Color grading workflow question

Lets say I want to color grade my whole Final Cut project, should I grade each RAW clip individually then edit in FCP? If you do grade each RAW file wouldn't take take too long since I only use a portion of the raw clip? or should I import that whole, edited, FCP project to Grade in after effects? How do you color grade each individual clip when after effects recognizes your edit as a single clip?

Traditionally, color grading is the last step in a project before final delivery.
The reasons: any other way of doing it results in much unnecessary AE render time and excessive drive space to store extraneous footage.
It IS possible to do it the way you want.
Just make sure that you have 1) the time and 2) the storage to indulge your workflow preferences.

Similar Messages

Looking for Pre-Rendered Editing / Color Grading Workflow suggestions.

Looking for Pre-Rendered Editing / Color Grading Workflow suggestions.
All my material is rendered via RenderMan, our resolution is 1280x544, and our format is generally .exr in 32 bit space.
Our editor has been converting over to 32-bit tiffs, and using Apple Intermediate Codec for editing, mostly for speed concerns.
We need to re-vamp our workflow so that we can edit our footage, and then do color grading of the edit head to tail to smooth the look between scenes. We want to do this in Color, being fed by Final Cut Pro's timeline.
We want to keep our bit depth as high as possible when coming into Color.
My question is, does anyone here have any workflow suggestions for doing what I am talking about.
I wasn't sure if we should just export and EDL from FCP and try to get Color to load our single frames from that. Or if there is a special Quicktime wrapper we should be using, or converting our 32-bit .exr files into some other format more readily available for using in Color?
Any thoughts would be great, thanks in advance!

You're not going to get anywhere beyond 10-bit. That's it.
Try encoding to 10-bit LOG dpx if you need upscale RGB.
jPo

Color Correction Workflow Question

If I am color correcting on the "original clip" - and then pulling that color corrected "original clip" into its own "clip sequence" that I then pull into a "master sequence", along with all the other "clip sequences" that make up my edit, and I am trimming those "clip sequences" to get just the snippet I need...
Is that creating a longer rendering time than if I...
Do not color correct on the actual "original clip" - still put the "original clip" into its own "clip sequence" - trim and resize that "clip sequence" to just the snippet I need, and then do the color correcting on that "clip sequence" instead of the "original clip" itself?
I'm hoping there is no descernable difference in the approach, but I thought I'd throw it out there.
Thanks.

Good enough for me.
BTW Jim the workflow set-up you held my hand through (http://forums.adobe.com/message/5522489#5522489) is what I'm utilizing here - so far it has truly changed the way I approach everything for the better.

Color grading workflow for full featured film ...

dear friends ...
i'm about to edit a full feature film on premiere CS5 ... will color grade with colorista 2 and other tools (maybe AE) ... and the final movie will go to lab to print the film on 35mm film stock ... when i talked with the lab they told me to take care of the LUT ... i do not know how work with the same LUT in premiere CS5 and i do not know how i can be sure that the film will look the same from premiere CS5 to the film stock ... any ideas how i can achieve this?
The main problem with this and every other electronic color corrector is that while making a nice image on the electronic screen it is not what you will see on the film screen. The problem is there is no consideration for the density v. exposure, nonlinear response of the display device, and most important no simulation of the undesired dye cross coupling in the positive print film.
thanks for co-operation.

Well something I would advise is tests...lots of tests.
I would suggest that you will want to export from AEFX for the files going to the LAB.
Have the lab advised you of the file specs and type they require. eg seq tiif / tga....
I dont have an answer for you about managing the LUT but....
I did tests and used the "eyeometer" method. eg. I projected the tests up at the lab. The projector and screen were calibrated to a Kodak cinema spec
Actually I found color was not the issue of any significance.
I did find the gammas were a slight issue (easily dealt with)
Shadow detail requires concentrating on ( otherwise noise)
Highlights needed to be controlled to avoid blowing them out and away.

FCP - Color Workflow Question

I have DVCPRO HD sequences in FCP that I have applied Smoothcam filter to in many instances (one 10 minute sequence probably has Smoothcam applied to at least 15 of the clips). With over 4 hours of footage and Smoothcam applied often it would seem very labor intensive to have to create individual Quicktime movies for each of the clips where Smoothcam is applied and then drop those into the FCP timeline before sending to Color (especially as I will likely have to tweak the Color settings multiple times before getting the perfect outcome).
My sense is that I may be able to minimize the workload by:
1) creating one Quicktime movie of say an entire sequence with multiple instances of the Smoothcam fliter applied (instead of creating individual Quicktime movies of each clip where Smoothcam is applied)
2) sending that Quicktime movie to Color for grading
My question under the scenario directly above is how do you then split the Quicktime movie into the individual clips in Color so that each clip can be graded individually?
The only other alternative I can see is to:
1) remove all of the Smoothcam filters (and sharpening filters) in the FCP timeline
2) send sequence to Color for grading
3) roundtrip to FCP
4) apply Smoothcam filter (and sharpening filters) to all of the individual clips again after color grading is totally complete
I am a little daunted by the thought of this with over 4 hours of DVCPRO HD footage. Your suggestions regarding the best and most efficient workflow would be greatly appreciated.

Not quite six of one and half a case of the other, but you are in for some effort either way. Thomas Edison had an observation about "opportunity" arriving dressed in coveralls, but most people take a pass on it because it looks like "too much work".
If you elect the "bake out one big QT file" workflow, there is some efficiency to bringing the new QT onto a copy of the originating timeline and using that as a cutting guide to "razor in" the event boundaries, and then send that to COLOR. It will save a significant amount of re-rendering time.
If you remove the Smoothcam and other filters and send the raw source media to COLOR, that would be a normal workflow. I'd imagine there will be a significant amount of "attribute" copying after the fact, and of course all the smoothcams will have to go through "re-analysis". (I'd send a duplicate sequence, so the original filtered sequence can act as a source.)
The smoothcam filter will probably yield a different rendition on the COLOR-graded media, since the Boolean re-scaling (to keep the image within the active picture area) may not exhibit the same behaviour -- since you will only be dealing with the selected footage, rather than the entire source clip.
Sending the clips with an attached Smoothcam filter would probably result in massive render times, since FCP requires the entire intact source media to compute the stabilizing script, similar to sending a clip with a speed adjustment.
jPo

FCP + After Effects + Color Workflow Question

Forgive me if this is a naive question. I would like to know what is the best way to work between FCP, Color, and After Effects. This is the first project I'm working on that requires all three applications.
All my shots are done in DVCPro HD and imported into FCP. DVCPro is not really supported in Color so I learned that they should be converted to ProRes (right?). In Color I will be adding a vignette effect and color grading so I know it has to be last otherwise my texts and mattes in AE will look like they're on top of the video.
My problem with that is almost every shot will have an AE effect in it so it's easier to dump the whole timeline into AE using popcorn's XML script. But once I export it from AE and put it back into FCP it is one clip but color correction and effects has to be done differently for each clip and I can't do that in Color with the single AE clip I just rendered. So I'm kind of lost, is my only option to add effects in AE one clip at a time and return them to FCP?
Also am I right that Color only supports Apple ProRes? DVCPro HD hasn't worked so far.
Your help is greatly appreciated. Thanks.
DP

Hello David.
Regarding your question about DVCPro HD support, it is supported as an Importable format, but Color cannot render out in DVCPro HD. Color supports ProRes across the board. Here's a list of supported formats:
http://documentation.apple.com/en/color/usermanual/index.html#chapter=4%26sectio n=9%26tasks=true
After Effects really isn't part of my normal workflow, so I can't really comment on it, other than I've had a lot of problems with 10.0.1 and ProRes. That problem has caused me to eliminate AE from any workflow that I use here.

Question about "Native ISO" and Color Grading in PP

I have a question about "Native ISO" in the real world and how it relates to color grading. I was shooting 35mm film before all these digital cameras became flat-out amazing practically overnight. Then the goal was always to shoot with the lowest ISO possible to achieve the least amount of grain (unless you were making an artistic decision to get that look). If I was shooting outside plus had a nice lighting package I'd shoot 5201/50 ASA (Daylight) and 5212/100 ASA (Tungsten) 99 times out of 100.
I've recently been shooting a lot with the Blackmagic 4K and have read that its "Native ISO" is 400. Because of my film background this seems counter-intuitive. Yesterday I was shooting for a client and had the camera at an f16 with a 200 ISO. Because of what I'd read, I was tempted stop down to an f22 and change my ISO to 400... but the "little film voice in my head" just wouldn't let me do it. It kept telling me "Higher ISO means more noise... stay at 200 and you will get a cleaner image".
So how does it work with "Native ISO"? Should I really shoot at a 400 ISO every chance I get in order to capture the best image for how the camera is calibrated? Will it really give me more latitude when color grading? Or would I still get a cleaner image staying at ISO 200? I've Googled around quite, but haven't found any articles that answer specifically this question. Would love to hear from someone who knows a bit more on the subject or has a link that could point me in the right direction.
Thanks much.

Hey, shooter ... yea, interesting discussion and always nice to learn. Great pic, too!
jamesp2 ...
Great answer. I've followed quite a bit of the discussion about the BM cams as well, one does feel a need to check out the possibilities for that next beastie one will need to acquire. But ... which one?
I've always been a bit of a hard-case about testing testing testing. For instance, what happens with dome down or use of a flat diffuser vs. dome in the up position in metering? Back in the film days, we had our own lab and did our own printing as well as the um ... difficult images ... from other studios. I needed to know how to get exactly the same diffuse highlight no matter whether it was a "standard" light 3:1 studio shot, or a near-profile with no fill that needs dark shadows. I tested & burned through boxes of medium-format polaroid & 120 film and a lot of color paper. Finding? To get the same print time no matter the contrast or lighting style, needed to be metered either with the flat disc (Minolta) or dome-down (Sekonic) and held at the highlight-location pointed at the main light source. I could meter and nail the exposure every time. Ahh no, insist so many ... one must have the dome on/up and pointed at the camera! Right. Do that, change the contrast, and see what happens to your diffuse forehead highlight on a densitometer ... and see how your printing exposure times change. Oh, and you've just moved your center-of-exposure up or down on the film's H&D curve, which will also change the way the shadows & highlights print. In truth, though it was subtle, we had realistically no matter latitude for a best-case image with pro neg film as one had with chromes. You could probably get away with being "off" easier, but it still wasn't dead-on.
So wading into video ... oi vey, you may have noticed the things claimed here there & everywhere ... this setting is God's Gift to Humanity but no, it's total crap ... this sensor is totally flawed but someone else is certain it's the finest piece out there. Yes, opinions will be all over ... but ... in film, it was the densitometer. In video, it's the scopes. Truth. And getting to that can be a right pain. I've seen quite a few contradictory comments about using the BM cams in film mode and also at ISO 200. Yours above gives the most ... comforting? ... explanation (for me) because of your reference to your scopes & the waveform patterns. Thank you.
Love to learn ...
Neil

Advice for logical workflow for color correcting and color grading

I am an experienced user of PPRO CS5. I am a novice with color correcting and color grading. I am also just barely competant in AE CS5. It has been suggested that I use AE for color correcting my footage. Can you advise me as to the most logical workflow for doing this in coordination with PPRO CS5? Are there some tutorials that you recommend? I subscribe to Lynda.com and I think that they have some great tutorials, I am unsure as to where to begin looking and what to search for.
Thanks so much,
Lisa

lisaellensegal wrote:
I am an experienced user of PPRO CS5. I am a novice with color correcting and color grading. I am also just barely competant in AE CS5. It has been suggested that I use AE for color correcting my footage.
You can do it that way, sure. But you don't have to. You can accomplish quite a lot without leaving PPro. This has two major advantages. First, if you aren't using AE for anything else, it gets you out of using AE at all, so gets you out of climbing another set of learning curves.
Second, even if you are using AE for other things (I use AE to make motion lower thirds, for example), doing the work in PPro can improve exporting speeds. This is because AE gets restricted to a single processor core in some workflows as discussed in this thread and others (search around if you're interested). This can make exporting take 3x as long or longer, depending on how much footage has to be processed by AE.
So, how to do color correction without leaving PPro? Use either a luma corrector or luma curve effect to set black and white points, and contrast (use a waveform monitor to help). Then use a three way color corrector effect to get rid of any residual color casts (use the vectorscope to help, and the RGB parade, etc.).
If you find you have specific colors that need to be fixed, you can apply another three way color correction effect and use it to make that secondary color correction (for example I find the blue dyes used in many labels tend to fluoresce under fluorescent lighting, and has to be desaturated with a secondary color correction or it "blooms" on an HDTV -- IOW, it has to be made "broadcast safe").
If you want tutorials for using these tools, the ones on Creative Cow by Andrew Devis are quite good, and free. The ones on color correction with PPro cs6 start at tutorial number 47. There's a bunch of them. All good.
Finally, get a copy of Van Hurkman's Color Correction Handbook. May be the best technical book I've ever read, and it'll certainly point you in the right direction for doing color correction work regardless of which tools you use to do it.

HP DreamColor Monitor for FCP Color grading

Hello, apologies that I posted this question also on the beginners video forum.
I am about to get a new Mac Pro set up specifically for color grading as I am a cinematographer and need more control over small projects where there is no budget for color grading of images at professional post houses. My vendor suggests using the 24" HP DreamColor LP 2480zx monitor driven from a Black Magic Intensity Pro card using the HDMI output. I have read conflicting reports and read a huge amount on forums such as Creative Cow about this but still not convinced I can get full 30bit grading from a Mac OS X using this monitor. I am in Australia and most projects here are in PAL format in HD at 1080p25 or 50i. I use FCP 7.
Any advice please?

are you saying I should look at Da Vinci Resolve to grade? Why?
It depends on whether you're a day-in and day-out business, and your preferred workflow. There are advantages and disadvantages to both. The Balckmagic-branded daVinci has a number of internal core processing advantages, a tracker that works, far superior color science, especially in secondary processing, but suffers from an old, "tape-to-tape" single-layer capability. However, it is truly "real-time", but that isn't as important to some.
The latest version of Resolve supports multiple-GPU processing on Mac, so the difference between the OSX offering and the much more expensive LInux may not be that great in actual performance. You can build a faster machine with more hardware.
The question... is it the software or controller that makes is (sic) so good? misses the point. Its a synergy of elements, just like good grading itself.
jPo

Need To Purchase Color Grading Monitor Today. Please Help

I've been color-correcting via the 3-Way plugin in FCP for years. At SD, normally DV, resolution via Firewire out to a color, CRT broadcast monitor. So now I'm color grading with Apple Color. Love it. But, I need a new output device and monitor. I say I need a new monitor b/c I now work (sometimes) at HD resolution. It's not often but I do. So my question are:
• Overall which card and monitor combo should I get?
• Should I stick with a SD CRT since most of my work is SD?
• And, if I do, can I still color-correct HD projects with it when the time comes?
• Should I do some type of HD monitor set-up?
Right now I'm working with the following:
• Dual 3Ghz Quad-Core Intel Xeon G5 Tower
• 8GB RAM
• NVIDIA GeForce 7300GT
• 1 Apple Cinema Display and 1 Wacom Cintiq display

Jonathon,
Did you not read my very post to your question? I answered this question for you. Look above, you'll see I tell you that the Kona LHe downconverts hd on the fly and I view it through component analong in my Sony PVM. I don't mind helping but you've asked this question 3 times now.
Worst case scenario (I guess) would be to down convert the HD footage to SD and color-correct in FCP via a Firewire and a SD CRT monitor. Correct? And if that's the case how would you do the the down conversion before the color-correction?
Yes, that is a very worst case scenario and one you should avoid. Personally, shooting hd to deliver in sd makes no sense to me at all. Darn near every show I've worked on this year is acquired in hd and then broadcast in sd and we use hardware downconverters that are horrendously expensive and yet the product is marginal.
If this is the workflow you're going to use, you'll want to use Compressor to change formats but geez, why on earth would you do this when a Kona LHe will do everything you want it to, right out of the box.

AE CS6 - 3D Compositing and Color Correction workflow

AE CS6 - 3D Compositing and Color Correction workflow
Hello everybody,
I have some questions about work flow in AE concerning compositing and Color Correction. I saw many tuts about (f.e. Lynda.com Premiere Pro Color Correction and Enhancement... and tuts by Andrew Davis here in creative.cow).
Essentially, he have this CC work flow:
GRADING (primary and secondary)
Adjusting Tonality (Brightness and Contrast)
Adjusting Colors (White balance and fix color dominance)
MATCHING
Conforming colors of different clip shoted with different camera and lighting set up.
ENANCHING LOOK
Giving to all clips a unique "look"
But what does it happen if we have NOT just some clips but ALSO a 3D object (rendered in a 3d sw or, actually also a 3d object inserted by 3D Element by videocopilot)
or/and
a keyed clip from a green screen shot?
How does this footage (3d object and green screen keyed shot) transform
the aforementioned work flow?
We have to consider that this footage (3d object and green screen keyed shot) must to be pre-multiplied to make a right compositing but when you make CC it must be again "straight"... (NOT pre-multiplied)
Is really hard also understand how dale this work flow between AE and Pre Pro if you want to make CC in Pre Pro after compositing in AE.
I try to present a work flow for this (very common) situation:
I have a landscape clip as a background
a keyed clip (pre-multiplied) with a Character watching sky
and a 3d (pre-multiplied) object U.F.O. on sky.
When I have done compositing, how make I a right CC of all footage if I have two clip (3d object and green screen keyed shot) still pre-multiplied?
I think, but I'm not sure, that should be a good idea to send to Pre Pro a composited Comp with separate layers (by dynamic links) to have all single separate layers (Background, 3d object and green screen keyed shot.. but also the Color Warping...!). Than, in Pre Pro you should make a CC (Grading) just for a BG and than try to Match (Matching) this color corrected BG with 3d obj and keyed shoot. But we have a problem at this point cause our 3d object and green screen keyed shot are still pre-multiplied, and before make matching we have to re- multiplied theme, but how? And if we re pre-multiplied them, compositing will be also right?
Or maybe, before exporting comp from AE to Pre Pro, he have to create both layers for 3d object and green screen keyed shot, one pre-multiplied and one "Stright"? But, again, how to combine them to have a right compositing and a a right CC?
Anybody can help me to understand or maybe suggest any tuts to dale this common issue in AE- Pre Pro?
Many, many thanks!

Dave is correct. (And so is Mylenium. No need to be rude, when he was jsut trying to explain that you were introducing unnecessary complexity.)
The color matting is removed to interpret the alpha channel when you import the footage. After that, any color correction that you do to a layer based ont hat footage item doesn't have anything to do with whether the channels were straight or premultiplied for the source item.
You color-correct your individual items to amke them match as part of the compositing process in After Effects. Then, if you want to do a color grade of the shot in Premiere Pro along with other shots, you'd be working on the single rendered/flattened composite, so the details of the original elements that went into the composite are irrelevant.

RED Workflow questions with Mac Pro (including third party plugins)

Hello all,
I’ve been searching many forums for the better part of a day trying to get some workflow questions sorted. I’m experiencing (very) slow export times, and mediocre playback for a machine that should be screaming fast.
Here is what I’m working with:
2014 Mac Pro
-2.7 GHz 12-core intel xeon E5
-64GB Ram
-Dual AMD FirePro D700 6GB
-1TB Flash Storage
Editing all footage off 96TB Raid 6 mini-sas server (getting about 1100mbs read/write rate according to AJA system test) which is faster than any Thunderbolt/TB2 drive array I have.
Media I work with is footage from the RED Epic (normally 5K) as well as DSLR footage from the 5d.
Software:
-PrPro CC 2014 (8.1)
-Magic Bullet Looks 2.5.2
My question(s) pertains to RED post-pro workflow in combination with third party plug-ins and the different approaches to make it more efficient.
Right now, majority of the clients need a 1080p HD master, and they are generally anywhere from 2-8 minutes (usually). So my sequence settings are as follows:
Video:
Editing Mode: RED Cinema
Size: 1920 x 1080
Audio: 48Hz
Video Previews
Preview File Format: I-Frame Only MPEG
Codec: MPEG I-Frame
1920x1080
Maximum Bit Depth unchecked
Maximum Render Quality unchecked
Composite in Linear Color checked
Export Settings
H.264
1920x1080
VBR 1 pass
Target Bitrate 12mbs
Max bitrate 12mbs
Maximum render quality/depth/previews unchecked
Issues I have:
-Playback is fine at 1/2 or even full, but once effects (especially magic bullet looks) start to go on the clips, it’s very choppy and has difficult playback at 1/4
-Export times (especially with magic bullet looks) will take the better part of 1-4 hours for a video that is 3-6 minutes long. This doesn’t seem like it should be the case for a maxed out MacPro
So my questions are:
Do these seem like the right sequence/export settings for mastering at 1080p? If not, what would you suggest?
Would using offline editing help at all?
Do you place your effects on adjustment layers?
Is there anyway to improve export settings when using an array of filters?
Have you stopped using third party plugins for their inefficiency in unreliability and switched to more integrated applications like SpeedGrade?
Is there any other tweaks that you would suggest for RED workflow with PrPro?
Should I consider switching to FCPX or (besides the iMovie-likeness) does it carry problems of its own?

Hi This Is Ironclad,
thisisironclad wrote:
Hello all,
I’ve been searching many forums for the better part of a day trying to get some workflow questions sorted. I’m experiencing (very) slow export times, and mediocre playback for a machine that should be screaming fast.
The biggest issue is that most people have is that updating OS X causes certain folders to be set to Read Only. See this blog post: Premiere Pro CC, CC 2014, or 2014.1 freezing on startup or crashing while working (Mac OS X 10.9, and later).
thisisironclad wrote:
Hello all,
I’ve been searching many forums for the better part of a day trying to get some workflow questions sorted. I’m experiencing (very) slow export times, and mediocre playback for a machine that should be screaming fast.
Here is what I’m working with:
2014 Mac Pro
-2.7 GHz 12-core intel xeon E5
-64GB Ram
-Dual AMD FirePro D700 6GB
-1TB Flash Storage
It's a nice base system. How about an additional speedy disk for media cache files. You also did not mention which version of OS X you are running.
thisisironclad wrote:
Software:
-Magic Bullet Looks 2.5.2
The Red Giant website does not indicate that this software is yet updated to work with Premiere Pro CC 2014.1 (8.1). Proceed with caution here.
thisisironclad wrote:
Issues I have:
-Playback is fine at 1/2 or even full, but once effects (especially magic bullet looks) start to go on the clips, it’s very choppy and has difficult playback at 1/4
I would not use this plug-in until you get the OK from the manufacturer.
thisisironclad wrote:
-Export times (especially with magic bullet looks) will take the better part of 1-4 hours for a video that is 3-6 minutes long. This doesn’t seem like it should be the case for a maxed out MacPro
Again, I suspect your plug-in.
Keep in mind that exports are largely CPU based but you can make sure that GPU acceleration is enabled for AME at the bottom of the Queue panel.
thisisironclad wrote:
So my questions are:
Do these seem like the right sequence/export settings for mastering at 1080p? If not, what would you suggest?
It's OK.
thisisironclad wrote:
Would using offline editing help at all?
No need when you should be able to edit natively. Relinking might also be an issue.
thisisironclad wrote:
Do you place your effects on adjustment layers?
That's one way you can do it with the benefit of being more organized.
thisisironclad wrote:
Have you stopped using third party plugins for their inefficiency in unreliability and switched to more integrated applications like SpeedGrade?
I do. Of course, that's a preference.
thisisironclad wrote:
Is there any other tweaks that you would suggest for RED workflow with PrPro?
Try the following:
Sign out from Creative Cloud, restart Premiere Pro, then sign in
Update any GPU drivers
Trash preferences
Ensure Adobe preference files are set to read/write(Hopefully you checked this out already)
Delete media cache
Remove plug-ins
If you have AMD GPUs, make sure CUDA is not installed
Repair permissions
Disconnect any third party hardware
If you have a CUDA GPU, ensure that the Mercury Playback Engine is set to CUDA, not OpenCLYou have AMD GPUs.
Disable App Nap
Reboot
thisisironclad wrote:
Should I consider switching to FCPX or (besides the iMovie-likeness) does it carry problems of its own?
I really shouldn't answer that question.
Hope this helps.
Thanks,
Kevin

LCD for Color Grading

I'll need to dive into Color when I finish editing my one-hour long documentary in a couple months. The doc is intended to be shown on a large theatre screen one time, then broadcast on community-access television and lent through our regional public library system on DVD. My question(s): Can the Apple 30" Cinema Display be used for color grading? Or HP's 2480zx LCD Monitor? Would the Spyder3Elite Display Calibration product be useful? Thanks in advance.

Interestingly enough, the options for trying to push a computer text display into being a grade monitor are narrowing down to nothing. The harder people have been trying to make a silk purse out of these sow's ears has resulted in the inevitable conclusion that hey, there really is no such thing as free lunch. Even the vaunted ACD's after watching two of them for nearly three years now, can't hold a calibration for more than a couple of hours and then go magenta. Its because we need so much green to make D65 white. Those poor green dots just peter out and then red and blue take over. So you better be fast, because you will be working with a different monitor for the second half of the day.
An interesting thread on a pro telecine site has been discussing the HP Dreamcolor... the general conclusion is that it is probably great for a cubicle farm full of compositing and animation artists who more need a match between them than truly accurate colorimetry. At least its consistent. A high end grading device company member warned against using certain types of "probes", since at varying resolutions of display, you really have no idea what the thing is integrating to come up with a white point.
One of the really huge things that is missing is the ENVIRONMENT that the grade is taking place in. Sure, the monitor is important... but almost equally so is the room in which it is situated... its ambient illumination and the requirement for a constant contrast neutral 18% D65 background against which to judge the monitor itself, not just what it is trying to display.
That's one of the reasons that the COLOR GUI is that "ugly" grey.... even though its probably not grey at all if the monitor you're using to display it is whacked. Every time you look at it... it is influencing the balance of your target image. Imagine you're the beer taster at the world's finest brewery.... and what (hold on a minute while I savour the fantasy.... okay, I'm back) but between samples you take a big gulp of vinegar. Right. Is that going to work?
jPo

Sharpening export workflow question

I have a sharpening workflow question. Say I have pictures from a portrait session I just finished. I have to send 10 pictures the client ordered to a print lab and I also will make some small facebook sized pictures and upload them to my business facebook page. The level of sharpening needed for large prints (I upload to print lab as RGB JPEGS) and sharpening needed for the very small sRGB facebook-sized pictures is different. In Lightroom I have the option to set the sharpening on export and have a bunch of presets that alter the export size, color space, sharpening, etc(WHCC print lab, facebook, Client CD, etc). I don't see how to do that in Aperture. I see they have the option if you have a printer, but not on normal export.
For those of you that have to export batches of pictures in multiple different sizes (with different levels of sharpening), what is your workflow? I could use some photoshop droplets/actions after Aperture export but I was hoping there was a way to avoid the extra step. Am I overlooking an export feature? The BorderFX plug-in looks like the only other option.
Thank you in advance for time and help!
Scott

Frank Scallo Jr wrote:
The thing is guys - Once a file is sized down it WILL lose sharpening - what we are doing is sharpening the full size RAW file or rather what the full size output would be like. Once we export a version sized down it will lose some of the 'bite'. LR has sharpening options on 'output' which is not only smart but a necessity. Adobe realizes that output for screen needs another sharpen. Apple either doesn't know or didn't bother. It makes ANY output for screen less than best.
Bear in mind that there seem to be two separate issues going on here - sharpening adjustments not being applied on export, and resizing.
As far as resizing is concerned, Aperture appears to use something roughly equivalent to Photoshop's Bicubic Sharper setting. Because of this I've never had much problem with Aperture's exports when used for the web, but obviously everyone's taste for sharpening differs which is why an option for output sharpening would be good.
Sharpening adjustments not being applied on export is a separate issue and should be reported via the feedback form ASAP by everyone who is experiencing the bug.
Now printing is another animal - I wouldn't print directly from RAW in aperture either if I'm printing small. Again, LR beats Aperture here as well since they include output sharpening for print.
Aperture has had output sharpening for printing since 2.0 came out (unless it in was 1.5). In A3 you need to turn on 'More Options' and scroll down, I can't remember where it is in A2. I don't know how effective it is as I print via a lab, but it's there and it's been there for a long time...
Ian

Desktop Monitor for Web Color Grading

First question is simple: I'm in need of new desktop monitors. Looking towards the Dell Ultrasharps, which have been a favorite in the past, specifically the U2412M. Any other suggestions?
Second question, more difficult: I do a fair amount of color work with DaVinci Resolve. None of it for broadcast. By this logic, I feel like I can get away with a solid desktop monitor rather than a Dreamcolor, FSI or something pricier. If this is the case, any input on whether the Ultrasharps are a better or worse choice than anything else?
And third question: Resolve doesn't output to a second monitor without a Decklink. I guess this means I would need the Decklink Studio, or buy an SDI/HDMI converter to get to the desktop monitor? Seems like overkill, but the only option?
Thanks much!

Thanks, Shane.
2 - A computer monitor is never good for color grading. Different colorspace than TVs or broadcast monitors.
That's sort of the idea-- almost all my work is for the web, and therefore I feel like a good computer monitor is actually (albeit counter-intuitively) a good fit.
Besides that, I'd love to kill two birds with one stone and have an extended desktop when I'm not grading.
Faulty logic?

Color grading workflow question

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