New UBVRI and H{alpha} photometry has been obtained for the young open cluster NGC 6530 located 10' east of the Lagoon Nebula (M8). We found 37 pre-main-sequence (PMS) stars with H{alpha} emission and nine PMS candidates using the R-H{alpha} color, a measure of H{alpha} emission. From this new photometry we derived the cluster parameters (V_0_-M_V_=11.25+/-0.1mag and E(B-V)=0.35mag), typical age (1.5Myr), and an age spread of about 5Myr. We confirmed the presence of a small amount of differential reddening across the cluster. We also verified the abnormal reddening law for the cluster, especially for a heavily embedded O7 V star, Herschel 36. Comparisons were made for several PMS evolution models with regard to the resulting age distribution and the initial mass function.