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Before we get into Color, I want to use this short movie to take a look at the
reasons why we Color Correct in Grade footage. This might seem like a no
brainer, but I think it's a good idea to get on the same page about what we're
trying to accomplish with the Color Correction process. Of course, you may have
your own reasons for correcting footage, like spiting a client and making the
footage look as bad as possible, but I can't help you with that.
So the first thing the Color Correction process is all about is correcting for
problems. These problems consist of Contrast problems, Color Balance problems,
Saturation problems, and Addressing Broadcast Legality.
What do we mean by Contrast corrections? Well, most footage needs some degree
of contrast adjustment, and Contrast corrections fix under or overexposed
footage. Contrast adjustments can be used to create a look, and Contrast
adjustments generally happen before Color adjustments.
If you're asking yourself, I thought Color was a Color Correction application,
well, you're correct, but Contrast corrections are a big part of that process.
So what are Color Balance corrections all about? Color Balance corrections
range from primary corrections like fixing improper White Balance, to secondary corrections
like adjusting the color of skin tone. Saturation corrections fix under or over saturated
footage. I'm sure we've all seen a person on television wearing a bright
red shirt that seems to glow. Well, it glows probably because its over saturated.
I'm sure we've all seen clips that look dull and flat, and they probably
look dull and flat because they're under saturated.
Broadcast Legality. Most broadcasters have rules about Contrast, Saturation,
and other technical aspects of the video signal. Even if the footage is not
intended for broadcast, it's a good idea to adhere to these rules, because
these rules were setup to help your footage look the best that it can.
Another important aspect of the Color Correction process is creating looks.
Creating looks is the sexy part of Color Correction. It's a large reason modern
Color software is as complicated and as feature rich as it is. Creating looks
is a combination of primary and secondary corrections.
Now, I know that we haven't defined primary and secondary corrections yet, but
we'll later on when we jump into Color. But the important thing to know is that
a look is just a combination of these two types of corrections.
Continuity. A large part of a color's role is creating visual continuity.
The term scene-to-scene color correction is typically used to describe this
process. Continuity applies corrections and looks in a consistent and logical way across
scenes. Correction versus Grading. These terms are
often used interchangeably. Grading can refer to applying looks while correction
can refer to merely fixing problems. The important thing to understand is that
in Color, corrections refer to adjustments made in a room, while a Grade
refers to the sum of adjustments from all rooms.
I know that we haven't defined rooms yet, but just keep it in the back of your
mind that a correction happens in an individual room, while a grade happens as
the sum of all those rooms. Now that we understand some of the goals of
the Color Correction process, in the next few movies we're going to take a
look at some of the technical aspects behind Color.