Davinci Resolve vs AE for color grading

E

eco_bach

Well-known member
Hi
At the moment I use AE for ALL my color grading. Am considering migrating over to a Davinci Resolve workflow, but am wondering what I will be losing in the process. The power and flexibility of adjustment layers in AE, especially if combined with blend modes can't be beat.
Is there any equivalent to adjustment layers in Resolve? And what about 3rd party filters...what if anything is available?

Can anyone comment on the pros and cons of each?
 
For color grading alone it's a no-brainer. That's what DaVinci is made for. It's also node based, so your workflow is going to be different than in AE.

AE is great for what it does, but if you're strictly looking for a color grading solution, DaVinci is the much better option.
 
eco_bach said:
Hi
At the moment I use AE for ALL my color grading. Am considering migrating over to a Davinci Resolve workflow, but am wondering what I will be losing in the process. The power and flexibility of adjustment layers in AE, especially if combined with blend modes can't be beat.
Click to expand...

So are you using SA aperture/Color Finesse in AE? That is the only saving grace I see with AE.

PDR said:
Has anyone used it sucessfully on Windows yet?
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Not me. As soon as the offer a lite for Windows, I'll certainly try it!
 
Resolve is a color grading platform first and foremost. It's designed to allow the colorist the ability to quickly correct hundreds of shots while keeping track of all those grades, re-using them for re-edits or cut-downs, and doing so in as close to Real-Time playback and rendering as possible.

Version 8.1, which is slated for release by the end of this month, now includes Transfer Modes directly within the grading environment.

Resolve is not a 'Looks' app - it has no support for 3rd party plug-ins (although many of us wish it did).

Creating interesting Looks, mimicking classic film processing styles or film stocks can all be done. Though some require lots of work and a deep understanding of the underlying chemistry.

RE: Adjustment Layers - You'll need to re-work how you think about color grading when you work in Resolve. Each node can be considered it's own Adjustment Layer. They are re-orderable and there are several types of Nodes that allow Nodes to interact with each other in different ways.

I can't say if Resolve will work for you since I have no idea of your pipeline and typical turnarounds. Nor the type of effects you expect to be able to apply when working on your images. It's not a compositing tool (though it does allow for in-context grading of composite elements and supports external keys) nor is it a visual effects tool. But if you need to color grade a 1,600 shot documentary or feature film and do it in 4 days... Resolve is fantastic. Or if you need to color grade 4 versions of the same :30 second spot - it has powerful tools to allow your grades to be shared among the various versions. It also has a terrific tracker, extremely powerful masking tools, and top-notch scaling.

I hope this helps!

- patrick
 
I think the power of having a davinci system is the speed. I think this is really only applicable with the hardware controllers and having a cluster Linux system dedicated to a resolve system. Without the realtime rendering and having to use a mouse, the benefits of working with resolve over the other apps aren't that big. IMO
 
bimdas said:
I think the power of having a davinci system is the speed. I think this is really only applicable with the hardware controllers and having a cluster Linux system dedicated to a resolve system. Without the realtime rendering and having to use a mouse, the benefits of working with resolve over the other apps aren't that big. IMO
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Cluster of Linux systems is not needed to realize the power of Resolve.

The power of Resolve is that you can color your film... then change the edit, send Resolve a new EDL or XML file... and Resolve will track where everything went and still apply your color settings correctly even if those shots have moved around.

I guess you could do everything in Premiere with Colorista... but coloring that way for a long form project is a bit sad IMHO! Workflow sucks compared to the fluidity of moving from one shot to another in Resolve - even if you only have a mouse.

Give the (free) Resolve Lite a try - it's damn awesome.

My 2c.

Bruce Allen
www.boacinema.com
 
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