[TaoColorist] Sunday Morning Reading (The 19% Drop Edition)

Published: Sun, 09/21/14

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The Tao Colorist

Curated links of news, reviews, thoughts, career advice, and humor 
for professional Video / Film Colorists & Finishers. Delivered Sunday.

         Issue CCIXI                                                                              A TaoOfColor.com Publication

     Publisher: Pat Inhofer                                                            Managing Editor: Jim Wicks

The Craft

  • [video] Putting Post First - the craft of filmmaking often leaves post-production as an afterthought. Dive into this 3-part series by friend of the Tao, Walter Biscardi, who shows you how to involve Post from the get-go. (walterbiscardi.com)
  • [podcast] Why That Color?  - New York-based visual artist Aleksandar Maćašev shares his thoughts about color with Colorist Tom Parish. Maćašev is someone who believes in helping others find 'their' way of defining, using, and feeling colors. (tomparish.com)
The Tools

  • Ted's LightSpace CMS Calibration Disk - "Ted's LightSpace CMS Calibration Disk is a universal calibration disk that can be used from LightSpace / CalMAN / ChromaPure & HCFR users. LightSpace users can perform Automated 3D LUT Profiling using LightSpace's DIP Mode. CalMAN/ChromaPure users can perform Manual / Semi-Automated Measurements of the available disk Chapters to calibrate a display/projector or perform pre/post-calibration verification measurement runs." $15. (displaycalibrations.com via @liftgammagain)
  • [jpeg] Precision Panels On Mistika - Sweet. (twitter.com) More on SGO's Precision Panels. (sgo.es)
  • [Forum] Getting Started With Fusion - Fusion is the VFX software that Blackmagic Design acquired last week. Jason Myers has put together a great post with a dozen links to help you get started with it. (liftgammagain.com)

S P O N S O R E D   M E S S A G E

Tao of Color's Official LCD Reference Monitors

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The Business

  • [video] The 4K Race - Cinematographers Geoff Boyle, Rodney Charters, and Bill Bennett weigh in on 4K. Their main point is that resolution is pointless - it's all about dynamic range and color space. (vimeo.com)
  • Tracking and Managing Your Business - Interview with the CEO of a facility management software suite. (provideocoalition.com)
  • Avid Releases First Financial Results In Nearly Two Years - Revenue Down 11.4 Percent In 2013. "Following the filing of Avid's first quarter 2014 financial report, Avid plans to apply for relisting on the NASDAQ stock exchange" (blog.devoncroft.com)
  • [video] Tim Cook Appears On Charlie Rose - talks Steve Jobs, Beats and Apple TV. (9to5mac.com)
  • Showbiz, Music Industry Jobs Drop 19% In Two Years - "The industry has been hit by a sharp decline in domestic box office, with summer business generating the poorest total in eight years. Additionally, production incentives outside the U.S. have continue to lure producers to use international locations." (variety.com)
Friends & Family

MixingLight.com is a companion membership website to TaoOfColor.com. Want to read a story listed here but not a MixingLIght member? A free 24-hour test drive is available.

  • Basic Camera Matching - "In this Insight, we'll be covering how I match cameras and I'll show you an example of how I match a Red Scarlet, Blackmagic Cinema Camera and a Blackmagic Pocket Camera." (mixinglight.com)
  • [audio] Do You Need To Color Balance Every Shot? How To Best Grade Gray Skies? - Patrick, Dan and Robbie share their thoughts on these two member-submitted questions. (mixinglight.com)
  • Pitching a Change-Up: Using Different Tools - "simply by using another tool set to tackle a problem I was able to, like a pitcher, throw my grading a change up that ultimately resulted in fixing the problem and getting good results." (mixinglight.com)
Outside 'The Box'

  • [video] Understanding The Color Managed Workflow - mainly aimed at the photographer and printer, this video has lots of great info for the working Colorist. NY-based Production Manger Jeff Lazell also shares tips and tricks in Photoshop and Lightroom. (youtube.com)
  • [review] Predicting Color Under Lighting - the Academy Color Predictor for iPad was first released earlier this year at NAB. It lets you predict and preview the color rendering capabilities of digital cameras under different lighting setups. (redsharknews.com)
  • The Ultimate Guide To Composition - in depth guide to some of the common guidelines, concepts, and theories that are present in photography and painting. (fstoppers.com Part 1 | Part 2)
  • [video] ARRI Amira vs Alexa - a comparison between ARRI's new ENG-style AMIRA camera, and it's big brother the ARRI ALEXA. (youtube.com)
Edumacate Yer'self

  • DaVinci Resolve: Group Training - Montreal. October. (lnkd.in)
Current Colorist Control Surface Drivers
JL Cooper Eclipse: Software v2.9.9.1 | Updated August 7, 2014

Tangent Design: HUB v1.1.7 | Wave Firmware v1.12 | Updated July'ish 2014

Avid Artist Color: Mac v3.1.3 | Win v3.1.3 | Updated June 30, 2014
Sunday Morning Fun(nies)

  • Pantone Beer Colors - Pantone colors come to beer cans. Beautiful to behold, but it's what's inside that counts. Courtesy Loren White (txaber.net via @lorenwhite)
  • [video] Where Will Color Take You? - in the U.S., the home paint store chain, Sherwin-Williams, is running a TV commercial under the banner: where will color take you? Fun 30 second spot that is - to say the least - colorful. (youtube.com)
  • [video] Top 10 Movie Monologues - movies are memorable for lots of different reasons but the lines or monologues that we quote top the list. (youtube.com)
  • [video] It's a Wrap - here's how to use duct tape to wrap cords without leaving behind the sticky residue. Too bad the movers we used to relocate to Orlando didn't use this tip. (lifehacker.com)
Gear Heads

  • Designing Multi-Tier Storage Networks for Video - what options do you have if you lost all your data? How quickly could you get it back? Could you get it back? Check out ProMax's white paper on designing multi-tier storage plans for video. Free to download after registering. (go.promax.com)
  • HP's iMac - the Z line of computers from HP has been going head to head with Apple's line.  Master Editor Oliver Peter's reviews the 2nd generation Z1 G2 Workstation - HP's all in one iMac. (digitalfilms.wordpress.com)
  • [review] LG OLED 55" HDTV - "The EC9300 delivered the contrast performance of the best plasma televisions while matching the brightness and efficiency of LCD technology. With its good factory-calibrated picture and appealing design, anyone interested in being an early adopter of OLED technology will find the 55EC9300 to be the deal of the year". Read the LGG forum thread for a discussion. (hdguru.com via liftgammagain.com)

    Is it time to turn color correction into skill set you can sell?


    Remastering Mother Died:
    A Color Correction Home Study


    => Download a short film (shot on RED, 5K, 5:1)

    => Grade Along with TaoOfColor founder Patrick Inhofer

    => Send Patrick your work, he'll evaluate it as your Senior Colorist


    Click for full details

    Getting Ahead

    • With a Little Help from Your (Influential) Friends - need some help building your brand? No problem. Connect with influential friends for help. Don't have any? Here are 3 tips to get influencers to see and share your content. (inc.com)
    • How to Adjust your Attitude and Keep Your Job - "attitude (not lack of technical skills) accounts for 89% of hiring failures." (forbes.com)
    • [video] Where We Went Wrong - take 2 minutes and watch this short video that explains why many entrepreneurs (and the companies they founded) fail to become successful. (inc.com)
    • [video] Rise and Shine - getting up early to get things done early is something new to most of the Tao Colorist team (except Jim). Want to be creative in the morning? Click through for 3 tips to help you get going.  (99u.com)
    • Doing it in the Dark - do you need to make a difficult decision? Then, turn off the Lights. Why, you ask? Because people think more objectively when In darkness. (dailymail.co.uk)
      Tweet of the Week

      Dolby Vision looked cool, but I strongly suggest you don't view the welding footage. Still seeing spots when I blink. #UseItResponsiblyPlease

      @DesmetBram
      The Next Step Is a Doozy

      • Hamburger Is The New Black - the Kuro Burger is a premium hamburger sold by Burger King in Japan. 'Kuro' means black. The Japanese are trying to follow up on its popularity. How do you do that? By adding black cheese, naturally. No kidding, black cheese. (lostateminor.com)
      A Step Too Far

      • [video] Capt. America Explained - Stanford biologist Sebastian Alvarado tries explaining the science behind the origin of comic book legend Capt America. Want to know what was really in the serum that turned Steve Rogers into a superhero? Easy. (youtube.com)

      Th- Th- That's ALL Folks! See you in two weeks. 

      Happy Grading!
        
      7,000+ Stories Now Shared

      The Book Shelf
      • Color Correction Handbook, Updated - Alexis Van Hurkman has updated his Color Correction Handbook, which has set the standard for learning all things color correction. (amazon.com)
      • Color Correction Look Book - This is the second part of the Color Correction Handbook, exploring the creative techniques for over 200 different visual looks. A sort-of recipe book for colorists. (amazon.com) 
      • The Art and Technique of Digital Color Correction - Read how a dozen different colorists grade the same footage with the same gear, differently. A fantastic approach to learning the craft of color grading by Steve Hullfish. (amazon.com)
      • Autodesk Smoke Essentials - Walk through grading a short sci-fi film (with downloadable ProRes4444 source material) while learning the ultimate online finishing app...  Autodesk Smoke. (amazon.com)
      • Color Grading with Avid and Symphony - Written for version 6. Fully applicable to version 7. I was a contributor. (amazon.com)
      • Adobe Speedgrade CC: Classroom in a Book - A solid book for a solid grading app. (amazon.com)
      • Digital Cinematography: Fundamentals, Tools, Techniques and Workflows - Don't let the title fool you. I'm only a third way through this book and its explanations of how digital images are recorded, sampled and viewed is essential knowledge for anyone who's craft intersects with digital images. Not light reading. But not filled with math either. I highly recommend this book. (amazon.com)
        Have a book you think should be in this list? Reply to this email and let me know!

        FCC Disclaimer: Links in this email to Amazon.com, B&H Photo, or ToolFarm are Affiliate links that help support the TaoOfColor.com. FSI is a paid sponsor and BlackMagic Design is a current client. We thank you for your support.

        Patrick Inhofer
        Managing Editor:
        Jim Wicks, Colorist: jimwicks.com
        james.wicks@taoofcolor.com
        Patrick Inhofer
        Published by:
        Patrick Inhofer: Photon-Wrangler, Fini.tv | TaoOfColor.com | MixingLight.com
        patrick@taoofcolor.com