The Art of Color Correction

[Jon Chema]

Hey Guys,
This may seem like a stupid question but realize that I am new to the topic. Color Correction. Could someone summarize the process in a few steps? I have the FCS2 suite and am very competent in FCP, Compressor, Sountrack and After Effects. I've messed around in Color and done some basic stuff but am still a little clueless as to the overall process. I realize that with the proper knowledge of the process, I could make my shorts and projects even better with proper correction. I would be using Apple Color.

Thanks in advance!

 

[Jean Déraps]

http://www.amazon.com/Apple-Pro-Tra...=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1250730044&sr=8-1

 

[Frank Weeks]

also check out

http://reduser.net/forum/showthread.php?t=32887&highlight=color+correction+learn

 

[Joshua Brown]

also check out

http://reduser.net/forum/showthread.php?t=32887&highlight=color+correction+learn

Second Franks suggestion. But to make some searching short, alot of people including myself suggest Lynda.com's tutorials on Apple Color. They teach not only how to use the program, but some of the theory behind it.

 

[Jeff Kilgroe]

I haven't looked at the Apple Pro training book myself, but it seems it gets great marks for teaching the Color software, but it's not a book for those who don't already have a fair understanding of color correction and the various theories behind it. So it's probably not the best book to recommend here.

Another book to consider is The Art and Technique of Digital Color Correction by Steve Hullfish. I've read through this one and it's pretty good and also uses Apple Color for their examples. It's not an true tutorial on Color, but a better introduction to color correction. Perhaps it would make a great companion to the Apple Pro Training book and/or Lynda.com tutorials.

 

[Wesley Scoggins]

http://evanerichards.blogspot.com/

A site that i've been really digging lately is this guy, he's been posting high quality stills from award winners, so you can see exactly what's going on frame by frame in regards to color, and composition, and it is really great to really be able to analyze them and really figure out what's going on.

 

[Anton Klima]

I would suggest a good colorist

 

[Wesley Scoggins]

Which while ideal, not everyone can afford.

While some people would like to learn how to do it on their own, especially if they one day would like to try to become a colorist themselves.

 

[Brandon Fraley]

http://reduser.net/forum/showthread.php?t=32887&highlight=color+correction+learn

yes, that would be me asking a somewhat similar "stupid" question

The "art" of color correction is harder to inform (as my thread has suggested) but if you curious about the step by step process, Josh has me beat by suggesting Lynda.com's Color tutorial. It's very easy, goes by fairly quickly and is dirt cheap! I've been watching it and recommend it highly if your interested in learning the tools.

now for understanding the art...

 

[Jan Balster]

If you're the visual type you can check out the videos on www.Lynda.com

- Jan

 

[Matthew Bennett]

It's a long humbling journey.

As always, try to hang out with people who are good at it, and ask them a million questions.

 

[Chris Kennedy]

For simple tutorials using FCP or Color you could take classes at apple, any apple store offers it, or search for videos online like on youtube for simple ideas. For me, I learn by doing and just trying different things and figuring it for myself, and of course asking "real" colorists