Software for color correction

G

guerriglia

Active member
Hi.
What is the software for color correction (if it does exist...) that combines good results and user-friendly tools?
In other words, I would like to start color correcting my videos and achieve good results, without spending months just to learn how to use it. The easier, the better, staying in the professional field.
Thanks.
 
Start with your NLE. They all have effective color-correction tools.

The dedicated pro system is DaVinci. You don't need to get all the hardware with it, and there's a free version.

But any skill takes time to learn, and the "easier" something is, the less control you actually have over it. If you want to do serious, pro-level color correction (or color grading), you need to put in the time to learn the tools. There's no substitute.
 
Adobe's SpeedGrade seems to be moveing towards a user frendly tool set, with pre-sets / looks / luts gaining strength inside the software, although it's not really ready for primetime network gradeing due to the lack of advanced tools, the basic's are all there along with a very good automatch / autograde

A BIG step up is Baselight editions inside an MC host.. that's a very complete tool set, but best used with the Slate surface

Resolve i find to be a bit of a pain without the dedacated Resolve surface - without that there's a ton of mouse'n about with any of the other surfaces, and without a surface i fond it very much a pain

Eyes, callibrated mon, scopes, tech knoledge all count for more than the software tho....
 
guerriglia said:
Hi.
What is the software for color correction (if it does exist...) that combines good results and user-friendly tools?
In other words, I would like to start color correcting my videos and achieve good results, without spending months just to learn how to use it. The easier, the better, staying in the professional field.
Thanks.
Click to expand...

I had a teacher once give me a valuable truth: "You can't solve a problem that you can't define." The difficulty here is in defining "good results" and "user-friendly tools". If you can define either one, you might make some headway in finding your answer.

Perhaps the easiest way to proceed is to use the tools that come with your NLE. Almost all NLE software has tools that let you control color, contrast, and your black and white points. Learn to use these tools, and when you run into their limitations, start looking for tools outside your NLE that solve your particular problems.

In the meanwhile, do some reading. Place to start is Van Hurkman's book. If nothing else it will teach you all the things you can do with color correction, and gives you a software/hardware agnostic view of the tools. Another good read is Bruce Block's The Visual Story. This will give you some ideas on why you'd want to do the things Van Hurkman describes.
 
Thanks

Thanks

Thanks everybody for your posts.
I am not looking for shortcuts, since I do know that great results require time, and time, and time of practice and sacrifice. Unfortunately I don't have it, along with the desire of spending years in front of a monitor. That's the way I am and have always been.
I am currently using FCPX tools and I am happy with them; I just had this feeling that they didn't allow a lot of possibilities, but I think that I was probably wrong, after reading your posts. I will keep using them as long as I find their limits, as Bruce Watson correctly suggested.

Note: what is Rainer's post about? Is it a joke or a suggestion? I don't get it ;-)
 
Sorry if I was a bit obscure. Did you check the link? New Blue is promoting it's CC product in the same terms as you were requesting.
 
guerriglia said:
I just had this feeling that they didn't allow a lot of possibilities,
Click to expand...

the basic tools built into any nle really have no "limits"

analogy:

if you do music production you'll find that you can make professional sounding tracks using just Equalizers, Compressors, and a handful of the basic effects such as reverb, chorus, and delay (And of course, accurate monitors-listening environment). Take 5 plus years to develop the ear and learn the techniques of mixing.

you can do everything you need to do with color grading/correction with the most basic tools built into any nle-- levels, color curves, saturation adjust, etc (and of course, for truly pro and reliable results, a calibrated monitor/accurate viewing environment).

its not the tools, its learning to use them.

If you have levels/color curves/etc..(which you do)... you have everything you need

as a matter of fact the tools built by companies such as New Blue (I have a few) can be great, but they are (often) designed for people who dont want to learn the "fine control" necessary to color grade really well, in a sense they are for people who dont WANT to know what they are doing (ie dont have the time, energy etc). This is not to put anyone down who uses them, they may be fine for soem ppls (semi-pro???) purposes, Im just trying to point out that the tools are often kind of like big fat "sledgehammers" when for truly pro results you need to learn to use a hammer and chisel. (?? aww my analogies suck). Example, Ive slapped a New Blue effect or two over my vacation footage to quickly warm it up and diffuse it, but I wouldn't use those tools to grade a feature length movie I want to put on a DVD (when I get to that point).

ironically the simple fundamentals tools are the ones that give the fine control, problem is learning them.

I like New Blue as a company btw did they make a new (more pro) CC tool? Im not sure what youre reffering to Ill check it out.

hope that makes sense

EDIT: I see, that "Colorfast" thing looks like its aimed at being an actual pro-ish (flexible) CC environment.
 
Last edited:
Dermot said:
[SpeedGrade is] not really ready for primetime network gradeing due to the lack of advanced tools.
Click to expand...

With the newly added Direct Link between Premiere Pro and SpeedGrade, I'm just starting to move from the more basic color correction tools over to this more professional tool, and I find it's capabilities to be a welcome upgrade from the plug-ins I was using. But I'm curious, having never used DaVinci, what 'advanced' tools might SG be missing?
 
Apart from the advance feature of professional monitoring options...

Well worth you loading up the free lite version Jim (or checking out some toots) ..there are many advanced tools that SG currently does not offer . Especially in DL mode. As good as it is.

Most of them offer subtle features in user interface and at the edge of the CC and grade..eg soft clipping.

THat said. Resolve is more complicated to in and out of compared to SG DL which hopefully will start pushing out the boat in the direction of Resolve capability with ease of use (DL)
 
Jim Simon said:
With the newly added Direct Link between Premiere Pro and SpeedGrade, I'm just starting to move from the more basic color correction tools over to this more professional tool, and I find it's capabilities to be a welcome upgrade from the plug-ins I was using. But I'm curious, having never used DaVinci, what 'advanced' tools might SG be missing?
Click to expand...
I last used SpeedGrade before it was bought by Adobe, but after looking at it recently nothing seems to have changed in the color tool themselves, only interoprability with other Adobe products - so with that caveat here's my top three list of tools i missed
3 - automatch (it's there but so disfunctional as to render it useless)
2 - tracker
1 - no option for an analouge to Baselight's "FilmMode", Pablo's "RGB page", DS's "RGB tab", Resolve's "Offsets"
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top