P: Toggling B&W when the default profile is Camera Neutral leaves WB set to an incorrect value

[johnrellis]

When the Camera Raw default for a camera sets the profile to Camera Neutral or Camera Landscape, toggling B&W on and then off leaves WB changed to Custom with Temp = 5001 and Tint = 10, regardless of the photo or camera. This doesn't occur when the Camera Raw default is set to Adobe Default.

1. Download and import this raw from a Sony RX100 M5:

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/ymi7gkw8wx00cf7cm5hqp/bw-wb.2025-08-11.ARW?rlkey=sxat15xg6h8nj8dj2r7j...

2. In Develop, set its profile to Camera Neutral. Observe that WB is As Shot, Temp = 5700, and Tint = 11.

3. Create a preset called Camera Neutral, with just Treatment & Profile checked.

4. In Preferences > Presets > Raw Defaults, set Global to the preset Camera Neutral.

5. In Develop, click Reset. Observe that the profile changes to Camera Neutral and WB remains at As Shot, 5700, 11.

6. Click B&W. Observe that the profile changes to Adobe Monochrome and WB remains at As Shot, 5700, 11.

7. Click B&W again. Observe that the profile changes to Camera Neutral (correct) but that WB changes to Custom, Temp = 5001 ,and Tint = 10 (incorrect).

8. Repeat steps 5 - 7 for raws from other cameras that support the profile Camera Neutral. Step 7 always ends with WB changing to Custom, Temp = 5001, Tint = 10 (at least with the 10 cameras I tested from Sony, Canon, and Nikon). Repeat steps 2 - 7 but using Camera Landscape and observe the same incorrect behavior.

9. In Preferences > Presets > Raw defaults, set Global to Adobe Default

10. In Develop, with any of the photos tested previously, click Reset. Observe the profile changes to Adobe Color.

11. Toggle B&W on and off and observe that WB doesn't change (correct).

[giorgiol35705912]

Macbook pro 2018 Intel, Sequoia 15.6. Lightroom version: 14.4

If I convert a raw image in black and white and then come back to color using the same button, the WB setting changes automatically from "As shot" to some custom value, so I have to set it back manually to "As shot". Is it a bug, or there is some reason why LR behaves this way?

Thanks fot the help, regards to everybody. 

[JohanElzenga]

I can't reproduce that on my M1 Max MacBook Pro. The WB remains 'as shot' when I toggle between B&W and color.

[giorgiol35705912]

Hello Johan, thank you for testing this issue, now I wonder if the problem could be related to my older Intel mac. 

Giorgio

[JohanElzenga]

You could try resetting the preferences: https://www.lightroomqueen.com/how-do-i-reset-lightrooms-preferences/

Corrupted preferences are known to cause all kinds of strange issues.

[johnrellis]

If resetting preferences doesn't help:

1. As a diagnostic, set Preferences > Performance > Use Graphics Processor to Off. Does the problem still occur?

2. If so, upload a problem raw to Wetransfer, Dropbox, Google Drive or similar free service and post the sharing link here. We can see if the issue is specific to your computer or occurs on other installations.

[giorgiol35705912]

None of the suggestions above solved the problem. I tried to investigate further and found that the problem doesn't occur for images imported before a certain date, which is June 2023. Before June 18th, no images exhibited the problem; from June 18th, 2023 onward, all images exhibit the problem. I cannot recall any significant event that occurred on this date. I use two cameras: a Fuji X-T3 and a Sony RX100; the problem occurs for images produced by both. I've put a recent raw file produced with a Fuji X-T3 at this link: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1KRhDy825yueMIri4XF9todWH0mp3RJ57/view?usp=share_link   

Thanks for your help.

[JohanElzenga]

Your photo behaves as expected on my system. Toggling B&W does not change the 'as shot' WB setting.

[giorgiol35705912]

Thank you for the test. It's definitely a problem of mine, but I hardly understand what changed in June 2023 to start an issue that does not exist for older imports. 

Giorgio

[johnrellis]

Attach a full-resolution screen recording (not a phone video) of the entire LR window showing you importing a new photo and then causing the problem:
https://www.descript.com/blog/article/how-to-screen-record-on-windows
https://support.apple.com/guide/quicktime-player/record-your-screen-qtp97b08e666/mac

That will often give clues.

[giorgiol35705912]

Thank you for the suggestion, see the screen capture below.

[johnrellis]

The screen recording does provide an important clue.  Immediately after importing the photo, Develop shows Profile: Camera Landscape.   So you must have either applied a develop preset in the Import settings, or you've set a camera raw default in Preferences > Presets.  Which one?

But the LR doesn't provide a "Camera Landscape" profile for the Fujifilm X-T3 (and according to the camera manual, it doesn't have a picture style or film simulation called "Landscape").   So you've obtained a  camera profile named "Camera Landscape" and imported it into LR?

[giorgiol35705912]

Sorry, I forgot to say that this raw is not from the Fuji x-t3 but from from Sony RX100 V, where the profile is actually set to "Camera Landscape".   I used Sony, but with the Fuji the problems occurs exactly the same way. 

[johnrellis]

I filed a bug report:

https://community.adobe.com/t5/lightroom-classic-bugs/toggling-b-amp-w-when-the-default-profile-is-c...

[johnrellis]

Moderators, @Rikk Flohr: Photography, please merge with the bug report:

https://community.adobe.com/t5/lightroom-classic-bugs/toggling-b-amp-w-when-the-default-profile-is-c...

[Rikk Flohr: Photography]

I've logged a ticket for the team to review. 

[Sameer K]

Hello everyone,

An update for Adobe Photography products has been released as part of the MAX cycle. This update addresses the reported issue.

If you don’t see the update in your Creative Cloud app, refresh it using [Ctrl/Cmd] + [Alt/Opt] + [R].

Please note: It may take up to 24 hours for the update to appear.

Thank you for your continued patience.

[johnrellis]

I verified that LR 15.0 now produces the correct behavior for the bug recipe, thanks.

[giorgiol35705912]

Thanks for solving this issue. Regards.