Thinking Like A Colorist – Considering Final Contrast Pt. 1

Which tool should I choose for this shot?

I’m kicking off a new series based on how to think like a colorist. I spend my days grading every kind of project imaginable and the most important decision happens instinctually before I even touch the first control. This series will focus on the thought process that goes into each grade.

What are we trying to achieve with contrast?

The first thing that happens when I grade is not think about what camera it was shot on, how compressed the source footage might be or even what is possible to do in the grade.

My first thought is where would I like this to end up?

The reason this is such an important decision is I use totally different controls to create my primary contrast look depending on what kind of project that I’m working on.

For our contrast options we can use :

• Lift Gamma Gain
• Log Controls
• Luma Only Lift Gamma Gain
• Offset / Printer Lights
• Contrast & Pivot
• Curves
• LUTs

Each one of these tools plays such a different result in the look of the final contrast of the image.

Let’s jump over to my video insight below and I’ll start by showing you my latest showreel and speaking through my contrast decisions and demonstrating the difference in the toolsets.

If you’ve got any questions, be sure to leave a comment!

-Dan