrise above a sea of fog and evergreens
  • Couple framed by a gothic archway over a Venetian canal
  • Couple silhouetted in a hazy golden backlight
  • Woman in a red dress on a black sand beach below sea stacks
  • Couple in dramatic side light against a dark background
  • Couple dwarfed by jagged rock pinnacles on a green hillside
  • Couple standing on a golden sand dune under a deep blue sky

02 · Skin tones

Accurate skin tones in any light

Skin tones were one of the things Gabe was most worried about, and probably one of the things that impressed him most.

“Different skin tones, indoor light, outdoor light, mixed light… it stays surprisingly consistent.”

— Gabe McClintock

Bride in a red and gold sari with a gold necklace and nose ring, lit softly from the side PHAiTO edit
Veiled bride embracing her mother, in a red and white sari, at the start of the ceremony PHAiTO edit
Groom lifting the bride's lace veil at the altar as the officiant looks on PHAiTO edit
Bride in a red sari standing in a dark wooden doorway PHAiTO edit

03 · Consistency

One look, from getting ready to the last dance

“Consistency is huge. A preset gives everything the same starting point but PHAiTO is actually adjusting each image depending on the light and exposure while still keeping the overall look consistent. That's the big difference for me.”

— Gabe McClintock

Getting ready

Bride in a satin gown lit by a tall arched window while a guest adjusts her train
Bridesmaids arranging a bride's veil beside a bright window
Bride in a red sari and gold jewellery having her hair pinned by a relative
Groom fastening his collar against a wooden wall
Groom tying his bow tie
Groom buttoning a green suit jacket against a wooden wall

Ceremony

Woman speaking at the lectern as the couple hold hands in a wood-panelled chapel
Groom wiping away a tear as the officiant reads
Bride smiling down as the couple hold hands before the officiant
Wider view of the couple and officiant between brass candelabras

Reception

Bride spinning with a friend on the dance floor with motion-blurred light trails
Groom dipping the bride on a busy dance floor
Bride dancing among blurred guests under mixed coloured light
Bride laughing and dancing with a friend at the reception
Guest throwing his arms up mid-speech at a candlelit podium
Couple laughing together under a spotlight on the dance floor
Groom dancing with his mother under string lights
Bride and groom dancing with light trails around them

04 · Difficult light

Built for the light you can't control

PHAiTO's engine was trained on more than 1 million images, every one of them edited by professional retouchers.

That means even images shot in the toughest conditions come back properly edited, not just the easy ones.

Couple on a dark rock on a foggy beach, pale surf behind them
Couple on coastal rocks at sunset, the sun flaring off the ocean behind them
Couple in deep snow at night, rimmed by a bright light behind them
Bride in her partner's arms, her face lit by low warm light
Couple standing on rocks as a wave explodes into spray beside them
Bride dancing in haze and stage light as guests cheer around her

05 · Camera to client

From raw file to final export

Here's each image from start to finish: straight out of camera, PHAiTO's edit, and Gabe's final.

“I still go through every image. I'll do some dodging and burning, adjust contrast here and there and make little exposure or white balance changes if I need to. But overall it's pretty close.”

— Gabe McClintock

Couple holding hands on an open plain as the sun breaks beneath storm clouds (Original)
Couple holding hands on an open plain as the sun breaks beneath storm clouds (PHAiTO edit)
Couple holding hands on an open plain as the sun breaks beneath storm clouds (Gabe's final)
Couple on a rocky lakeshore with jagged mountains mirrored in the water at dusk (Original)
Couple on a rocky lakeshore with jagged mountains mirrored in the water at dusk (PHAiTO edit)
Couple on a rocky lakeshore with jagged mountains mirrored in the water at dusk (Gabe's final)
Couple sheltering under a large umbrella on a foggy beach in the rain (Original)
Couple sheltering under a large umbrella on a foggy beach in the rain (PHAiTO edit)
Couple sheltering under a large umbrella on a foggy beach in the rain (Gabe's final)
Couple embracing beneath a Joshua tree in hazy golden desert backlight (Original)
Couple embracing beneath a Joshua tree in hazy golden desert backlight (PHAiTO edit)
Couple embracing beneath a Joshua tree in hazy golden desert backlight (Gabe's final)
Couple standing close in falling snow, backlit by a bright glow (Original)
Couple standing close in falling snow, backlit by a bright glow (PHAiTO edit)
Couple standing close in falling snow, backlit by a bright glow (Gabe's final)
Bride dancing in swirling smoke and coloured light as guests cheer (Original)
Bride dancing in swirling smoke and coloured light as guests cheer (PHAiTO edit)
Bride dancing in swirling smoke and coloured light as guests cheer (Gabe's final)

06 · Workflow

What's possible now with Ai

Gabe has always been fast: a full wedding took him about 5–6 hours to edit. The worst part was the repetitive stuff: exposure, white balance and making the same little corrections over and over.

After uploading the Lightroom catalog, PHAiTO sends the whole gallery back with settings applied, and Gabe applies the final touches.

See how PHAiTO works →

“Usually I can answer a couple emails, grab a coffee and by the time I'm back it's ready to download and look through. From there I'm basically doing a final pass and working on the images that need a little more attention.”

— Gabe McClintock

Images used to train MyPHAiTO
6,500
Time to fine-tune after PHAiTO
30–60 min

See more of Gabe's work → (opens in a new tab)

“I'd recommend MyPHAiTO to any photographer who wants to spend a LOT less time editing without giving up what makes their work look like their work.”

— Gabe McClintock, Wedding photographer

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Questions photographers ask

Start instantly by uploading your Lightroom preset, or train MyPHAiTO on at least 2,000 of your edited images. MyPHAiTO is ready within 48 hours and adapts to each scene while staying true to your look.
Always. PHAiTO's edits arrive as standard Lightroom Classic develop settings, so you can review, adjust and sync them like any other edit.
Typical turnaround is under 20 minutes per 1,000 images, available 24/7. You'll get a notification when your gallery is ready.

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