- Before we get started, let's talk about the footage we'll be using in this training, the project, how we'll be using this footage, and if you should be color correcting along with me. Now this footage is from a feature length documentary I was hired to color correct. It's titled Tanzania: A Journey Within. It was brought to me by Emmy Award-winning director Sylvia Caminer. I graded a few of her feature films and this is her passion project. It's a film designed to help save lives. Now, the running time is 102 minutes but when it comes to color correction and budgeting your time, more important than running length is the number of shots in the timeline, the shot count.
Except for a few edge cases, the shot count gives us almost all the information we need to know to figure out is the time we have to color correct this realistic? Now on this film, I had 1159 shots to color correct. The budget allowed for five days of work. I generally need at least a half day to prep a feature length timeline and then a half day for rendering, checking the renders, fixing the problem, and delivering it onto the client's hard drive.
Also on a feature project, I reserve at least a half day for final review and last minute revisions. This leaves me three and a half days for the actual color correct itself. 1200 shots in three and a half days. That's 345 shots a day. If you do the math, I have less than two minutes to spend on each shot in a nine hour day with no bathroom breaks. Yes, we're moving quickly. Here's the thing. While it might seem that every single shot is a brand new experience, to me, I see the same kind of shots over and over every day.
Yeah, the exact content of a shot is new to me. The challenges though? They repeat themselves. There are about a dozen common challenges you're liking to face. Master the solution to those challenges and 1200 shots start looking like 20 shots, repeated over and over. And this documentary contains a good number of those common challenges. That's why I've selected this film to use in this series. And the shots I've pulled together will help us master DaVinci Resolve 12 while also illustrating these common problems we face on documentaries, corporate videos, feature films, shorts, even commercials and music videos.
Just keep in mind. This is an actual documentary. Because the filmmakers, they want to get their message out, they've agreed to allow me to license this footage and share it with you for your personal education while working through this training series. Please, respect their copyright and don't share it. If you want to find out more about Tanzania: A Journey Within and how it's saving lives in Africa, be sure to watch the movie at the end of this series and really, feel free to thank Sylvia and her team on Twitter at TanzaniaTheMovie.
One last thing. Do I think you should be color correcting this footage with me? If you have access to the exercise files, absolutely yes. If you truly want to ingrain the concept I'm teaching here, it's not enough to watch. You need to do. You need to develop the muscle memory that informs your eye. What's happening to this footage when I take this slider and move it that way? Your eye will get the feedback of your muscles performing an action and it vastly improves your retention, recall, and understanding.
Now, it doesn't really matter if you're using this footage or your own footage. It just so happens these shots have been handpicked to demonstrate what I need. Just use footage. Absolutely. Practice what I'm doing as I do it to truly learn how to use DaVinci Resolve 12.
Author
Updated
9/22/2017Released
2/2/2016In these tutorials, professional colorist Patrick Inhofer guides viewers through the basics of using DaVinci Resolve 12. Get a look over Patrick's shoulder as he touches on key features in Resolve, while introducing the lingo every colorist needs to understand the program and the workflow. He shows how to import footage, keep it all organized, edit clips in the timeline, and start color grading your project: applying primary and secondary corrections, vignettes, looks, and Power Windows. He also shows how to target corrections with shapes and keys, match shots, and create "hero shots" to jump-start discussions with directors, clients, and colleagues.
Most of the tutorials are compatible with both DaVinci Resolve and DaVinci Resolve Studio, the paid version of the software. If you have already watched DaVinci Resolve 11 Essential Training, check out "What's New in DaVinci Resolve 12" to brush up on the updates, as well as the new chapter on DaVinci 12.5.
- Understanding the DaVinci Resolve interface
- Building a Resolve system
- Working in different use modes
- Creating new projects
- Importing footage
- Editing and trimming footage
- Preparing timelines for color correction
- Analyzing color, contrast, and exposure with scopes
- Adjusting hue and saturation
- Understanding nodes
- Performing secondary color corrections
- Targeting corrections
- Matching shots
- Building looks
- Rendering individual shots and self-contained movies
Skill Level Beginner
Duration
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Q: This course was updated on 11/15/2016. What changed?
A: We added a new chapter, "DaVinci Resolve 12.5 Essential Updates." DaVinci Resolve 12.5 introduced nearly 250 new features. Blackmagic also tweaked over 1,000 other elements, speeding up the software, fixing bugs, and making tweaks to the User Interface. In this new chapter, author Patrick Inhofer walks through the updates you need to know when learning how to use the latest version of DaVinci Resolve.
Related Courses
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Premiere Pro: Documentary Editing
with Jason Osder3h 48m Intermediate -
Taylre Jones, Film and Video Colorist
with Taylre Jones16m 7s Intermediate
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Introduction
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Welcome5m 14s
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Using this footage4m 3s
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About this rig4m 5s
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1. What's New in Resolve 12?
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The new single-user mode1m 15s
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Simple clip relinking2m 30s
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Smart Bins2m 15s
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Timeline Smart Filters3m 28s
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Bezier handles in Resolve 123m 49s
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Compound nodes3m 5s
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Keying: The new 3D keyer3m 3s
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Media Management panel3m 11s
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Avid Pro Tools export2m 2s
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2. Building a Resolve System
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Who uses DaVinci Resolve?3m 35s
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3. Understanding Disk Databases, User Modes, and Projects
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Relinking media3m 1s
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4. Getting Started with DaVinci Resolve 12
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Resolve System Preferences5m 23s
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Essential Project Settings7m 20s
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Overview: The Media page11m 4s
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Overview: The Edit page13m 44s
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Overview: The Color page5m 57s
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Overview: The Deliver page4m 22s
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Overview: Dual monitor setup6m 27s
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5. Editing a Project in DaVinci Resolve 12
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Navigating the Edit page11m 23s
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Keyboard mapping3m 49s
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Additional timeline commands6m 23s
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Working in the Edit mode7m 38s
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Track targeting 1015m 36s
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Working with audio9m 14s
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The Clip Inspector6m 52s
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Working with titles6m 6s
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6. Moving and Preparing a Timeline for Color Correction
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7. Image Evaluation: Seeing Like a Colorist
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8. In Action: Building a Look
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Adjusting hue and saturation4m 57s
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The RGB mixer8m 48s
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9. Understanding Nodes
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10. Secondary Color Correction Tools
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Using the Hue vs. curves6m 40s
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Fine-tuning your tracking8m 29s
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11. Matching Shots
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Overview: The Gallery3m 53s
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Gallery: The Reference Wipe3m 15s
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Matching skin tone: Examples9m 21s
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12. Building Looks: Essential Tools
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Render cache: Smart mode6m 8s
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Keyframing fundamentals9m 2s
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13. Rendering, Delivering, and Archiving
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Rendering: Individual shots8m 17s
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14. DaVinci Resolve 12 Essential Updates
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Welcome1m 47s
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Importing the update1m 47s
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Closer look: New menus5m 31s
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Save Status icon1m 11s
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Power bins in the Media Pool2m 33s
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Conclusion44s
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Conclusion
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Goodbye (Keynote)3m 43s
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