Is ICONIC City LUTs - Affinity Photo / Luminar AI / Photoshop worth it if you’re shopping in Photography?
You already have a camera, a lens, and a decent editing workflow. What you don’t have is the five-minute shortcut that turns a flat, gray cityscape into something that looks like a movie still or a moody editorial spread. That gap is exactly where a small, well-made LUT pack earns its place in your toolkit. ICONIC City LUTs from Olivio Sarikas Tutorials is a $1 bundle of 49 hand-crafted CUBE LUTs built for Affinity Photo, Luminar AI, Photoshop, and DaVinci Resolve. It’s the kind of low-risk, high-utility add-on that makes sense when you want consistent color grading without spending an hour tweaking curves on every single frame.
The real question isn’t whether you need another preset. It’s whether this specific set of 49 looks matches the aesthetic you’re actually shooting. If your work leans into neon-lit nights, cinematic tones, or stylized art looks, this is a cheap way to test a direction before you commit to a bigger grading workflow. If you shoot bright, clean product photos or need a custom, client-specific look, you’ll want to look elsewhere. (ICONIC City LUTs -)
Quick answer
| Best for | Photographers and video editors who want a quick, consistent color grade for cityscapes, night shots, or cinematic b-roll. |
| Skip if | You need a custom, client-specific color profile, or you primarily shoot bright, high-key commercial work that doesn’t benefit from moody grading. |
| Price | $1 |
| Format | 49 CUBE LUT files (64x64x64) compatible with Affinity Photo, Luminar AI, Photoshop, DaVinci Resolve, and other CUBE-compatible apps. |
| One-line take | A tiny, versatile LUT library that gives you a professional-grade color story for the price of a coffee. |
What you’re actually buying
At $1, you’re not just getting a few filters; you’re getting a full palette of 49 distinct color grades. The pack is organized into three specific collections: a Neon Night Pack for those vibrant, cyberpunk-adjacent city lights, an Art Style Pack for more creative and stylized interpretations, and a Cinematic Pack for that familiar, filmic depth and contrast. This segmentation is useful because it means you aren’t digging through 49 random looks to find one that fits your project. You can jump straight to the “Neon” folder when you’re editing a night market shot, or the “Cinematic” folder when you’re grading a travel video. (ICONIC City LUTs -)
The technical spec is also worth noting: every LUT is 64 x 64 x 64. This is a standard, high-quality resolution for CUBE LUTs, ensuring smooth color transitions without the banding or harsh artifacts you sometimes see in lower-resolution files. Because they are standard CUBE files, they are genuinely universal. If you switch from Photoshop to DaVinci Resolve next week, your grading workflow doesn’t break. You just load the same file. That portability is a huge part of the value here. You’re buying a color language, not a plugin locked to one piece of software. (ICONIC City LUTs -)
For the solo creator or the hobbyist who wants their work to look “finished” faster, this pack removes the guesswork. Instead of starting from a neutral gray image and building a look from scratch, you apply a LUT and then fine-tune. It’s a 10% effort for a 90% result. The fact that it’s hand-crafted by a tutorial creator like Olivio Sarikas suggests these aren’t just random algorithmic outputs; they’re curated looks designed to flatter specific types of photography. (ICONIC City LUTs -)
Why it’s on our radar
This pack is interesting because it solves a very specific problem at a price point that removes all the risk. Most LUT packs are either free (and often low-quality or overly saturated) or expensive (and locked into a specific ecosystem like Lightroom or Premiere). ICONIC City LUTs sits in the sweet spot: cheap enough to try with zero hesitation, but specific enough to actually be useful. The inclusion of both Affinity and Luminar AI in the compatibility list is a nice touch, as those are popular among budget-conscious and mobile-first editors who might not have a full Adobe subscription.
The “City” focus is also a smart niche. Urban photography is one of the hardest genres to grade consistently because of the mix of artificial light sources, deep shadows, and varied white balances. A pack dedicated to this environment gives you a head start on taming those mixed lights. If you’re a content creator posting to Instagram or YouTube, having a consistent “look” across your city shots helps build a recognizable brand aesthetic. This pack provides that consistency for a dollar. (ICONIC City LUTs -)
What actually matters
Before you hit buy, keep a few practical things in mind. First, check the preview video. The listing links to a YouTube preview, which is crucial for LUTs. You need to see how the colors shift on real footage, not just static images. Look for how the skin tones hold up, especially in the “Cinematic” and “Art Style” packs, as these can sometimes push skin tones too orange or too green. (ICONIC City LUTs -)
Second, understand that LUTs are a starting point, not a finish. You will still need to adjust exposure, white balance, and contrast after applying the LUT. They are not magic. If your base image is underexposed or has a strong green cast, no LUT will fix that. Use these as a base layer for your grade, not a final step. (ICONIC City LUTs -)
Third, verify your software’s LUT support. While CUBE LUTs are standard, not every app handles them the same way. In Affinity Photo, you’ll be using the “LUT” tool in the Develop or Adjust layers. In DaVinci Resolve, you’ll be dragging them into the Color page. If you’re using a less common app, make sure it explicitly supports CUBE (.cube) files. The ICONIC City LUTs product page confirms compatibility with the major players, but if you’re on a niche platform, do a quick search to be safe.
Mid-check
If you’re on the fence, the price is the easiest way to decide. You can’t really lose $1 on a pack of 49 LUTs. If you like what you see in the preview, grab it. If you don’t, you’ve lost less than the cost of a single coffee. (ICONIC City LUTs -)
FAQ
Do these LUTs work with Lightroom or Camera Raw? The listing specifically highlights Affinity Photo, Luminar AI, Photoshop, and DaVinci Resolve. While CUBE LUTs are a universal standard, Lightroom and Camera Raw have historically had limited or no direct support for importing CUBE files without third-party plugins. If your entire workflow is in Lightroom, you might want to look for DNG or XMP presets instead. However, if you use Photoshop or Affinity, you’re in the clear. (ICONIC City LUTs -)
Can I use these on video as well as photos? Yes. CUBE LUTs are designed for both stills and video. In DaVinci Resolve, they will work seamlessly on your video clips. In Photoshop or Affinity, they are primarily for stills, but the color logic applies the same way. If you’re editing a video in a program that supports CUBE LUTs (like Resolve, Premiere, or Final Cut), these will work perfectly for color grading your footage. (ICONIC City LUTs -)
Are the LUTs 3D LUTs? Yes, the listing specifies that every LUT is 64 x 64 x 64, which is the standard size for 3D LUTs. This means they map color in three dimensions (R, G, B), allowing for more complex and accurate color transformations than simple 1D curves. (ICONIC City LUTs -)
Bottom line
If you shoot cityscapes, night scenes, or cinematic b-roll, ICONIC City LUTs is a no-brainer. For $1, you get 49 high-quality, hand-crafted color grades that work across your entire editing stack. It’s a small investment that can save you hours of manual color correction and give your work a more professional, cohesive look. The risk is zero, the utility is high, and the aesthetic range covers everything from moody cinema to vibrant neon. Grab the pack, test a few looks on your recent shots, and see if it clicks with your style.