I was just in the middle of doing yet more tests to determine the very best zebra settings for the a7s III when I came across this – arguably the single most important step toward getting vibrant, contrasty, High Dynamic Range images in Final Cut Pro – adjusting exposure. Simply pulling shadows down till they… Read More
HDR Grading Tips
My longest HDR video to date, it took Compressor a ridiculous 4-1/2 hours to create the HEVC 10-bit file and an additional 24 hours for YouTube to finish processing the HD version! I’ve received many requests to do an HDR grading tutorial on YouTube, but a screen recording with QuickTime would be in SDR with… Read More
Color Correction Workflow in FCP: Get Spectacular HDR10 Colors From Your Sony a7s III!
In the comments section of my YouTube channel, I’ve gotten numerous requests for an HDR color correction workflow. The problem with trying to do a tutorial on YouTube is that QuickTime screen recorder only captures in SDR, resulting in a dark image and wacky colors, so for now, screen captures are the way to go.… Read More
ProRes 422 or HEVC?
In our untiring commitment to being the ultimate resource for those seeking factual information on uploading HDR videos to YouTube, we’ve added another comparison that aspires to settle the question: should you be transcoding XAVC S-I to HEVC or to ProRes 422 when uploading to YouTube? This 10-second clip took 83 seconds to finish processing… Read More
Big Sur: UltraStudio 4K Mini Glitchy
After installing Big Sur (at last, Safari 4K HDR!), the dreaded spinning beachball of doom appeared anytime I tried doing anything at all in Final Cut Pro 10.5. Unplugging my UltraStudio 4K Mini, things returned to normal, so I was certain the device was the culprit. I’d already updated to the latest 12.0 beta firmware,… Read More
Sony a7s III ProRes RAW Support in Final Cut Pro (update)
I was really excited to learn that Apple had finally enabled white balance and ISO adjustments to ProRes RAW in Final Cut Pro and was looking forward to trying it out when my a7s III arrives in a few weeks, but Jordan Drake just brought to our attention that ProRes RAW WB and/or ISO adjustments… Read More
Get Stunning Color From Your a7 III
If the audio sounds a little better in this tutorial, it’s thanks to Serge M’s wonderful guide to using the Audio Compressor effect in Final Cut Pro.
Switching to Resolve!
After months of agonizing, I finally broke down and hired a professional calibration technician to adjust my LG OLED C7, calling the very first name that popped up in a Google search for Ho Chi Minh City. The price was steep – $300.00 – but the quest for perfect color has become a crazy obsession.… Read More
Just a Reminder
I have confirmed that HDR PQ does indeed work with the Asus PA32UCX, UltraStudio 4K Mini and Final Cut Pro. Meanwhile, still shooting Sony 8-bit HLG!
Achieving Perfect Color and Skin Tones in FCP X, Part II
In the second part of this tutorial, we color correct a shot taken with a daylight balanced LED light. The image is already looking pretty good straight out of the camera, and the differences might be too subtle to see given that the images uploaded to WordPress are small and much darker than the originals.… Read More
The Daejeon Chronicles 