How to create professional Color Grading Environment?

SOLUTION

Colour of the wall - 18% GREY / SP50

Professional color grading rooms require careful attention in order to ensure colors are perceived accurately. SP-50 paint is carefully formulated to match modern color grading monitor performance and, therefore, optimize viewing conditions.

A typical setup will consist of painting the wall behind the monitors with SP-50. An ideal configuration will have all walls painted with calibrated paint. The ceiling can be non-reflective black or SP-50.

Why should you use it?

  • Achieve an accurate color grading environment
  • Calibrated monitors match from room to room
  • Clients value a room built around SP-50
  • Turns a normal room into a professional grading environment
  • A small investment with great results
  • Top facilities around the world build rooms this way
  • Increase the value of your services
  • Create a better working environment
     

Here are three options for building your room:

Good

  • Wall behind monitors is painted with SP-50
  • Ceiling is painted black or a really dark gray
  • Other walls are painted white
  • One SLS-01 light installed close to the ground and washing softly on the wall
  • No other light sources, internal or external (windows)

Better

  • Wall behind monitors is painted with SP-50
  • Walls to the left and right of the console are painted with SP-50
  • Back wall painted white
  • Ceiling is painted black or a really dark gray
  • Two SLS-01 lights installed approximately two meters apart, close to the ground and washing softly on the wall
  • No other light sources, internal or external (windows)

Best

  • All walls painted with SP-50
  • Ceiling is painted black
  • Two SLS-01 lights installed approximately two meters apart, close to the ground and washing softly on the wall
  • No other light sources, internal or external (windows)

World's best colorist 2016- Steven J. Scott

17 November 2016 (Los Angeles, CA) The Hollywood Professional Association (HPA) announced the winners of the 2016 HPA Awards (#hpaawards) during a gala celebration tonight at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles. The HPA Awards recognize individuals and companies for outstanding contributions made in the creation of feature films, television, commercials, and entertainment content enjoyed around the world.

Awards were bestowed in creative craft categories honoring behind-the-scenes artistry, and a host of special awards were also presented.

The winners of the 2016 HPA Awards are:

OUTSTANDING COLOR GRADING – FEATURE FILM

WINNER:
“The Revenant”
Steven J. Scott // Technicolor Production Services

 

OUTSTANDING COLOR GRADING – TELEVISION

WINNER:
“Gotham – By Fire”
Paul Westerbeck // Encore Hollywood

OUTSTANDING COLOR GRADING – COMMERCIAL

WINNER:
Hennessy “Odyssey”
Tom Poole // Company 3

Matching Cameras - Before you begin shoot

When shooting with multiple cameras, how can footage be matched between them?

Whether we know it or not, properly matched capture from each of our cameras is not only the right thing to do, it is a professional expectation. When camera teams are hired to cover an event or shoot a corporate video and three cameras are to be used, there is an unspoken understanding that the footage from each device will match.

Even seemingly simple footage is actually quite complex. There is a blend of elements, from grain and noise, to exposure and white balance.

If it’s impossible to bring matching equipment, choosing all of the camera settings prior to the shoot and then monitoring and adjusting prior to shooting will make the difference.

The best bet is to try to make enough time to test and work with the cameras prior to a shoot starting to at least get them close. Usually the larger the budget, the more setup and testing time there will be, but even with no lead time, a basic knowledge of how to set up cameras is important.

Checklist – Frame settings

Choose the frame size and rate that the project is to be delivered in and set each of the cameras to exactly those settings.

Shutter Speed/Angle

Ensure the shutter speed, also refered to as shutter angle, of each of the cameras is set the same. Shutter speed has a huge impact on the appearance of finished footage. Action sequences can benefit from overly quick shutter speeds, but a good starting place is generally around double the framerate of the camera.

White Balance

Each camera is different, but there should be tools for white balance on board. Most have a number of presets, and the more professional models will allow for custom white balancing, where a white card is held in front of the camera and set as the white that is recognized by the camera.

The key is to set the cameras to a similar setting to ensure that they’re close. If they all offer custom white balancing, that is obviously the best option.

ISO

Start with each camera set to the same ISO level and adjust. Many cameras have a default ISO, but the environment, lens characteristics, sensor characteristics or other factors can determine whether the level needs adjusting to more closely match other cameras.

While some high-end cameras that shoot RAW footage can have exposure tweaked a bit in post production, setting ISO properly in-camera is essential.

Adjusting the camera’s ISO to be as low as possible while delivering a nice, balanced image is key.

It’s going to be very difficult to get cameras exactly identical from simply adjusting settings and comparing monitors, but these basics will help get the process started. It’s all about getting them as close as possible to minimize the work that will need doing in post-production.

 

360 VR Underwater Shoot - Pixelhouse.ae

Testing 360 VR in Oculus Rift at Bahrain Sea water Festival - www.pixelhouse.ae

Testing 360 VR in Oculus Rift at Bahrain Sea water Festival - www.pixelhouse.ae

Pixelhouse.ae delivered the first 360 VR underwater Video Shoot Project for sea water festival in Bahrain.

Video was shot using a special under water rig designed for gopro using 8 gopro camera setup. Entire post production was executed in pixelhouse.ae and 3D elements were integrated inhouse.

The video can be watched using any VR headset like samsung vr, oculus rift and htc vive.

If you want to create any kind of 360 VR experience you can contact us.

Sudip@pixelhouse.ae

 

 

 

 

 

2016 Best colorist in Hollywood - HPA awards

Hollywood's best colorist award :

Hollywood Professional Association (HPA) Awards nominations was announced on Tuesday for the awards in postproduction categories, which will be handed Nov. 17 at the Skirball Cultural Center.

2016 HPA Award nominees for outstanding color grading are :

Feature Film Category : Best Colorist

Carol”
John Dowdell // Goldcrest Post Productions Ltd

 

“The Revenant”
Steven J. Scott // Technicolor Production Services

“Brooklyn”
Asa Shoul // Molinare

“The Martian”
Stephen Nakamura // Company 3

“The Jungle Book”
Steven J. Scott // Technicolor Production Services

HOLLYWOOD MOVIE LUTS - DOWNLOAD FREE

HOLLYWOOD MOVIE LUTS- FREE DOWNLOAD

I receive a lot of requests to share the techniques I use to achieve the various bollywood/hollywood movie looks. Every week I will post tutorials and LUTs to achieve various grading styles. You can send me a sample clips to support me.

FREE DOWNLOAD LUTS

RETURN OF XANDER CAGE LUT - FOR LOG IMAGE
RETURN OF XANDER CAGE LUT - FOR LINEAR IMAGE

 

Virtual Reality shooting in Dubai

VR PRODUCTION DUBAI

Pixel House is a full- service virtual reality production company based in Dubai. We specialize in producing end to end VR (Virtual Reality) and 360 degree stereoscopic immersive experiences using latest technology.

Pixel House GOPRO OMNI - Dubai, UAE

Pixel House GOPRO OMNI - Dubai, UAE

VR PRODUCTION SERVICES

  • CONCEPT
  • DEVELOPMENT
  • FILMING
  • EDITING
  • COMPOSITING
  • GRADING
  • 360 AUDIO
VR AUDIO MIC - PIXEL HOUSE

VR AUDIO MIC - PIXEL HOUSE

Why we use GOPRO OMNI VR over Nokia OZO?

- Pixel level Synchronization 8k Video Delivery.
- In 1440/60, the 64GB card allows you to record 3 hrs of footage.
- Protune enabled, Flat color settings and native white balance settings.
- You can easily do hand held shootings, helicopters, go-karts, speedboat, roller coasters and etc.

Please Contact : Pixelhouse for your VR production. or mail sudip@pixelhouse.ae
 

SGO MISTIKA 8.7 - HDR, VR & 8K

BEYOND COLOUR- SGO MISTIKA 8.7

The world’s most powerful, flexible and complete DI post-production solution. Mistika represents the cutting edge in DI finishing systems, offering the most modern, complete and flexible toolset available today for on-set, dailies, commercial, broadcast and feature film post-production environments.

SGO Mistika facility - THE LOOK - LONDON

SGO Mistika facility - THE LOOK - LONDON

Built on years of research, development and production experience, Mistika empowers facilities with new levels of creative power, performance and workflow efficiency, revolutionising what it means to deliver for a client. More than a simple grading system, Mistika is a complete online and finishing solution, sitting at the heart of the world’s most innovative facilities.

Hollywood movies graded in SGO MISTIKA

Hollywood movies graded in SGO MISTIKA

Mistika is a total post-production solution. With world class conform, online editing, VFX, colour-grading, stereoscopic 3D and delivery tools built in, Mistika stands as the creative foundation for any facility. All tools are instantly available, allowing creativity to be fully explored with speed and accuracy, guaranteeing the perfect end result for a client. And with the ability to jump seamlessly between tasks, Mistika removes the need to bounce media between functional areas within a post-facility; projects can be managed and completed within a single software package, without the need for time-consuming renders between production stages.

Mistika’s all-in-one platform blurs the divide between editorial, FX, colour and finishing, streamlining out-dated facility workflows and empowering operators with a new sense of artistic freedom.

To know more about Mistika Click HERE

Automatic Colorizing ALGORITHMIA

Result of using ALGORITHMIA to colorize black and white image.

Result of using ALGORITHMIA to colorize black and white image.

Yes. Its time for automatic colorizing black and white photos to color. 

Automatic Colorize by ALGORITHMIA

The research has long way to go before we see content aware colorize in photoshop, davinci or assimilate scratch, but proof of the concept is there exists. 

You can try automatic coloring your b/w images now. Click Here

BIG UPGRADE - DAVINCI RESOLVE 12.5.1

General Improvements

  • Alpha-numerical listing of codecs and format in the Deliver and Media Management pulldowns
  • When running DaVinci Resolve in window mode, the macOS dock is now visible
  • Improved latency for remote grading (Studio version)
  • Improved handling of dissolves and overlapping clips in DolbyVision metadata export (Studio version)
  • Improved behavior when creating render jobs on locations without write permissions
  • General performance and stability improvements

Edit Improvements

  • Improved 2-up and 4-up, multicam and playback performance when using QuickTime ProRes on Windows
  • Added menu items to allow selection of clips based on Flag, Marker and Clip colors on the edit timeline
  • Added ability to import and export duration markers using EDL
  • Added the ability for clips to snap to their own markers when adjusting In and Out points
  • Improved consistency of edit functions when Timeline is in full-screen mode
  • Added support for box wipe mode for offline reference wipe
  • Added ability to extract AAF import log information as timeline markers

Color Improvements

  • Improved performance for Spatial Noise reduction in Better mode
  • Improved listing of attached and timeline mattes in the node graph with support for alphabetical listing
  • Added ability to apply grades from a reference wipe using the viewer context menu
  • Added ability to align keyframe timelines of color grades using playhead position and wiped still frame
  • Next node and previous node operations now loop around the node graph
  • The ‘displayed’ node graph now automatically updates when the current still is changed
  • Swapping nodes now also swaps the node labels
  • Rippling grades now also copies node labels, Power Window labels and node cache settings
  • Shift Up + Next Still will now append grade from the current still on the advanced control panel (Studio version)
  • Added support for left eye and right eye grades for the timeline node graph (Studio version)
  • Added ability to convert a mono timeline into stereoscopic 3D (Studio version)
  • Added ability to convert a mono clip into stereoscopic 3D (Studio version)
  • Added support for sequence and node render caching for stereoscopic clips and timelines (Studio version)
  • Added compensation for stereoscopic slip when exporting timecodes in ALE (Studio version)
  • Added support copying DolbyVision grades using stills and middle click (Studio version)
  • Improved 3D and Qualifier panel layout in dual screen mode
  • Improved behavior to stay in the same frame when joining two clips

Resolve FX Improvements

  • Added ResolveFX Generate Color (GPU accelerated)
  • Added ResolveFX Tilt-shift Blur
  • Added support for anamorphism in ResolveFX Lens Blur (Studio version)
  • GPU acceleration support for ResolveFX Lens Flare (Studio version)
  • Ability to adjust Shadows/Midtones/Highlights in ResolveFX Film Grain in all compositing modes (Studio version)
  • GPU acceleration support for ResolveFX Emboss, Waviness, Vortex, Ripples, Dent, Mirror
  • Improved ResolveFX Scanlines and added various composite modes
  • Ability to view the ResolveFX Scanline layer without the background
  • Improved border behavior for ResolveFX Gaussian Blur, Directional Blur, Mosaic Blur, Radial Blur and Zoom Blur
  • Added support for horizontal/vertical ratio in ResolveFX Glow
  • Added support for pan and tilt on ResolveFX Prism Blur
  • Improved performance for ResolveFX Light Rays
  • Improved performance for ResolveFX JPEG Damage

Media Improvements

  • Added new Import Media options to File menu and Media Pool context menu
  • Added support for stereoscopic 3D clips in Media Management (Studio version)
  • Added support for display drive names in Media Storage on Windows
  • Addressed issues with open file location from Media Pool on Linux
  • Added Source Name tag support for filename without extension
  • Added support for automatically setting pixel aspect ratio for anamorphic ARRIRAW MXF clips

Codec & Format Improvements

  • Added support for ProRes decoding on Windows
  • Improved QuickTime decode and encode performance on Windows
  • Support for UHD H.264 renders on Windows
  • Improved QuickTime decoding and encoding performance on Linux
  • Added support for HEVC (H.265) decoding on Linux
  • Added support for alpha channel in DNxHR 444
  • Added support for the Sony X-OCN format
  • Added support for various AAC encode parameters on macOS
  • Added support for QuickTime AAC audio encoding on Windows
  • Added support for encoding QuickTime Photo JPEG files
  • Added support for decoding AVCHD files from the Sony NEX-FS700 camera
  • Added support for V-Gamut in RCM for improved Panasonic camera image handling
  • Added ARRI LogC to Linear and Linear to ARRI LogC LUTs in VFX I/O
  • Addressed decoding of last frame in some Panasonic AVCHD clips
  • Improved handling of AVCHD .MTS clips
  • Added support for RED SDK v6.2.1

DOWNLOAD FREE DAVINCI RESOLVE HERE.

Color in Motion

An Interactive Experience of Color Communication and Color Symbolism.

www.mariaclaudiacortes.com

Maria Claudia Cortes '03 (M.F.A., computer graphics design) has been receiving widespread praise for her RIT thesis project, an animated Web site titled Color in Motion. The project received Best of Category honors in the I.D. Magazine 2004 Student Design Review competition, it was featured by Communication Arts Magazine in the 2004 Interactive Design Annual, and also made the pages of the December 2004 issue of Proyecto Diseno, the leading design magazine in Cortes' home country, Colombia.

Cortes joined Eastman Kodak Company in 2003, working first in Rochester and now in Bogota, Colombia, for the Technical Knowledge Management Department. She is a multimedia developer and graphic designer.

Download Davinci Resolve 12.5 lite FREE

Davinci Resolve 12.5 FREE DOWNLOAD

LITE VERSION

Blackmagic Design's DaVinci Resolve is a high-end color correction suite replete with an elaborate control surface designed for professional colorists. It costs $30,000.
There's $1,000 software-only version that runs on Mac, Windows and Linux - Davinci Resolve Studio and Free  Davinci Resolve Lite version.

What you miss in Davinci Resolve Lite Version?

Collaborative Team Work
Database Server Option to share database with multiple Resolves.
Remote grading
Edit Sizing
Real time noise reduction
Extended HDR grading controls
Motion Effects palette with noise reduction and motion blur.
Added support for DaVinci Color Transform Language, .dctl
ResolveFX Film Grain - GPU accelerated, 
ResolveFX Lens Flare
ResolveFX Lens Blur
Real Time Timeline Power Mastering
UHD Limit

HDR Color Grading Solutions

HDR COLOR GRADING FACILITY IN DUBAI, UAE

HDR requires high contrast with deep blacks & bright whites, not just brighter pixels. Simply making a scene brighter isn’t the solution and can skew the creative intent of a scene. 

Different types of content (theatrical, live sports, local news, and music videos), benefit from different approaches. An old TV show (vintage color correction) does not require the same level of remastering for HDR that a new theatrical release would require. Creating content now in HDR provides greater flexibility, even if the final delivery format is not HDR. Expanding the dynamic range of content to improve the experience while preserving artistic intent is what we do best. Our services include a range of solutions for both existing libraries and new content creation from camera original RAW content.

HDR color grading services are available at Pixel House post production facilities in Dubai, UAE. Projects will be graded to the HDR specifications set forth by the UHD Alliance by colorist Sudip Shrestha.

Mail : Sudip@pixelhouse.ae for booking a schedule.

ACES - Demystified- Andreas Brueckl

Senior colorist Andreas Brueckl

Andreas Brueckl is founder of the Colormeup! academy and one of Europe's most respected colorists.
In the last few years he was grading about 200 TVCs a year as well as multiple tv shows, feature films and documentaries. Beside grading he was also supervising as lead colorist.
He works as a colorist on Baselight, DaVinci Resolve, Assimilate Scratch and Nucoda Filmmaster.

Andreas Brueckl is booked worldwide, color grading campaigns for e.g.: Vodafone, CocaCola, Volkswagen, Toyota, Audi, L’Oreal, Wella, Omo, HSBC, Magnum and many more.

He has published a couple of colorgrading tutorials.
Check out his tutorial-channel on vimeo

Since December 2014 he is exclusively contracted as Lead Colorist at Imagica SEA / Pinewood Studios in Malaysia.

If you are interested in a grading session, please get in contact.
Remote grading is also possible.

Contact: email

Skype: andreasbrckl
Follow me on Facebook: Fanpage
Vimeo-Channel: https://vimeo.com/colorgrading
List of his projects: www.crew-united.com

 

Color Grading in Davinci Resolve 12.5 - Dubai

Hollywood's most powerful color corrector!

DaVinci Resolve 12.5 combines professional non-linear video editing with the world’s most advanced color corrector so now you can edit, color correct, finish and deliver all from one system! DaVinci Resolve is completely scalable and resolution independent so it can be used on set, in a small studio or integrated into the largest Hollywood production pipeline! From creative editing and multi camera television production to high end finishing and color correction, only DaVinci Resolve features the creative tools, compatibility, speed and legendary image quality you need to manage your entire workflow, which is why it is the number one solution used on Hollywood feature films.

What’s New in DaVinci Resolve 12.5

DaVinci Resolve 12.5 is a massive update with over 1,000 enhancements and 250 new features that give editors and colorists dozens of new editing and trimming tools, incredible new media management and organization functions, new retiming effects, enhanced keyframe controls, on-screen text editing, new ResolveFX plug-ins and much more! The re-designed node editor is easier and more intuitive to use, there are new HDR grading tools, vastly improved noise reduction, lens distortion correction, a completely redesigned Deliver page for outputting projects and a new Fusion Connect command for round tripping visual effects shots between DaVinci Resolve and Fusion!

The world’s most advanced color grading tools.

DaVinci color correctors have been the standard in post production since 1984. There are thousands of colorists worldwide who understand the performance, quality and workflow of DaVinci. DaVinci Resolve features unlimited grading with the creative tools colorists need and incredible multi GPU real time performance. That’s why DaVinci is the name behind more feature films, commercials, television productions, documentaries and music videos than any other grading system!

Contact Us to visit our Color Grading Suite in Dubai, UAE.

 

PRELIGHT - Free on set color grading tool from Filmlight

FilmLight introduces Prelight, a freely licensed Mac OS X application designed to help DoPs and other professional creatives to author and review looks in pre-production and on-set.

Prelight’s simple-to-operate interface makes it a breeze to check how shots appear with looks or LUTs applied, and to import or add grading decisions that can be passed downstream. Images can be imported from almost any camera, and graded references exported in almost any format.

“What makes Prelight special is that it incorporates the full Truelight Colour Space technology you find in other FilmLight products,” said Peter Postma, Managing Director, FilmLight Americas. “So regardless of the camera, whether RAW or monitoring output, whether HDR or laptop screen, looks are applied consistently and grading decisions remain relevant even for final delivery.”

Prelight complements the FilmLight products FLIP and Daylight, which already provide full on-set and near-set grading capabilities. Many directors, working with a colourist early on or not, would just like more control over how the shot is going to look, and to be able to communicate that easily and visually to post-production.

The creative team can enhance the grade with simple but familiar tools, to create new reference stills as well as 3D LUTs or BLG (Baselight Linked Grade) files. With the render-free BLG workflow, the grades are non-destructive too: additional BLG metadata is created and attached to the stills. And the free licence for Baselight for Avid or NUKE, which makes it free to read and render BLG files, makes this workflow available to productions on any budget.

An extended licence can be purchased so that when these files arrive in the Baselight post house, or on a Daylight system for near-set dailies, the metadata is attached automatically and the BLG file becomes the basis of the grade, which can then be refined right up to the moment the deliverables are created. The additional licence also includes enhanced logging and monitoring capabilities.

As well as fitting in naturally with the BLG workflow, Prelight can fit into any post-production workflow because of the ability to export standard ASC CDL lists and third-party formatted 3D LUTs.

Integration with cameras, such as the ARRI Alexa SXT, means that Prelight can simplify the colour workflow dramatically by enabling fully automated metadata support all the way from the start of the production chain. Prelight can also interface to the majority of professional LUT boxes or monitors for real-time viewing.

“The production and post-production community is looking for ways to customise their workflows to guarantee the best scope for creativity,” Postma added. “Prelight is another exciting option to give simple but direct and reliable control. We are happy to offer the core features of Prelight, including the full grading and LUT toolkit, free, with very low cost options for connectivity and advanced metadata export.”

The invention of color -Philip Ball

How did art get its colour?

Today, the artist's palette is arguably taken for granted, with more than a rainbow of colours available to the painter. And yet were it not for chemistry and the inventions enabled by the evolution of industry and technology, many of the colours that we know today may not have emerged.

In this lecture, one of a series hosted by the University of Bristol exploring some of the cornerstone ideas across the sciences, writer and Bristol Physics graduate Philip Ball talks about the intersection of art, science and creativity. 

He shows how in order to truly understand the history of art, one must appreciate the origins of the artist's palette and the process followed by such greats as Van Gogh and Picasso in creating their masterpieces.

Philip Ball, Big Ideas in Science lecture, University of Bristol: The Invention of Colour – lecture on how chemistry created new colours for artists throughout the ages and what effect that had on their art.