DaVinci Resolve Workflows

Blackmagic Design’s purchase of DaVinci Systems put a world class color grading solution into the hands of every video professional. With Resolve 9, DaVinci sports a better user interface that makes it easy to run, regardless of whether you are an editor, colorist or DIT working on set.  DaVinci Resolve 9 comes in two basic Mac or Windows software versions, the $995 paid and the free Lite version. The new Blackmagic Cinema Camera software bundle also includes the full (paid) version, plus a copy of Ultrascope. For facilities seeking to add comprehensive color grading services, there’s also a version with Blackmagic’s dedicated control surface, as well as Linux systems configurations.

Both paid and free versions of Resolve (currently at version 9.1) work the same way, except that the paid version offers larger-than-HD output, noise reduction and the ability to tap into more than one extra GPU card for hardware acceleration. Resolve runs fine with a single display card (I’ve done testing with the Nvidia GT120, the Nvidia Quadro 4000 and the ATI 5870), but requires a Blackmagic video output card if you want to see the image on a broadcast monitor.

Work in Resolve 9 generally flows left-to-right, through the tabbed pages, which you select at the bottom of the interface screen. These are broken into Media (where you access the media files that you’ll be working with), Conform (importing/exporting EDL, XML and AAF files), Color (where you do color correction), Gallery (the place to store and recall preset looks) and Deliver (rendering and/or output to tape).

Many casual users employ Resolve in these two ways: a) correcting camera files to send on to editorial, and b) color correction roundtrips with NLE software. This tutorial is intended to highlight some of the basic workflow steps associated with these tasks. Resolve is deep and powerful, so spend time with the excellent manual to learn its color correction tools, which would be impossible to cover here.

Creating edit-ready dailies – BMCC (CinemaDNG media)

The Blackmagic Cinema Camera can record images as camera raw, CinemaDNG image sequences. Resolve 9 can be used to turn these into QuickTime or MXF media for editing. Files may be graded for the desired final look at this point, or the operator can choose to apply the BMD Film preset. This log preset generates files with a flat look comparable to ARRI Log-C. You may prefer this if you intend to use a Log-to-Rec709 LUT (look up table) in another grading application or a filter like the Pomfort Log-to-Video effect, which is available for Final Cut Pro 7/X.

Step 1 – Media: Drag clip folders into the Media Pool section.

Step 2 – Conform: Skip this tab, since the clips are already on a single timeline.

Step 3 – Color: Make sure the camera setting (camera icon) for the clips on the timeline are set to Project. Open the project settings (gear icon). Change and apply these values: 1) Camera raw – CinemaDNG; 2) White Balance – as shot; 3) Color Space and Gamma – BMD Film.

Step 4 – Deliver: Set it to render each clip individually, assign the target destination and frame rate and the naming options. Then choose Add Job and Start Render.

The free version of Resolve will downscale the BMCC’s 2.5K-wide images to 1920×1080. The paid version of Resolve will permit output at the larger, native size. Rendered ProRes files may now be directly imported into FCP 7, FCP X or Premiere Pro. Correct the images to a proper video appearance by using the available color correction tools or filters within the NLE that you are using.

Creating edit-ready dailies – ARRI Alexa / BMCC (ProRes, DNxHD media)

Both the ARRI Alexa and the Blackmagic Cinema Camera can record Apple ProRes and Avid DNxHD media files to onboard storage. Each offers a similar log gamma profile that may be applied during recording in order to preserve dynamic range. Log-C for the Alexa and BMD Film for Blackmagic. These profiles facilitate high-quality grading later. Resolve may be used to properly grade these images to the final look as dailies are generated, or it may simply be used to apply a viewing LUT for a more pleasing appearance during the edit.

Step 1 – Media: Drag clip folders into the Media Pool section.

Step 2 – Conform: Skip this tab, since the clips are already on a single timeline.

Step 3 – Color: Make sure the camera setting for the clips on the timeline are set to Project. Open the project settings and set these values: 3D Input LUT – ARRI Alexa Log-C or BMD Film to Rec 709.

Step 4 – Deliver: Set it to render each clip individually, assign the target destination and frame rate and the naming options. Check whether or not to render with audio. Then choose Add Job and Start Render.

The result will be new, color corrected media files, ready for editing. To render Avid-compatible MXF media for Avid Media Composer, select the Avid AAF Roundtrip from the Easy Setup presets. After rendering, return to the Conform page to export an AAF file.

Roundtrips – using Resolve together with editing applications

DaVinci Resolve supports roundtrips from and back to NLEs based on EDL, XML and AAF lists. You can use Resolve for roundtrips with Apple Final Cut Pro 7/X, Adobe Premiere Pro and Avid Media Composer/Symphony. You may also use it to go between systems. For example, you could edit in FCP X, color correct in Resolve and then finish in Premiere Pro or Autodesk Smoke 2013. Media should have valid timecode and reel IDs to enable the process to work properly.

In addition to accessing the camera files and generating new media with baked-in corrections, these roundtrips require an interchange of edit lists. Resolve imports an XML and/or AAF file to link to the original camera media and places those clips on a timeline that matches the edited sequence. When the corrected (and trimmed) media is rendered, Resolve must generate new XML and/or AAF files, which the NLE uses to link to these new media files. AAF files are used with Avid systems and MXF media, while standard XML files and QuickTime media is used with Final Cut Pro 7 and Premiere Pro. FCP X uses a new XML format that is incompatible with FCP 7 or Premiere Pro without translation by Resolve or another utility.

Step 1 – Avid/Premiere Pro/Final Cut Pro: Export a list file that is linked to the camera media (AAF, XML or FCPXML).

Step 2- Conform (skip Media tab): Import the XML or AAF file. Make sure you have set the options to automatically add these clips to the Media Pool.

Step 3 – Color: Grade your shots as desired.

Step 4 – Deliver: Easy Setup preset – select Final Cut Pro XML or Avid AAF roundtrip. Verify QuickTime or MXF rendering, depending on the target application. Change handle lengths if desired. Check whether or not to render with audio. Then choose Add Job and Start Render.

Step 5 – Conform: Export a new XML (FCP7, Premiere Pro), FCPXML (FCP X) or AAF (Avid) list.

The roundtrip back

The reason you want to go back into your NLE is for the final finishing process, such as adding titles and effects or mixing sound. If you rendered QuickTime media and generated one of the XML formats, you’ll be able to import these new lists into FCP7/X or Premiere Pro and those applications will reconnect to the files in their current location. FCP X offers the option to import/copy the media into its own managed Events folders.

If you export MXF media and a corresponding AAF list with the intent of returning to Avid Media Composer/Symphony, then follow these additional steps.

Step 1 – Copy or move the folder of rendered MXF media files into an Avid MediaFiles/MXF subfolder. Rename this copied folder of rendered Resolve files with a number.

Step 2 – Launch Media Composer or Symphony and return to your project or create a new project.

Step 3 – Open a new, blank bin and import the AAF file that was exported from Resolve. This list will populate the bin with master clips and a sequence, which will be linked to the new MXF media rendered in Resolve and copied into the Avid MediaFiles/MXF subfolder.

Originally written for DV magazine / Creative Planet Network

©2013 Oliver Peters

Offline to online with 4K

The 4K buzz  seems to be steam-rolling the industry just like stereo3D before it. It’s too early to tell whether it will be an immediate issue for editors or not, since 4K delivery requirements are few and far between. Nevertheless, camera and TV-set manufacturers  are building important parts of the pipeline. RED Digital Cinema is leading the way with a post workflow that’s both proven and relatively accessible on any budget. A number of NLEs support editing and effects in 4K, including Avid DS, Autodesk Smoke, Adobe Premiere Pro, Apple Final Cut Pro X, Grass Valley EDIUS and Sony Vegas Pro.

Although many of these support native cutting with RED 4K media, I’m still a strong believer in the traditional offline-to-online editing workflow. In this post I will briefly outline how to use Avid Media Composer and Apple FCP X for a cost-effective 4K post pipeline. One can certainly start and finish a RED-originated project in FCP X or Premiere Pro for that matter, but Media Composer is still the preferred creative  tool for many editing pros. Likewise, FCP X is a viable finishing tool. I realize that statement will raise a few eyebrows, but hear me out. Video passing through Final Cut is very pristine, it supports the various flavors of 2K and 4K formats and there’s a huge and developing ecosystem of highly-inventive effects and transitions. This combination is a great opportunity to think outside of the box.

Offline editing with Avid Media Composer

Avid has supported native RED files for several versions, but Media Composer is not resolution independent. This means RED’s 4K (or 5K) images are downsampled to 1080p and reformatted (cropped or letterboxed) to fit into the 16:9 frame. When you shoot with a RED camera, you should ideally record in one of their 4K 16:9 sizes. The native .r3d files can be brought into Media Composer using the “Link to AMA File(s)” function. Although you can edit directly with AMA-linked files, the preferred method is to use this as a “first step”. That means, you should use AMA to cull your footage down to the selected takes and then transcode the remainder when you start to fine tune your cut.

Avid’s media creation settings are the place to adjust the RED debayer parameters. Media Composer supports the RED Rocket card for accelerated rendering, but without it, Media Composer can still provide reasonable speed in software-only transcoding. Set the debayer quality to 1/4 or 1/8, and transcoding 4K clips to Avid DNxHD36 for offline editing will be closer to real-time on a fast machine, like an 8-core Mac Pro. This resolution is adequate for making your creative decisions.

When the cut is locked, export an AAF file for the edited sequence. Media should be linked (not embedded) and the AAF Edit Protocol setting should be enabled. In this workflow, I will assume that audio post is being handled by an audio editor/mixer running a DAW, such as Pro Tools, so I’ll skip any discussion of audio. That would be exported using standard AAF or OMF workflows for audio post. Note that all effects should be removed from your sequence before generating the AAF file, since they won’t be translated in the next steps. This includes any nested clips, collapsed tracks and speed ramps, which are notorious culprits in any timeline translation.

Color grading with DaVinci Resolve

Blackmagic Design’s DaVinci Resolve 9 is our next step. You’ll need the full, paid version (software-only) for bigger-than-HD output. After launching Resolve, import the Avid AAF file from Resolve’s conform tab. Make sure you check “link to camera files” so that Resolve connects to the original .r3d media and not the Avid DNxHD transcodes. Resolve will import the sequence, connect to the media and generate a new timeline that matches the sequence exported from Media Composer. Make sure the project is set for the desired 4K format.

Next, open the Resolve project settings and adjust the camera raw values to the proper RED settings. Then make sure the individual clips are set to “project” in their camera settings tab. You can either use the original camera metadata or adjust all clips to a new value in the project settings pane. Once this is done, you are ready to grade the timeline as with any other production. Resolve uses a very good scaling algorithm, so if the RED files were framed with the intent of resizing and repositioning (for example, 5K files that are to be cropped for the ideal framing within a 4K timeline), then it’s best to make that adjustment within the Resolve timeline.

Once you’ve completed the grade, set up the render. Choose the FCP XML easy set-up and alter the output frame size to the 4K format you are using. Start the render job. Resolve 9 renders quite quickly, so even without a RED Rocket card, I found that 4K ProRes HQ or 4444 rendering, using full-resolution debayering, was completed in about a 6:1 ratio to running time on my Mac Pro. When the renders are done, export the FCP XML (for FCP X) from the conform tab. I found I had to use an older version of this new XML format, even though I was running FCP X 10.0.7. It was unable to read the newest version that Resolve had exported.

Online with Apple Final Cut Pro X

The last step is finishing. Import the Resolve-generated XML file, which will in turn create the necessary FCP Event (media linked to the 4K ProRes files rendered from Resolve) and a timeline for the edited sequence. Make sure the sequence (Project) settings match your desired 4K format. Import and sync the stereo or surround audio mix (generated by the audio editor/mixer) and rebuild any effects, titles, transitions and fast/slo-mo speed effects. Once everything is completed, use FCP X’s share menu to export your deliverables.

©2013 Oliver Peters

FilmConvert

With the proliferation of digital video cameras, everyone has been trying to make them look more like film. Assuming that your camera shoots at the right frame rate and offers film-like motion blur and highlight handling, the rest gets down to grain and colorimetry. That’s where various software tools and filters come in. A new film stock emulation application is FilmConvert, from New Zealand-based developer, Rubber Monkey Software. They are best known as one of the early developers of processing and rendering software for the RED One camera, but have now expanded that expertise into tools designed for a wider appeal.

FilmConvert is available as a standalone application and as plug-ins for Adobe After Effects/Premiere Pro (Windows or Mac), Photoshop and Apple Final Cut Pro X/Final Cut Pro 7/Motion. The standalone FilmConvert Pro goes beyond just film emulation to include a powerful three-way color corrector and render management. The software works with QuickTime files and native RED .r3d files from a RED One or EPIC. It also supports roundtrips between FilmConvert and your NLE using XML and EDL files.

(Click any of these images for expanded views.)

Film stock emulation

At the time of this writing, only the film emulation module is available in the plug-in versions. (Rubber Monkey plans to add color correction to the filters in the near future.) To create the film stock emulations, the developers analyzed scans from a variety of color and black-and-white motion and still photo stocks made by Kodak, Fuji, Ilford and Polaroid. By shooting color charts with these various stocks, they were able to engineer custom color curves that enabled them to produce digital camera images, which closely resemble the same appearance as these scans. That color science forms the basis of each film stock preset.

FilmConvert Pro and the FilmConvert filters work slightly differently from each other. The standalone version allows you to set the initial color profile of the image as either a default sRGB or as StatusM Log – a flat setting similar to ARRI Log-C, BMD Film or RedLogFilm. If your camera file was already encoded with a flat gamma profile, then leave the viewer set to sRGB, so you don’t apply a log curve twice. Thanks to their work with the RED cameras, native .r3d files can be imported and are automatically detected, so that the “as shot” metadata may be applied. Native Canon and other specific digital cameras (GH2, Alexa, C300 and the Blackmagic Cinema Camera) are currently being profiled by Rubber Monkey engineers. The After Effects plug-in includes a pulldown menu to select the camera profile as a starting point for any adjustments, but log-to-video conversion must be done with other filters. There are no camera profiles in the FCP X version of the filter, yet.

The film emulation module itself includes the same controls for all versions. These break down to exposure and color temperature sliders, the film stock selector and a percentage slider for how much of the emulation colorimetry to apply. Grain is added by adjusting a percentage slider for the amount of grain and selecting the film type that determines grain size. 35mm Full Frame would be the finest level of grain, while 8mm would be the coarsest. You can zoom the viewer for a 1:1 pixel view, which will give you a better sense of how the grain will actually look on your image.

Color correction tools and RED in FilmConvert Pro

FilmConvert Pro includes a color correction toolset as part of the standalone application. The color correction module includes color balance wheels and luma sliders for shadows, midtones and highlights. There’s a saturation slider and a levels pane for black, mid and white points. Between the color corrector and levels, you get much of the same horsepower as the primary grade settings available in any high-end color corrector. FilmConvert comes with a series of presets, like “70s Home Movies” or “Matrix”, but you can also create and save your own. Any of these may be applied to clips on your timeline.

You won’t find the typical RED color science and debayer settings seen in Redcine-X Pro or some of the RED SDK importers. Rubber Monkey explains their approach this way, “For extract settings with .r3d, we choose the best extract settings for our emulation. If the user changes the extract settings then the starting point will be different and it will throw out the film emulation. If our film emulation is applied at 100% you get an sRGB film emulation, not a variation of a RED colorspace – so the actual input color space is not quite significant in this case. The .r3d debayer always uses the size that is greater than (or equal to) the size being rendered. So if you are rendering to 1080p, then we will render at 1/2 debayer. Basically we made it so that we are always scaling down, never up, but also going with the fastest debayer that would not sacrifice quality.” FilmConvert Pro also supports the RED Rocket card for hardware-accelerated rendering of .r3d files.

Render management

The FilmConvert filters work like any other plug-in, where the host application controls how the media is sent to the plug-in and then the subsequent renders. The standalone version includes its own render management tools. Render options include QuickTime (H.264, MPEG-4, ProRes or uncompressed) and image sequences (DPX or TIFF). The default export sizes can be up to 2048×1152 (or larger custom sizes) with fit width/fit height/stretch controls. This is great for RED projects that are rendered into HD or 2K formats.

There are two workflows to handle renders. The first is to simply import one or more clips into FilmConvert Pro, apply the look you want for each clip and set these up to render as complete, individual clips. The other option is to edit the footage first without effects in an edit system and then export an XML or EDL file for the completed sequence. FilmConvert Pro will import the file and locate the clips. In the case of RED camera files, you can choose to link to .r3d files instead of QuickTime .mov files that may have been used for edit proxies. Each clip is loaded onto FilmConvert’s timeline with markers for each section of a clip that was used in the edited sequence. Unfortunately, you can only apply one setting to the full clip. If it was an outdoor shot and you used a portion that was overcast and then a later section of the same clip where the sun came out, there is no way to split the clip in order to have two different adjustments.

When you render these clips as QuickTime movie files, the complete duration of the file is rendered, but images are only rendered for the sections that show up in the EDL or XML file. The rest of the file appears with a placeholder graphic. Rubber Monkey took this approach to maintain one media file when multiple portions are used in the edit – rather than to render separate, shorter clips for each portion. A single media file keeps the same file name and is easier for applications to relink. New, multiple media files require an additional naming convention – such as appending a numeric suffix to the file name, like .001, .002, .003, etc. – in order to preserve unique file names. The latter method is how Resolve, SpeedGrade and Baselight handle such renders. This requires the generation of new EDL, AAF or XML files so that the media can be correctly relinked in the roundrip back to the NLE.

Rubber Monkey promotes its render prowess and speeds were good on my 8-core 2.26 GHz Mac Pro. I don’t have a RED Rocket installed, so a 4K 16:9 RED file (exported as a 1920×1080 ProRes file) took about 20 minutes for a clip of 4933 frames (about 3.5 minutes of footage). By comparison, 1080p QuickTime files rendered at near-real-time speeds – some faster, some slower. In most color correction applications, you can specify the length of render “handles”, where the clip gets with an additional second or two of media at the head and tail of the exported clip. It appears that FilmConvert adds five frames to the head and six at the tail (24fps clips), but there’s no place to increase that or to set a custom length.

FilmConvert Pro doesn’t support i/o hardware like AJA or Blackmagic cards, so you are making color correction judgments by viewing the interface on your computer screen. By eye, I would say that the display within the FilmConvert interface looked a bit “warmer” and more saturated than an exported file viewed in QuickTime Player X (not surprising), but also as compared with FCP X. It tended to look closest between FilmConvert and FCP 7. If issues such as SDI monitoring and clip control are critical for your workflow, then one of the NLE plug-ins might be a better option than the standalone application, especially once this plug-in gains color correction controls.

I’m sure as the application matures, some of these missing features will be addressed – along with better documentation. Rubber Monkey is also working on an OFX plug-in to cover Vegas, Scratch and Nuke users. Whether a plug-in or the standalone version is right for you depends on your need. Do you just want to augment a few shots or build a pipeline around this look? The film stock looks are spot-on and if you want something vintage, then the Polaroid emulation is really nice. If you want your digital media to come closer to the look of film, FilmConvert is definitely worth the investment.

Originally written for Digital Video magazine.

© 2012 Oliver Peters

Blackmagic Cinema Camera post workflows

Digital camera development has been running in high gear for several years outpacing any other portion of our industry. Thanks to a revolution started by RED, Nikon and Canon, videographers are now blessed with a wide range of small, affordable, high-performance imaging systems that have broken us free from the confines of the mundane 2/3” video camera. The newest entrant is the Blackmagic Cinema Camera introduced by the industry’s favorite disrupter, Blackmagic Design. Marked by a small form factor, QuickTime or camera raw recording and a $3K price tag, Blackmagic has been able to bring to market a product that seems to have eluded many other seasoned camera manufacturers.

The basic engineering design of the Blackmagic Cinema Camera is a “sandwich” of an EF or MFT (Micro Four Thirds) lens mount, a recording device based on the HyperDeck Shuttle and a touch screen/viewfinder. It records either 1920×1080 ProResHQ QuickTime movie files or 2400×1350 CinemaDNG camera raw image sequences. (Version 1.1 software was recently released, which adds Avid DNxHD support.) The high-def QuickTime files are downsampled from the 2.5K sensor. With CinemaDNG selected, each clip is treated as a folder of individual frames, plus a broadcast wave file. Each time “record” is pressed, a new folder is created for that clip. The camera raw files maintain the full sensor resolution, allowing for high-quality reframing and digital zooms in post.

This isn’t a camera review, so I’ll leave the discussion of the merits of the camera in the field to others. Since the BMCC offers new options to filmmakers, it’s important to understand how to handle these files in post. (Click any of these images for an expanded view.)

Understanding camera raw

Camera raw is not an acronym. The term refers to a file that has not gone through full processing to produce a final RGB image. The full dynamic range of the sensor’s ability to capture light is maintained in raw images. Different manufacturers use different camera raw methods and profiles for individual models. When you get frequent software updates to Apple Aperture or Adobe Photoshop, it’s often to add new camera profiles to keep current with the latest Canon or Nikon offerings. In most camera raw images, ISO/exposure and color temperature/tint values are represented as metadata recorded by the camera at the time the image was captured. As metadata, it can be altered in post and isn’t “baked in” as a permanent part of the image – as it would with a TIFF or JPEG still. If a camera raw image appears to be slightly overexposed, post processing software allows you to recover the highlight detail by changing the ISO or exposure values.

Adobe launched an initiative to create a common camera raw format as a type of “digital negative” file, which became the DNG standard. This was released as open source software and is available for manufacturers to use in their products as DNG (stills) and CinemaDNG (motion), thus eliminating the need to create their own new, proprietary camera raw file format. Blackmagic uses this CinemaDNG file format for its raw image sequences, which means that a wide range of applications can read, open and import these files natively. Those that include camera raw importer modules also enable you to alter the recorded settings within that application.

Correctly importing camera raw images is important. For instance, Apple Final Cut Pro X will natively read the BMCC’s CinemaDNG files, but it currently has no raw importer settings. If the “as shot” metadata makes the image appear overexposed with clipped highlights, you cannot recover that detail from within FCP X. Likewise, not all camera raw importers use the same values. An image opened at the default or the “as shot” value in DaVinci Resolve will look different than in an Adobe application. The beauty of raw, though, is that the image is within an adjustable range and any of these importers will give you good results with a few tweaks.

Image sequence workflows

Blackmagic Design includes a full copy of DaVinci Resolve 9 with the purchase of the camera and that’s obviously their recommended tool for producing editing “dailies” and final color correction. Since DNG is a still photo format, grading and conversion can be handled in other applications, too, including Adobe Photoshop, Lightroom, After Effects and Apple Aperture. Each of these applications includes camera raw controls to get the most out of the image. Currently, you cannot import the camera raw files directly into Avid Media Composer, Apple Color or Adobe Premiere Pro. SpeedGrade (with the latest updates) will read the files, but offers no specific camera raw adjustments. There the default import of CinemaDNG files renders a flat, log-style image as a starting point.

The following is a simple workflow using a photography application, such as Lightroom or Aperture. Import each folder of CinemaDNG files into the application. Now select a representative frame within that group and apply your adjustments. Since these are full-featured color correction tools, go as extreme as you like, if you intend to create the final look at this time. Once you get the appearance you want, copy-and-paste those settings to the other images in that folder. These are non-destructive changes within Lightroom and Aperture and may be altered at any time in the future. Next, export the adjusted versions as a new set of TIFFs to a separate folder on your hard drive. These TIFFs will contain the “baked in” look you have just created.

The process is a bit different in Photoshop, but there you have the option of using one of the many special tools and filters to create unique looks. For example, you can apply an oil paint or dark strokes effect for an artistic, painted style. Open a representative frame from a shot and apply the settings you want to use. As you do this, record the steps as a Photoshop Action. When you are happy with the look, use Photoshop’s Batch function to apply this saved Action to all the frames in a folder for each shot.

The CinemaDNG files are 5MB/frame in size, while the exported TIFFs are 9.8MB each. It is possible to open a TIFF image sequence in QuickTime 7 and save it as a QuickTime reference movie. That, in turn, can be used as an editing source in Final Cut Pro 7 and X. As a reference movie, if you update the files later by re-exporting TIFFs with a new look, the reference movie will also be updated to reflect these new files. FCP X offers a performance edge by being able to play these 2.5K sequences natively in real-time within a 2K or HD timeline. QuickTime reference movies are 8-bit, but I saw no visual difference when comparing these files to 10-bit uncompressed and ProRes4444 exports. I would recommend that you transcode these to proxy editing files in FCP X if you opt for the QuickTime reference method.

After Effects offers another solution. You can open CinemaDNG image sequences, make adjustments with its camera raw importer, and then render out final, graded movie files. Naturally, plug-ins like Magic Bullet Looks add more options for custom styles. If you opt to first convert the DNG sequences to TIFFs using Lightroom or Aperture, then Avid Media Composer and Symphony will auto-detect the files as an image sequence and import them as a single media file.

DaVinci Resolve 9

DaVinci Resolve 9 is an advanced grading tool, but may also be used simply to turn the image sequences into a set of flat-looking QuickTime movie files, suitable for color correction later. Resolve 9 now includes a camera raw settings tab. Tweak the settings and then export each clip as a separate movie file. Blackmagic Design has implemented BMD Film with this camera. It’s a log-encoded color space and gamma profile that resembles ARRI’s Log-C. This profile may be selected in-camera for the QuickTime files, but may also be used as a preset in the Resolve 9 raw module (also available in the free Lite version).

So far, my testing has been limited to the handful of clips by Australian DP John Brawley. These are sample shots from the short film Afterglow, which was produced to showcase the Blackmagic Cinema Camera. Brawley has posted several shots online in both CinemaDNG and ProResHQ formats. The QuickTime files from the camera were encoded with the BMD Film profile, which matches the same setting when applied to camera raw files converted through Resolve 9.

BMD Film

The option of using After Effects, Photoshop, Lightroom or Aperture gives users an interesting new toolset for creating stunning images; but, for most, there’s a comfort factor in using your favorite NLE or grading software. I believe the majority of users will probably stick to shooting ProResHQ files using the BMD Film log profile, because it’s a proven workflow. It preserves the dynamic range and gives you most of the latitude available from the CinemaDNG files. Camera raw files exported from Resolve 9 as ProResHQ using the BMD Film preset (without other correction) are identical to the appearance of the QuickTimes recorded in-camera. The ARRI ALEXA also shoots raw and Log-C, which makes the BMCC are interesting option as a sort of “baby ALEXA”. I haven’t intercut clips from a project that was shot with both an ALEXA and the Blackmagic camera yet, but I suspect the BMCC would work well as a good B or C camera in this type of production.

When I take the BMD Film-encoded clips into Final Cut Pro 7 or X, the values are close enough to Log-C that I can use many of the same LUTs and filters. For example, the Pomfort Alexa Look2Video filter that I use to correct Log-C into Rec 709 works equally well with BMD Film. I’ve done grading tests using a range of NLEs and color correction software and have been very impressed with the results from these Afterglow test clips. Working with the CinemaDNG or ProResHQ BMCC clips will fit into established workflows, without the need to learn new, proprietary tools. No matter what your preference – Avid, FCP X, Premiere, After Effects, Color, Resolve, Photoshop, etc. – this is one new camera that was designed with post in mind first.

Click here to see a variety of grading examples.

Originally written for Digital Video magazine.

© 2012 Oliver Peters

Grading through digital bipacks

When you hear someone use the term bipack, you think they are making the word up or just BS’ing you. In fact, bipack refers to an old technique used to create in-camera film effects. Film timers also used the technique to create certain color effects. In modern times, we are really referring to ways that involve blending or superimposing images and this has a direct relationship on tricks you can use in color correction.

The concept of blending two images with different values is a lot like working with layers and blend modes in Photoshop. Some color correction applications, like SpeedGrade, also use a Photoshop-style system of layers. You aren’t limited to color correction applications, though, because these exact same tricks can be used in any NLE. For example, editors have frequently built a look referred to as “instant sex”, which is a technique for adding highlight glows by compositing copies of the same clip on two video layers. The process is easiest with NLEs and compositors like Motion or After Effects that offer composite modes. I find Apple Final Cut Pro X to be a good NLE for these tricks, because the interface design makes it easy to blend and adjust two stacked clips.

I’ll cover several quick examples of how you might use this technique. (Click any of these images for an expanded view.) For clips, I’ve grabbed shots from Afterglow, a short film photographed by John Brawley to promote the release of the Blackmagic Cinema Camera. The source clips are QuickTime ProRes files was a BMD Film (flat, log) gamma profile. To these I’ve added a Pomfort LUT filter normally used for ARRI Alexa Log-C. This corrects the clips back to their intended REC 709 appearance and becomes my starting point.

To stack clips in FCP X, simply edit the clip to the primary storyline and the option-drag it up to duplicate a version as an in-sync, connected clip. Since composite modes often create illegal video levels, I place an adjustment layer clip (a modified Motion title) on top, with a broadcast safe filter added to it.

In this first example, the bottom clip is changed to black-and-white by reducing the saturation in the FCP X color board. The top clip’s composite mode is set to Soft Light. Grading for the right tonal qualities becomes a dance between the settings on the two layers and the opacity value of the top clip’s compositing mode.

If I add a Gaussian blur to the lower clip, change the compositing mode of the top clip to Overlay and tweak the color board settings of the two clips, the look changes from harsh to glamour.

In this billiards shot I’m using the Soft Light mode again, but this time I have tinted the lower clip to a slight teal cast. The top clip is a vibrant orange, but the combination of the two ends up with the more normal-looking and popular orange-and-teal grade.

In this balcony shot I’m using the Overlay mode and have added a slight directional blur to the top layer. The bottom layer is desaturated with a slight tint while the top layer is more vibrant. Combined they have a high-contrast, bleached look.

In this final example, I’ve reversed some items. The top layer is set to the Multiply mode at 80% opacity and I’ve made it black-and-white. The color correction is again a matter of compensating between the two layers to get the right feel.

When I add a Gaussian blur to the top clip the look changes from harsh to a nice, diffused appearance.

© 2012 Oliver Peters