The latest news, reviews, thoughts, and humor for professional (and aspiring) moving image Colorists and Finishers. |
From the Editor: This edition of the newsletter represents a milestone of sorts... we've shared over 500 stories. Thanks for staying with us!
This Week At "The Tao"
- [Podcast] The Truth About 10-bit LCDs - In Part 2 of my interview with Bram Desmet from Flanders Scientific we keep digging into LCD technology. We talk backlights, 8bit vs 10bit vs 10bit FRC, contrast ratios, gamma settings, color gamut, and more... (TaoOfColor.com)
Tools We Use
- The 'Dissolve Effect' In Resolve - Resolve calls 'keyframes', 'marks'. And animated keyframes are called 'dissolves'. This Toni Gozum post is an intro into animating your keyframes in Resolve. (ColorMeThis.wordpress.com)
- CUDA, Mercury Playback Engine, and Premiere Pro - Adobe's Todd Kopriva breaks down what the Mercury Playback Engine is (and is not). Hint: It's more than just CUDA acceleration. (Blogs.Adobe.com)
- Premiere Pro On The Mac: What Is The Truth? - Adobe's Dennis Radake gives a rundown on what it takes to run Premiere Pro CS 5 on a Mac. He also takes on the notion that you can't get great performance from a non-CUDA accelerated Mac. (ProVideoCoalition.com via @ProVideo)
- Avid AMA - I've been reading a bit on email lists and in forums confusion about AMA. Here's a good QuickStart. Be foreworned, it get's a bit promotional at the end. (MacVideo.tv via @MediaComposer)
- Avid Workflow for Alexa Log-C (and Final Cut too) - Alexicc is a tool to that will take your Alexa Log-C files, apply a LUT to make those flat images look nicey-nicey, and convert to DNxHD (or ProRes) using multiple cores for faster-than-real-time conversion. The accompanying video demos both Avid AMA and MXF workflows. (lightillusion.com)
Lotto for Colorists
- Win A Complete Blackmagic DaVinci Resolve System - Including their $30,000US control surface. It's reason enough to go to NAB. Let's hope a Tao Colorist wins! (SuperMeet.com)
Professional Photoshop: The Classic Guide To Color Correction - If you are SERIOUS about color correction. If you want to really understand how to evaluate, fix, and then enhance an image - this is one of the two best books on the market. Yes, it's Photoshop-centric. And yes, you need a copy of Photoshop to play along (and you should play along). But anything from Photoshop CS and later should do just fine.
Note: The curves in Photoshop are backwards from most color grading apps - so you'll have to do some mental gymnastics when writing curves. Not a big deal, but worth warning about.
Essential Reading
Number Crunching
- Edit Suite Design 2011 - Olive Peters has another great post. This time he pulls out the spreadsheet and puts together the numbers for building out a pro quality system for Avid, FCP, Premiere Pro, DaVinci Resolve, and ProTools. (DigitalFilms.wordpress.com)
System Check
- Kona 3, Kona 3G: New Drivers - This 8.1.3 update for Mac fixes issues with After Effects for both versions of Kona 3. The 3G update has a host of additional fixes. (AJA Kona 3 / AJA Kona 3G)
Edumacate Yer'self
- Want To Play With RED Files? Start Your Downloads - Links to downloadable R3D files (from the prototype MX sensor) to grade while demo'ing Storm (or working in Color or Resolve or your app of choice). (RedUser.net via NoFilmSchool.com)
- Free Autodesk Smoke Introductory Training - I'm a huge fan of Smoke as a finishing station. I also recognize that lots of editors get completely put off by how different the Smoke interface is from the work-a-day NLE. If you're at NAB this year and are wondering what Smoke is about, then sign up and get yerself edumacated. (area.autodesk.com via @scottmalkie)
- Rotoscoping: Tools & Techniques for the Aspiring Artist (Amazon.com)
Edumacate Yer Clients
- How To Use A Light Meter - This might also be filed under... how to insult a client. (NoFilmSchool.com)
- The Art of Pillow Placement - A less offensive link to send to a client when discussing where exactly color grading actually begins. (MasteringFilm.com via @eactipis)
- Northern Lights: DSC Test Chart for Extreme Saturation Capable Cameras (live-production.tv)
Current Colorist Control Surface Drivers
| JL Cooper Eclipse |
Euphonix MC Color |
Tangent Wave |
| Software: v2.1.6 |
Mac: v2.5.7 |
Software: v3.8 |
|
Color Plug-in: v 1.0.5 |
PC: v2.5.7 |
Firmware: v1.9 |
| Updated: March 7 |
Updated: Feb. 18 |
Updated: Jan. 28(ish) |
Sunday Morning Fun(nies)
- Shooting Time Lapse: Lesson #1 - You know the term LOL? It was made for this! (PetaPixel.com)
- Saturn Fly-Through: From Conception to IMAX Resolution - What's special about this? No CGI. No animation. Every frame is a real image... in this case from the Cassini mission. (DVice.com)
- The Noun Project: Universal Symbols Collection - A neat idea. Fun to look through. (theNounProject.com)
- The History of Science Fiction - This is here mostly because my wife's grandfather is listed (founder, Amazing Stories). (MikeJones.tv)
Book Your Tickets NOW!
- Taxi Driver: Digitally Remastered in 4k - 2 nights only at select AMC Theaters equipped with Sony 4k projectors. Which theaters might those be? Glad you asked. Click through. (AMCTheaters.com via @scripteach)
Being Better Creatives
14... er... 12 Strategies for Creating A Kick Ass Creative Workspace - If your creative workspace is a grading suite, you'll probably want to avoid Strategies #1 and #4. (illuminatedMind.net)
stop fiddling, start grading
MASTER THE BASICS OF COLOR GRADING
On Craftsmanship
- Tartine Bread - Beautiful. Perfect for a Sunday Morning with your coffee. (16x9cinema.com)
Doing Business
Too Cool for School
Gear Heads
- How Fast Is Thunderbolt While Running FCP? A live (recorded) demo with a 6 drive prototype e-Sata Raid and Display Port LCD all daisy-chained off a Thunderbolt MacBookPro via Thuderbolt. (Tejbabra.com via )
Weekend Warrior
- Direct 8MM to Canon 5D - Very nifty direct to sensor DIY telecine for those precious home movies. (16x9cinema.com)
Got Dropped Calls?
Free. As in, Beer.
The Next Step Is A Doozy
- World's Smallest Camera - The size of a grain of salt. Try focus pulling THAT. (PetaPixel.com)
A Step Too Far
- Florida: Photograph A Farm... Become A Felon - Not all bills become law. Let's hope this one doesn't. It would have turned the director of my most recent color grading gig into a felon (who is wrapping a documentary about migrant child labor on American farms). (PetaPixel.com)
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