Color Correction Time Management: Grading in Passes

Day 10: 20 Insights in 20 Days Holiday Marathon

Color Correction Time Management: Grading in Passes

How in the world does a colorist manage to color correct 1200 shots in 4 days?

We do it by having a plan and sticking to that plan. Here are the first three parts of that plan:

• Don’t solve every problem at once
• Don’t solve every problem at once
• Don’t solve every problem at once

Or – as I like to call it – color correct in passes.

Rather than getting each and every shot perfectly color graded – we need to solve the big problems first… and then when we know how much time we have left over (and are intimately familiar with the footage) we can circle back and refine our grades.

In this Insight, I’m back, with the kind permission from the producers, with the indie feature film Isn’t It Delicious (yes, that’s 2001: A Space Odyssey’s David Bowman, my 1-degree of separation from my all-time favorite director, Stanley Kubrick).

I take a scene from the interior of an ambulance that was graded in two passes. Watch this video as I share my thought process and decision making – to encourage you to do the same. Why? Because mastering Time Management is one of the most important jobs of any colorist.

Questions? Comments?
Use the comments below to start a discussion on this Insight. Or ask a question if something I did confuses you.

– pat