NaturaLUTs - Color Graded Filter Removal and Black Level Restoration LUTs

☼ Installation ☼

Please note: you should only perform the steps in 1.a. or 1.b., but not both. I am currently recommending manual installation over automatic mod manager installation as I am seeing comments that some users are having trouble with mod manager installation.

1.a. EITHER: Manual Installation to My Games directory (RECOMMENDED)

To install manually, extract the contents of the zip file directly into the "Documents\My Games\Starfield" folder. Even if this isn’t the usual location for mod files in other games, the mod requires this path to work by default. The loose DDS files should be placed in the following directory:

"...\Documents\My Games\Starfield\Data\Textures\effects\luts"

Once this is complete, proceed to step 2.a. or 2.b. depending on whether you installed the game through Steam or PC Xbox Game Pass.

1.b. OR: Automatic Installation via Mod Manager Button (NOT RECOMMENDED)

**IMPORTANT NOTE for Vortex Users**

By popular demand, I have enabled the Mod Manager download button. Please note that by default, Vortex will not install these files correctly. To use the Mod Manager download with Vortex, you must force the game to load textures from the Data folder in the game's directory, rather than from your Documents\My Games folder. Users have reported that Mod Organizer 2 works seamlessly and recognizes files, so these steps may not be necessary if you are using MO2. Back up anything you don't want to lose before proceeding.

First, back up your photos in the following directory, as they may be deleted during this process:

     "...\Documents\My Games\Starfield\Data\Textures\Photos"

Next, add the following code to this file:

     "...\Documents\My Games\Starfield\StarfieldCustom.ini" 

[General]
bEnableMessageOfTheDay=0

[Display]
sPhotoModeFolder=Photos

Then, move all the files from the "...\Documents\My Games\Starfield\Data\Textures\Photos" directory to the game's Data directory (for Steam it may be) "...\ Take care."Steam\steamapps\common\Starfield\Data but this may vary based on how you installed the game.

Finally, delete the "...\Documents\My Games\Starfield\Data\" folder

Once this is complete, go to either step 2.a. or 2.b. depending on whether you installed the game via Steam or PC Xbox Game Pass.

2.a. EITHER: Steam .ini configuration

"I found I needed to add the following to both of these locations, but you may only need them in the first one."

"...\Documents\My Games\Starfield\StarfieldCustom.ini"   (you will need to create this file if it doesn't already exist)

"...\steamapps\common\Starfield\Starfield.ini"

[Archive]
bInvalidateOlderFiles=1
sResourceDataDirsFinal=

You may already have a line like this in your "Starfield.inifile:

sResourceDataDirsFinal=STRINGS\

If so, simply replace it with the one above.

2.b. OR: PC Xbox GamePass .ini configuration

Users have reported that only the following needs to be added to this location:

"...\Xbox Games\Starfield\Content\Starfield.ini"

[Archive]
bInvalidateOlderFiles=1
sResourceDataDirsFinal=

You may already have a line like this in your "Starfield.ini"file:

sResourceDataDirsFinal=STRINGS\

If so, simply replace it with the one above.


Optional: Make space darker

If you would like space/stars to be darker while in spaceflight (not on planets at night), add these lines to the following file:
"...\Documents\My Games\Starfield\StarfieldCustom.ini"

[Display]
fSpaceGlowBackgroundScale=0.0
fStarIntensity=2500.0
fStarSystemFarViewDistance=10000000000.0
fStarfieldBackgroundScale=35.0
fStarfieldStarBrightnessScale=10.0
fStarfieldStarCoordScale=10.0
fSunScale=1.0

☼ What are the different versions of NaturaLUTs? ☼

There are now three different versions of NaturaLUTs: Vanilla+, Enhanced, and Standard. Vanilla+ is the most recent version, created specifically to stay as close as possible to the original Vanilla color grade (even more so than Enhanced or Standard). I've made Vanilla+ the new default going forward, as I believe it best captures my original vision for this mod. All three versions will remain available and supported. Here's a quick breakdown of each:

Vanilla+

This is the newest version of NaturaLUTs. It was designed to stay as close to the vanilla experience as possible, for players who want to preserve the original look and feel while removing the filtered and raised black levels. This version is bright and open like Enhanced, but stays much closer to the vanilla color palette (while still eliminating most of the green, purple, and other unpleasant aspects of the original color filters). This was the hardest version to create, and it also includes the first round of location-specific tweaks (such as restoring the neon ambient lighting in the Astral Lounge). The other versions will receive these tweaks in future updates.

Enhanced

This was the second version of NaturaLUTs. It offers increased brightness, contrast, and vibrance, resulting in a punchier, more polished look overall. Designed to look its best without requiring any additional post-processing, this version is slightly more neutral than Vanilla, while still preserving each LUT’s distinctive color identity, much like Standard.

Standard

This was the original version of NaturaLUTs. It’s slightly more neutral than Vanilla, while still preserving each LUT's overall color grading to give different locations their own unique look and feel. The result is a balanced visual style that fully eliminates the filtered appearance of the vanilla game. This version can benefit from a ReShade if you'd like to add your own post-processing, but it also looks great on its own.













☼ What makes these LUTs special? ☼

All LUTs were processed through a series of custom Photoshop actions, which applied multiple adjustments to each base LUT. For example, generating the Standard version involved:

1) Create a static 50% blend of the Base LUT and the Neutral LUT
2) Create a luminosity blend of the Base LUT and the Neutral LUT
3) **Blend the Luminosity and 50% layers together**
4) Stretch the contrast of the new blend
5) Add another Neutral LUT and perform a second static 50% blend
6) Add a final Neutral LUT and apply a Blend-If operation to ensure the darkest pixel is pure black.
7) Merge and export the new LUT

This is a fairly complex process (and I’ve simplified the steps as written), but in the end, it ensured that each new LUT no longer has that sickly green tint, black levels are fully restored, contrast is improved and pushed to the max, while the original color grading and art direction are preserved. Each version uses a different set of processing steps (with Vanilla+ being the most complex, involving over 100 actions to stay as close to the original color grading as possible), but they all follow the same basic principles. In my opinion, this is the ideal set of LUTs to make the game look its best while staying true to the developers’ vision.





☼ Does this disable achievements? ☼

No! This mod alone won’t disable achievements.



☼ Is this a ReShade preset? ☼

No! This mod does not require ReShade at all to function. In fact, it was designed specifically to make the game look as good as possible without needing ReShade or any other post-processing. It works by replacing the game's built-in color lookup tables with the custom ones I've provided.



☼ Can I use ReShade with this? ☼

Yes! You can use ReShade alongside this mod if you wish to further tweak your colors. However, I think you'll find this offers an ideal blend of contrast, color, saturation, brightness, and black levels so you will likely not need to do so.



☼ How is this different from Neutral LUTs? ☼

Neutral LUTs (currently) uses the same completely neutral LUT for all locations in the game. NaturaLUTs preserves the original color grading for each unique location, meaning areas that should have a specific color palette (for example, Mars should appear reddish) stay true to that. Additionally, NaturaLUTs Enhanced delivers a brighter, more vibrant overall image. Here are some comparison screenshots:









☼ Why do some shadows still look like they have crushed black levels? ☼

I believe this is related to the game's auto-exposure system. No LUT can alter the underlying exposure system, as LUTs only affect how the base image is processed. Until we can adjust the base contrast and auto-exposure, unfortunately, this cannot be changed by any LUT. However, this at least ensures that the deepest black levels produced by the game actually reach pure black, eliminating the raised, filtered black levels found in the original LUTs.