Recreating the Cinematic Warmth of Call Me by Your Name

When we set out to create the CMBYN Preset Series, our goal was simple yet ambitious — to capture the unmistakable visual mood of Call Me by Your Name.

That delicate mix of soft light, timeless colors, and sun-washed emotion defines the film’s visual language.

The look of CMBYN has become synonymous with the feeling of an endless Italian summer — golden afternoons, faded tones, and quiet nostalgia.

To translate that atmosphere into a mobile preset, we focused not only on the film’s color palette but also on how it feels: the diffusion of light, the grain of film, and the beautiful imperfection of analog warmth.

The Making of the CMBYN Preset

This preset was designed to emulate the movie’s distinctive tonal qualities — celebrated for its natural yet emotionally charged cinematography.

Shot on 35mm film by Sayombhu Mukdeeprom, Call Me by Your Name is known for its warm tones, soft light, and gentle contrast.

The goal was to bring that same analog depth and summer nostalgia into a mobile workflow, allowing users to achieve cinematic results directly from their iPhone camera.

Light and Dreamy Base

The foundation of the CMBYN preset begins with lifted shadows and softened highlights, creating a light and dreamy tonal curve.

By reducing contrast and slightly desaturating the primary colors, the image takes on a pastel softness reminiscent of 35mm daylight film.

Whites remain clean but never harsh, helping preserve the filmic halation and airy glow that makes portraits and landscapes feel open, natural, and emotionally alive.

Greens and Yellows in Harmony

The signature CMBYN look comes from its warm greens and yellows — colors that define the Italian summer landscape.

In this preset, greens are shifted toward olive tones and desaturated slightly to remove digital cyan hues, while yellows are warmed and lifted in the mid tones to mimic sunlight reflecting off stone and foliage.

The result adds warmth and depth to outdoor scenes without over saturation — evoking the timeless glow of late summer afternoons.

Balancing Warmth with Blues

To balance the warmth, subtle adjustments were made to the blue and cyan channels.

Light blues are muted and softened to avoid artificial cool tones, creating the same airy harmony found in the film’s lakeside and sky-lit scenes.

This balance keeps skin tones natural and prevents them from becoming overly orange, maintaining the filmic softness that defines the CMBYN aesthetic.

Why This Look Works

The color grade of Call Me by Your Name endures because it blends realism with emotion.

The palette doesn’t overpower the story — it amplifies its atmosphere.

By lifting the light, muting contrast, and emphasizing warmth, the CMBYN preset helps photographers capture not just images, but feelings: the way light, air, and memory coexist in golden hours.

Bring a Touch of Italian Summer to Your Photos

Recreate the dreamy warmth and timeless tone of Call Me by Your Name with the new CMBYN Preset Series.

Whether you’re shooting golden-hour portraits, travel scenes, or intimate indoor moments, this preset brings a gentle, cinematic glow that makes every image feel like a frame from a film.

Experience the CMBYN preset — where light meets memory, and every photo feels like summer.