In this video, I walk through exactly what my color grading process is like for RED RAW footage using the Lumetri Color tool in Adobe Premiere Pro. First I go through the color correction process and explain the difference between correction and grading. During correction, I adjust the exposure, contrast, and white balance of the shot, fine tuning it until it’s perfectly matched to my other footage. Nailing white balance requires specific knowledge and a keen eye. Most people know that white balance is comprised of cool to warm color temperatures, but not many realize there’s a separate tint element to white balance as well. If color temperature is the “x” axis on the white balance graph, tint is the “y” axis. Tint is comprised of the green to magenta shift. Once you have correction nailed, then and only then can you move onto grading.
Grading can be thought of as the overall “look” of the image that’s overlayed on top of the entire film as a whole. For instance, if the skin tones are more desaturated, or if the blues are shifted more teal, or if the highlights are shifted warmer, those would all be considered color grades. To make these adjustments, as I stated earlier, I use the Lumetri Color tool that is built into Adobe Premiere Pro. This tool is expremely powerful and allows you to isolate any color in the image based on it’s hue, saturation, and luma properties. So for instance, if you wanted to select and modify only the most saturated blues in the mid-tones, you could use this tool to pick out and adjust them. I walk through all the options of the HSL (hue, saturation, and luma) tool within Lumetri.
These types of advanced skill sets are what can set you apart from others, giving you more control over the final image of your video and a more professional, polished result. If you aren’t yet convinced, just take a look at the before and after at the end of the video and you’ll be pretty blown away by the difference it makes!