I think it was on some Skillshare Class about photography, when a teacher there said: "If you want to unterstand luminance and brightness, you have to start working with black/white images. Your video shows this very clear :)
Interesting! I don’t know a lot of people who do it. When adjusting exposure and contrast, I find colours too distracting, so this is just personal preference. But I’d argue it makes it easier, too!
@@iamericlenz I learned quite a lot from a split toning guide for black and white photos. it made me view photography in a different light, because and I quote "Black and white photography is an interpretation of the world around us in differences of luminance." and "This is important because it’s through differences of luminance that we can perceive depth and create depth in an image by adjusting the luminance values. Or in photography language: by differences in light contrasts." - I love this video.
The algorithm suggested this video to me a week ago and I ignored it because “I already know what luminance is”. But after the algorithm KEPT SUGGESTING it to me for a week I realized there’s probably something more to this video than the title. The algorithm was right.
I just wanted to let you know that your videos completely changed the way I color my footage. I’ve been working in Final Cut Pro for 8 years now, But after watching your videos, I finally figured out the signal chain hierarchy trick, and it made my C300 Mark III footage look 10 times better! Thanks a million man 🙏❤️ Your videos on color grading in final cut pro is the best and most useful info I have seen from a channel about color grading 👏
Great video! One of the most valuable lessons I’ve learned along the way is that just because you can capture a wide dynamic range doesn’t mean you have to display it. It’s important to capture as many stops as possible to give yourself more flexibility when grading, but the final product may still have crushed blacks or whites, and that’s perfectly fine.
There seems to be a fear of contrast these days. We can shoot 15 stops and apparently nobody wants to get rid of any of that. Rec709 was never meant to see 15 stops. The s curve is too extreme in a lot of modern cases. I have personally started to have a resurgence of shooting standard camera profiles for this very reason. Or at the least using it as a basis of comparison a bit more when shooting log. Those standard profiles look the way they do for a reason. It’s a realistic level of contrast and brightness. Ironically when people talk about the film look a lot of film stocks were a baked in contrasty look. Film stocks in the 80’s which is the golden age of a lot of film for many of us had about 8 stops. Yet it still looks like film to all of us today. Flat is not a film look. More modern film stocks can have a lot more range today but they do not sacrifice contrast. This is why HDR is so important and yet Hollywood has warped its purpose because of their fear of changing and how bad HDR is handled in a theater. HDR allows us to keep a lot more range like 12 stops and keep the normal looking contrast. There is this misconception that HDR should be dark and used more like a EDR format to extend range. So it might still be 12 stops but all of that is packed in a very small portion of what HDR can handle and all in the shadows. HDR is designed to go up to 10,000 nits for a reason however. Because in real life brightness can be bright. Looking into the sun is bright. Having a cop shine a flashlight in your face at night is bright. We feel that brightness in real life. HDR to me means if a camera can capture 12 stops we don’t need to make it flat to keep those 12 stops. We can see those 12 stops as normal contrast. It’s like shooting standard profile in a camera without those easily clipped highlights. Sadly I think a lot of people miss out on that potential of HDR. I agree that we need to get back to emphasizing the look and feel and not making sure we don’t throw any of those yummy 15 stops we captured away. It’s neat we can capture so much range today but it can also be a curse. A curse that makes us afraid to throw anything away. Myself included at times. We have all been taught for decades that clipping is naughty.
in the final result you can clip HL or Shadows and that is ok, having the advantage of capturing more than you will use is key for manipulating the images in post (and yes do not clip your highlights), in HDR as you say the goal is always to get more contrast. as for SDR the goal is to keep things fairly contrasted with the output of only 100nits.
I agree with a lot of your points! It's just sad that HDR is such a hot mess when it comes to specifications and adaptations. This is one of the reasons I just don't care about it (yet). Nevertheless, I'd always argue for proper contrast!
You're a very good teacher, providing relatively complex information in a structured and clear presentation, together with rules and recaps of what has been learnt. And all in a second language!
As a creator trying to better his color grading and editing in Final cut pro. I just want to say THANK YOU, and keep them coming. I really enjoy these longer videos.
Hi Eric, I just wanted to say that this is an incredible video. Your technical skills and precision really stand out, and it’s such a huge asset to your channel. Yours is one of the few that truly shows how to handle raw video effectively-well done! If I may, I’d like to suggest an idea that could benefit many of your viewers: a separate video, shorter, specifically on the process of importing camera raw footage into Final Cut Pro. You covered it well in this video, but I remember searching for that kind of instruction a month ago and couldn’t find a clear explanation. I think a video like this would not only help a lot of people but also enhance your channel’s appeal even further. Another topic I’d love to see is how to create an effective Day for Night effect using footage shot in full daylight. It’s a technique I’ve always been curious about, and I’m sure others would find it valuable too. I hope these don’t come across as suggestions for what you should create-I simply wanted to share what I personally would find helpful. I know how much I appreciate specific video requests on my own channel, so I simply thought I’d ask. Thanks again for the amazing content-keep up the great work!
Fantastic video! Instant sub. I love that you are highlighting the importance of the creative intent behind colouring. I think that since colour management is such a rabbit hole of technical information that it's easy to get hyper-focused on the science behind it, but we need to remember that it's also a form of art.
I recently watched a movie that was shot mostly in wide angle, which made it uncomfortable to watch for a long time because it became too distracting. I wasn't sure what the movie wanted me to look at or focus on. Everything was in focus. You're spot on with the importance of leaving things out intentionally, rather than having the opposite goal.
@@iamericlenz colour grading is quite a fascination for me, but I don't know all the 'science' behind everything that's going on. So it's crazy to see you sorted all that out just using black and white 😯 I'm quite mind-blown actually
Amazing. You have completely retaught everything I thought I knew about color grading video. I am a photographer first hand and am just getting into videography and looking around in UA-cam I’ve never really understood the seemingly over complicated workflows with cst’s, rec 709, log, luts, etc. Editing footage never felt the same as editing images. Your videos have really cleared up everything and I finally feel like I can color grade my videos like my photos.
another valuable information as always! I am guilty to color grading by the values and sometimes I find myself spending so much time fixing things that don't really need fixing. Your approach of working first with luma only to adjust the tone of the scene is such a breath of fresh air to me. Thank you very much!
I think this is a really great video for many reasons. I tend to look at luminance ( or luma ) from the perspective of black level being darkness and any thing above the black level is shadow. I also think of the term exposure in the aspect of dark being black and raising the exposure is adding light which actually gets brighter with stops ( twice the light ) so when you mentioned the camera exposure, and the whole waveform getting brighter - I honestly think that it is more intuitive to see the brightness come as you would see a dimmer on a light. The point being that the black ( total lack of light ) if the light doesn't hit that, it will still be black - adding light exposes the shadow - or in the case of your video there in the one shot the detail ( texture ) of the dark rocks and the guys hair. This is why my advice to people is to set the black and then lock off the middle grey ( the exposure ) and if you want to have a crushed look - push the greys down to the black level which will give less contrast between dark grey and light grey- which gives you a cleaner crushed look and will always pass QC. But everything you did makes sense and is great info for people. Just commenting so people actually be aware that texture in shadows and texture in whites are there from the contrast of luma just above black and just below pure whites. I see people lowering offsets and losing detail - if black is black - pushing it down doesn't make it blacker. The suggestion to look at film grabs and such is a great suggestion and I concur completely. Great job Eric
Great explanation, editing, and presentation. Not to mention, some people think you can't grade footage in FCPX, and this demonstrates they don't know what they're doing, lol
Absolutely excellent video. So refreshing to see someone focusing on the creative decision making. There are way to many video production people that don't seem to have any other background in other art forms. It's so important for people to expand their perspective beyond simple technicality. No good artist is following "the rules".
Wow! You are awesome!! Thank you so much for this video. So refreshing and new. In fact I was thinking about these things myself pritty much recently and I’m happy that you addressed them. Good stuff
The knowledge and expertise of video guys are on a whole another level, compared to the photo guys. As a photographer, I admire it and often find myself learning from such gems of channels like yours and trying to apply the knowledge to my photography. Good work.
Thank you! Log footage offers a lot of freedom, though, one needs to know how to work with it properly. Many people fear contrast because they think they need to keep all of the dynamic range.
This guy figured out how to make final cut work like resolve. Bravo 😂👏👏. Can i get some input on how to make it work in Premiere? My company is stuck on adobe. But im secretly grading everything out in vinci. Also how would you use DWG specific luts
I'm enjoying your videos for sure. Great topics are being covered. That said, I've watched a number of your videos now, and on the post production level I feel like your halation FX is a bit on the heavy side. You're getting a strong red aberration on all your edges. It jumps out at you. If there's any way to dial that back or at least lower the saturation of your halated edges I think this would look more integrated into your overall frame. Also, soft edges need to correspond with halation, so if you have added an halation FX but your edges are still tack sharp it's going to counterbalance each other and look, and more Importantly subconsciously feel unnatural or CG. Just some friendly advice.
7:45 so true. I loved this parallel. Videography and photography as an art is capturing a cross section of reality and not reality itself. It’s a magic trick and the actual reality behind it would spoil it entirely.
I learned a lot from the book Cinematography by Blaine brown who talks about the black and white zone system. This has reminded me to use that when grading
Interesting take, as much as I agree with creative aspects of intended color grade, I think I would dissagree with the technical numbers and here is why. It is extremely important what delivery medium are you color grading for. TV, Cinema, Phones, Laptop screens etc. As you mentioned, relatively how bright situation will the video be watched in. Example, in Cinema things gotta be much darker due to the brightness level in the room. It was not some random dude on UA-cam who told about IREs, it dates back to Ansel Adams who is now credited but people earlier knew this too. Also, when taking the screenshot of your favorite movie and analyisg in your operating system, you do not have the correct values because you only taking a screenshot of the video player which is displaying the file.
You should also take cataract into account. Many humans have different levels of cataract which effects the amount of brightness that one sees. So what may be bright for one maybe flat or dull for another.
Best advice I was ever given is never make a technical decision you can’t justify with a creative decision. Have the technology serve your creativity not your creativity be limited by your technology.
Thankm you sooo much for doing this!! it is these Essentials, that most of the "filmakers" lag. Basic stuff i want to understand in order to know what i want to achieve rather than just guessing! maybe it is because im german, but i like to deeply understand the things im trying to learn and you helf a ton! keep up the good work :)
Great video, Eric! I used to approach brightness adjustments in a very technical way, but you’ve shown me that *intentionally leaving out details* in highlights or shadows can be a powerful choice when editing in Final Cut Pro. Thanks for that insight! Quick question: it looks like you're using a *trackball device* -what model is it? I'm looking for a way to quickly adjust brightness, shadows, and similar settings per clip directly on the FCP timeline, and that device seems like a great tool for it.
Great stuff as always, educational, not just a how to. Do you prefer color wheels over curves? If so, In what instance do you use the curves? Curves, density, and check layer have been my go too on the last few projects.
Thank you! I usually default to the wheels unless I really want the granular control. Split toning works well with the curves - arguably better than with the wheels and fine-tuning contrast is also a task where I gravitate towards curves. :)
@ 6:44, I heard the word 'deliverables,' but the words in front of that were quite incomprehensible. The transcript gives me the number '79'. Can you fill in what was actually said? In fact, the word 'deliverables' is repeated right after that with an adjectival modifier rendered as '79'. Please explain. Thanks, it is otherwise, an excellent tutorial. I got lost when the discussion switched to Premiere; I guess what's said applies to Adobe Camera Raw but I'm not sure how. I'll do some more homework and come back when I'm up to speed.
Another amazing video thank you. Just to confirm, what ever effect you add into an adjustment layer above the clip, final cut will firstly apply anything you have added to the clip directly, before it looks at the adjustment layer above? Think this is correct, thank you!
If you have downloaded the guide, there is a graphic in there. The inspector goes from top to bottom and adjustment layers are processed from bottom to top. :)
@ wow I'll try it🥹🥹 I'm actually Korean and not good at English. So I can barely understand what you're saying. But I'm planning to watch all of your videos and buy your online course when I get paid working at burger king😉😉 I just let you know that so many people feel great thankful to you. And I'm the one of them.
Starting with the global wheel allows me to get a feel for the relationship of the tonal values in the scene. If I started with the Gain/Highlights, I'd already alter the relationship.
Ive never seen that done with the adjustment layer. Is that any different than adding a custom LUT transform directly to the clip and keeping in on top in the inspector?
Mein neuer Lieblingslehrer schlägt wieder zu… man hätte ich dich vor 8 Jahren oder so schon gebraucht 🙈 Starkes Video und was zum testen, da freue ich mich. Danke!!
@@iamericlenz Thank you! It's really nice, and I appreciate your pedagogical approach.
22 дні тому
I've been trying to find an explanation for about 3 years as to why my Slog2 footage doesn't look, at least, similar to other materials I've seen on UA-cam and other platforms. It seems you have deciphered and explained very clearly how to adapt the FCPX workflow to Slog2 color correction in cameras with 8bit sensors. Now, since we both use sony a7III, could you please share the camera settings, for example, S-Log 2_S-Gamut3.Cine. Where do you place the zebras to expose correctly in this profile and then the highlights do not go so high?. Thank you very much in advance for all this knowledge that you have already given us. Much success, subscribed in one go
Pretty much all my camera settings are on default and I expose everything to Sony's recommendations. Just look up Sony's guide for exposing S-Log. They have handy charts. :)
18 днів тому
@@iamericlenz Hi Eric, thank you very much for responding so quickly. I'm looking in the camera manual for the recommended values for exposure in S-Log2, but the truth is I'm a little lost, I can't find the chart you mention. I don't want to be that person who just requests, but a little more help wouldn't hurt. Where can I find those charts you mention? Thank you again for everything 🙏
When I’m photographing, I meter for what I want to retain in the highlights or shadows, and let the rest fall where it may. Similarly, with video in low light, I switch to normal instead of log - grey and noisy retained shadow detail is no use to me. People always yammer on about how many stops the human eye can see, but the other component of this is how your brain processes this information - step into the light from a cave and your mind does gymnastics to accommodate.
Hey Eric, just created an account and downloaded some resources, thank you! IF you don't mind me asking - where in the grading 'chain' do you add a sharpening effect please?
@@iamericlenz Yes sadly. When I'm streaming or create small stuff, I'm always thinking if I should rather make it in German, because the content itself isn't international. But still, I go for english most of the time.
Love to see other creators using Final Cut for coloring. Your workflow seems very similar to the workflow I've developed over the years. I've also experimented with where to put certain looks or LUTS. If you put them before the main transformation, you get some really interesting results!
I tried myself to make FCP work for me but the fact that you can't define the input color space on the custom LUT effect outside of the display standards (709, HDR) is annoying. It makes it so that any transform LUT from a log profile to an output display profile can't be correctly interpreted. In short, it's lacking in color management options.
@tyler_cine Yes and no. If used correctly, you can still get there. I made a whole video on that: Pro - Settings for HLG Log & Raw ua-cam.com/video/bLUO2jnyvvw/v-deo.html
Take screenshots from whatever you like. Gather references and train your understanding. 👊
you're a super handsome fluffy fluffy man hahaha
I think it was on some Skillshare Class about photography, when a teacher there said: "If you want to unterstand luminance and brightness, you have to start working with black/white images. Your video shows this very clear :)
Interesting! I don’t know a lot of people who do it. When adjusting exposure and contrast, I find colours too distracting, so this is just personal preference. But I’d argue it makes it easier, too!
@@iamericlenz I learned quite a lot from a split toning guide for black and white photos. it made me view photography in a different light, because and I quote "Black and white photography is an interpretation of the world around us in differences of luminance." and "This is important because it’s through differences of luminance that we can perceive depth and create depth in an image by adjusting the luminance values. Or in photography language: by differences in light contrasts." - I love this video.
The quality of your work is really above what we find on youtube. Congratulations and thank you for sharing it.
Wow, thank you! :)
The algorithm suggested this video to me a week ago and I ignored it because “I already know what luminance is”. But after the algorithm KEPT SUGGESTING it to me for a week I realized there’s probably something more to this video than the title.
The algorithm was right.
Oh man, same here! Glad I clicked on.
I just wanted to let you know that your videos completely changed the way I color my footage. I’ve been working in Final Cut Pro for 8 years now, But after watching your videos, I finally figured out the signal chain hierarchy trick, and it made my C300 Mark III footage look 10 times better! Thanks a million man 🙏❤️
Your videos on color grading in final cut pro is the best and most useful info I have seen from a channel about color grading 👏
Thank you! I’m so happy to help! :)
Great video! One of the most valuable lessons I’ve learned along the way is that just because you can capture a wide dynamic range doesn’t mean you have to display it. It’s important to capture as many stops as possible to give yourself more flexibility when grading, but the final product may still have crushed blacks or whites, and that’s perfectly fine.
There seems to be a fear of contrast these days. We can shoot 15 stops and apparently nobody wants to get rid of any of that. Rec709 was never meant to see 15 stops. The s curve is too extreme in a lot of modern cases.
I have personally started to have a resurgence of shooting standard camera profiles for this very reason. Or at the least using it as a basis of comparison a bit more when shooting log. Those standard profiles look the way they do for a reason. It’s a realistic level of contrast and brightness.
Ironically when people talk about the film look a lot of film stocks were a baked in contrasty look. Film stocks in the 80’s which is the golden age of a lot of film for many of us had about 8 stops. Yet it still looks like film to all of us today. Flat is not a film look. More modern film stocks can have a lot more range today but they do not sacrifice contrast.
This is why HDR is so important and yet Hollywood has warped its purpose because of their fear of changing and how bad HDR is handled in a theater. HDR allows us to keep a lot more range like 12 stops and keep the normal looking contrast. There is this misconception that HDR should be dark and used more like a EDR format to extend range. So it might still be 12 stops but all of that is packed in a very small portion of what HDR can handle and all in the shadows. HDR is designed to go up to 10,000 nits for a reason however. Because in real life brightness can be bright. Looking into the sun is bright. Having a cop shine a flashlight in your face at night is bright. We feel that brightness in real life.
HDR to me means if a camera can capture 12 stops we don’t need to make it flat to keep those 12 stops. We can see those 12 stops as normal contrast. It’s like shooting standard profile in a camera without those easily clipped highlights. Sadly I think a lot of people miss out on that potential of HDR.
I agree that we need to get back to emphasizing the look and feel and not making sure we don’t throw any of those yummy 15 stops we captured away. It’s neat we can capture so much range today but it can also be a curse. A curse that makes us afraid to throw anything away. Myself included at times. We have all been taught for decades that clipping is naughty.
This deserves a pin
in the final result you can clip HL or Shadows and that is ok, having the advantage of capturing more than you will use is key for manipulating the images in post (and yes do not clip your highlights), in HDR as you say the goal is always to get more contrast. as for SDR the goal is to keep things fairly contrasted with the output of only 100nits.
I agree with a lot of your points! It's just sad that HDR is such a hot mess when it comes to specifications and adaptations. This is one of the reasons I just don't care about it (yet).
Nevertheless, I'd always argue for proper contrast!
@@iamericlenz go for hdr, you wont regret it
For the first time time in my life when I click on the video to check the remaining time , hoping for more. Captivating ❤
Thank you very much!
You bring a lot of knowledge for FCP community. Thanks for for everything you do and can’t wait for your new plugin release 🤝🏼
Thank you very much! Me too, hahaha :D
What a fantastic instructor. You are a gifted teacher. Thank you.
Thank you very much!
You're a very good teacher, providing relatively complex information in a structured and clear presentation, together with rules and recaps of what has been learnt.
And all in a second language!
You're very welcome! Thank you! :)
Grading videos in black and white is like mixing music in mono. So crazy to think that the same methodology applies!
Exactly!
As a creator trying to better his color grading and editing in Final cut pro. I just want to say THANK YOU, and keep them coming. I really enjoy these longer videos.
Hi Eric,
I just wanted to say that this is an incredible video. Your technical skills and precision really stand out, and it’s such a huge asset to your channel. Yours is one of the few that truly shows how to handle raw video effectively-well done!
If I may, I’d like to suggest an idea that could benefit many of your viewers: a separate video, shorter, specifically on the process of importing camera raw footage into Final Cut Pro. You covered it well in this video, but I remember searching for that kind of instruction a month ago and couldn’t find a clear explanation. I think a video like this would not only help a lot of people but also enhance your channel’s appeal even further.
Another topic I’d love to see is how to create an effective Day for Night effect using footage shot in full daylight. It’s a technique I’ve always been curious about, and I’m sure others would find it valuable too.
I hope these don’t come across as suggestions for what you should create-I simply wanted to share what I personally would find helpful. I know how much I appreciate specific video requests on my own channel, so I simply thought I’d ask.
Thanks again for the amazing content-keep up the great work!
Great stuff man, wish you well!
Fantastic video! Instant sub. I love that you are highlighting the importance of the creative intent behind colouring. I think that since colour management is such a rabbit hole of technical information that it's easy to get hyper-focused on the science behind it, but we need to remember that it's also a form of art.
Awesome video mate, nailed it.
Great video! Very well explained!
Fantastic video Eric, thank you so much for pouring out more genuine information! I think I will share this over on discord
Awesome, thank you so much! :)
I recently watched a movie that was shot mostly in wide angle, which made it uncomfortable to watch for a long time because it became too distracting. I wasn't sure what the movie wanted me to look at or focus on. Everything was in focus. You're spot on with the importance of leaving things out intentionally, rather than having the opposite goal.
Another great video. Thank you.
Thank you, Stefan! All the best! 👊
Great advice as always! In this video the difference between a true colorist and a UA-cam-colorgrader become very clear.
Wonderful video and explaining of concepts! Thanks for sharing.
Outstanding ❤
great video! thank you so much for this insight!
Glad you enjoyed it!
Sheesh... This was such an eye-opener!
Thank you!
@@iamericlenz colour grading is quite a fascination for me, but I don't know all the 'science' behind everything that's going on. So it's crazy to see you sorted all that out just using black and white 😯 I'm quite mind-blown actually
Amazing. You have completely retaught everything I thought I knew about color grading video. I am a photographer first hand and am just getting into videography and looking around in UA-cam I’ve never really understood the seemingly over complicated workflows with cst’s, rec 709, log, luts, etc. Editing footage never felt the same as editing images.
Your videos have really cleared up everything and I finally feel like I can color grade my videos like my photos.
You're very welcome! Thank you! :)
Fantastic video Eric! I think we all start off learning the rules, then spend the rest of our lives learning how to break them. Keep up the good work!
Absolutely! Thank you very much, Glen! :)
another valuable information as always! I am guilty to color grading by the values and sometimes I find myself spending so much time fixing things that don't really need fixing. Your approach of working first with luma only to adjust the tone of the scene is such a breath of fresh air to me. Thank you very much!
Love your content man - the effort you put in to these videos really reflects in the output. Hope your channel will continue to grow!!
Thank you! I hope so, too! :D
I think this is a really great video for many reasons. I tend to look at luminance ( or luma ) from the perspective of black level being darkness and any thing above the black level is shadow. I also think of the term exposure in the aspect of dark being black and raising the exposure is adding light which actually gets brighter with stops ( twice the light ) so when you mentioned the camera exposure, and the whole waveform getting brighter - I honestly think that it is more intuitive to see the brightness come as you would see a dimmer on a light.
The point being that the black ( total lack of light ) if the light doesn't hit that, it will still be black - adding light exposes the shadow - or in the case of your video there in the one shot the detail ( texture ) of the dark rocks and the guys hair.
This is why my advice to people is to set the black and then lock off the middle grey ( the exposure ) and if you want to have a crushed look - push the greys down to the black level which will give less contrast between dark grey and light grey- which gives you a cleaner crushed look and will always pass QC.
But everything you did makes sense and is great info for people. Just commenting so people actually be aware that texture in shadows and texture in whites are there from the contrast of luma just above black and just below pure whites. I see people lowering offsets and losing detail - if black is black - pushing it down doesn't make it blacker. The suggestion to look at film grabs and such is a great suggestion and I concur completely.
Great job Eric
Thank you Jim! Much appreciated!
Great explanation, editing, and presentation. Not to mention, some people think you can't grade footage in FCPX, and this demonstrates they don't know what they're doing, lol
Great artistic story telling driven approach, can be applied to any grading software. Subscribed!
Very helpful! Gonna be going through all of your videos to get all this great information.
thank you so much!
Very useful video. Thanks for the information, beautifully presented. Also: I love Final Cut: so simple yet so powerful!
Thank you! That’s my saying!
This channel is gonna blow up for sure, top notch quality and information! Thank you! 🙏
Thank you so much!
Absolutely excellent video. So refreshing to see someone focusing on the creative decision making. There are way to many video production people that don't seem to have any other background in other art forms. It's so important for people to expand their perspective beyond simple technicality. No good artist is following "the rules".
Thank you so much! I think my new motto will be "Let's learn concepts - not pushing buttons" haha :D
Wow! You are awesome!! Thank you so much for this video. So refreshing and new. In fact I was thinking about these things myself pritty much recently and I’m happy that you addressed them. Good stuff
You are so welcome! :)
Great tut, man!
Thank you very much!
Pure gold
Finally somebody is telling why and not how! Thanks! Im waiting for more videos like this!
More to come! :)
Finally someone explained the "why". We need more "why" videos.
That's exactly what I'm here for!
The knowledge and expertise of video guys are on a whole another level, compared to the photo guys. As a photographer, I admire it and often find myself learning from such gems of channels like yours and trying to apply the knowledge to my photography. Good work.
Thank you very much! Adapting and integrating knowledge is the most important thing no matter the domain.
Sehr schönes Video, das ist genau die Art von Erklärung die UA-cam braucht 😊
Danke dafür!
Vielen Dank! :)
Great video! How would you set this up in premier/after effects? Or just use the global color settings and then grade clip by clip? Cheers!
This is eye opening, some how i feel like log is making many make mistakes cause they don't fully understand what you have explained
Thank you! Log footage offers a lot of freedom, though, one needs to know how to work with it properly. Many people fear contrast because they think they need to keep all of the dynamic range.
This guy figured out how to make final cut work like resolve. Bravo 😂👏👏. Can i get some input on how to make it work in Premiere? My company is stuck on adobe. But im secretly grading everything out in vinci. Also how would you use DWG specific luts
I'm enjoying your videos for sure. Great topics are being covered.
That said, I've watched a number of your videos now, and on the post production level I feel like your halation FX is a bit on the heavy side. You're getting a strong red aberration on all your edges. It jumps out at you.
If there's any way to dial that back or at least lower the saturation of your halated edges I think this would look more integrated into your overall frame.
Also, soft edges need to correspond with halation, so if you have added an halation FX but your edges are still tack sharp it's going to counterbalance each other and look, and more Importantly subconsciously feel unnatural or CG.
Just some friendly advice.
Very well explained. Lots of great info, thank you
Glad you enjoyed it!
7:45 so true. I loved this parallel. Videography and photography as an art is capturing a cross section of reality and not reality itself.
It’s a magic trick and the actual reality behind it would spoil it entirely.
Excellent 🙏... Thorough, clear and informative.. added kudos for using the word 'minimalist' not minimal like every other UA-camr...🤷♂️.. 😊
Great vids, sir, thanks big fan - so ultimately technology serves vision between 0 and 100
este video es información valiosísima. muchas gracias por compartirla aquí!
I learned a lot from the book Cinematography by Blaine brown who talks about the black and white zone system. This has reminded me to use that when grading
Interesting take, as much as I agree with creative aspects of intended color grade, I think I would dissagree with the technical numbers and here is why. It is extremely important what delivery medium are you color grading for. TV, Cinema, Phones, Laptop screens etc. As you mentioned, relatively how bright situation will the video be watched in. Example, in Cinema things gotta be much darker due to the brightness level in the room. It was not some random dude on UA-cam who told about IREs, it dates back to Ansel Adams who is now credited but people earlier knew this too. Also, when taking the screenshot of your favorite movie and analyisg in your operating system, you do not have the correct values because you only taking a screenshot of the video player which is displaying the file.
Thanks for sharing your knowledge
My pleasure!
Thank you ❤❤
You're welcome 😊
Fwiw, I made a spreadsheet a while back that calculate the gamma curves and stuff so you can convert light meter measurements to ire, srgb, etc
I love your sweater.
Thanks a lot!
Perhaps the BEST tutorial on how to see exactly what I'm doing. THANK YOU
You're very welcome! Thank you!
You should also take cataract into account. Many humans have different levels of cataract which effects the amount of brightness that one sees. So what may be bright for one maybe flat or dull for another.
Nice video, thank you.
Thank you! :)
This helps so much-thank you!
Great f🎉 video! I'll share it with some ppl to show them what i've been trying to explain for so long...
Thank you very much! :)
Finally someone with brains.
Thank you!
Watched the whole thing and as always top quality content. 9:32 is an absolute eye opener. Thanks a lot, as always, Eric 🙏🏻
My pleasure! Thank you so much and I’m happy I could help! :)
Best advice I was ever given is never make a technical decision you can’t justify with a creative decision. Have the technology serve your creativity not your creativity be limited by your technology.
Thankm you sooo much for doing this!! it is these Essentials, that most of the "filmakers" lag. Basic stuff i want to understand in order to know what i want to achieve rather than just guessing! maybe it is because im german, but i like to deeply understand the things im trying to learn and you helf a ton!
keep up the good work :)
Damn, this is hidden gem! Thankyou for sharing your knowledge
Thank you so much!
Great video, Eric! I used to approach brightness adjustments in a very technical way, but you’ve shown me that *intentionally leaving out details* in highlights or shadows can be a powerful choice when editing in Final Cut Pro. Thanks for that insight!
Quick question: it looks like you're using a *trackball device* -what model is it? I'm looking for a way to quickly adjust brightness, shadows, and similar settings per clip directly on the FCP timeline, and that device seems like a great tool for it.
Thank you! It's the tangent ripple. :) You can make it work using command post. :)
Great stuff as always, educational, not just a how to. Do you prefer color wheels over curves? If so, In what instance do you use the curves? Curves, density, and check layer have been my go too on the last few projects.
Thank you! I usually default to the wheels unless I really want the granular control. Split toning works well with the curves - arguably better than with the wheels and fine-tuning contrast is also a task where I gravitate towards curves. :)
Amazing idea! How to do it in Davinci resolve ?
This is so good
Thank you so much!
Great video Eric! I got completely mesmerized by the quality of your mic btw. What mic is it, if you dont mind saying?
Rode M3 just out of frame :)
nice, great videos. Thanks!
@ 6:44, I heard the word 'deliverables,' but the words in front of that were quite incomprehensible. The transcript gives me the number '79'. Can you fill in what was actually said? In fact, the word 'deliverables' is repeated right after that with an adjectival modifier rendered as '79'. Please explain.
Thanks, it is otherwise, an excellent tutorial.
I got lost when the discussion switched to Premiere; I guess what's said applies to Adobe Camera Raw but I'm not sure how. I'll do some more homework and come back when I'm up to speed.
THANK YOU. this is the type of education that is missing from countless of "youtube tutorials"
Thank you very much!
What is the name of the light in the background?
Very nice video, thank you
Thank you too!
Another amazing video thank you. Just to confirm, what ever effect you add into an adjustment layer above the clip, final cut will firstly apply anything you have added to the clip directly, before it looks at the adjustment layer above? Think this is correct, thank you!
If you have downloaded the guide, there is a graphic in there. The inspector goes from top to bottom and adjustment layers are processed from bottom to top. :)
It's what i've wonder. Thank you soooo much.
I wanna know how did you compose this 4:30 setup in FCP !!
Love your work😃😃
Glad you liked it! Do you mean my workspace? You can switch the scopes from vertical to horizontal in the little drop down. :)
@ wow I'll try it🥹🥹
I'm actually Korean and not good at English. So I can barely understand what you're saying. But I'm planning to watch all of your videos and buy your online course when I get paid working at burger king😉😉
I just let you know that so many people feel great thankful to you. And I'm the one of them.
Thanks a lot for your lesson! I do have a question. Why are you using the global wheel and not the highlight one?
Starting with the global wheel allows me to get a feel for the relationship of the tonal values in the scene. If I started with the Gain/Highlights, I'd already alter the relationship.
@@iamericlenz ah so! A light goes on in my head 😅 thanks again
great content, already subscribed
Awesome, thank you! :)
Ive never seen that done with the adjustment layer. Is that any different than adding a custom LUT transform directly to the clip and keeping in on top in the inspector?
This video will help: WHERE does the LUT go?
ua-cam.com/video/yrdMW9jJ4xg/v-deo.html
All good but - in what colour space is FCPX grade stack being processed internally? Resolve controls are colour space aware, FCPX - I doubt.
Does this have to do anything with the conceptual understanding taught in this video? - I doubt.
How are you getting Final Cut to organize the color scopes below the viewer instead of next to it?
There is a drop-down menu on the top right of the scopes where you can choose "Horizontal Layout"
Mein neuer Lieblingslehrer schlägt wieder zu… man hätte ich dich vor 8 Jahren oder so schon gebraucht 🙈
Starkes Video und was zum testen, da freue ich mich. Danke!!
Vielen Dank! Freut mich, dass ich helfen kann! :)
Great video thank you for your knowledge - but an off-topic question: What song did you use at 6:26 in the transition to Chapter Four?
I can't recall exactly. But usually, I just use piano chords. :)
@@iamericlenz Oh okay, thank you :)
Hello Eric, what LUT do you use in this video? Would it be possible to find it somewhere?
I use dehancer to emulate 2383 print film for my videos. :)
@@iamericlenz Thank you! It's really nice, and I appreciate your pedagogical approach.
I've been trying to find an explanation for about 3 years as to why my Slog2 footage doesn't look, at least, similar to other materials I've seen on UA-cam and other platforms. It seems you have deciphered and explained very clearly how to adapt the FCPX workflow to Slog2 color correction in cameras with 8bit sensors. Now, since we both use sony a7III, could you please share the camera settings, for example, S-Log 2_S-Gamut3.Cine. Where do you place the zebras to expose correctly in this profile and then the highlights do not go so high?. Thank you very much in advance for all this knowledge that you have already given us. Much success, subscribed in one go
Pretty much all my camera settings are on default and I expose everything to Sony's recommendations. Just look up Sony's guide for exposing S-Log. They have handy charts. :)
@@iamericlenz Hi Eric, thank you very much for responding so quickly. I'm looking in the camera manual for the recommended values for exposure in S-Log2, but the truth is I'm a little lost, I can't find the chart you mention. I don't want to be that person who just requests, but a little more help wouldn't hurt. Where can I find those charts you mention? Thank you again for everything 🙏
When I’m photographing, I meter for what I want to retain in the highlights or shadows, and let the rest fall where it may. Similarly, with video in low light, I switch to normal instead of log - grey and noisy retained shadow detail is no use to me. People always yammer on about how many stops the human eye can see, but the other component of this is how your brain processes this information - step into the light from a cave and your mind does gymnastics to accommodate.
Correct. That's why I said "visionary system" and "experience". It's a game of constant adjustments and psychology plays a huge role, too.
Hey Eric, just created an account and downloaded some resources, thank you! IF you don't mind me asking - where in the grading 'chain' do you add a sharpening effect please?
At the very beginning. I will update the guide soon. :)
Love from UAE
digger, du bist hammer
vielen Dank! :D
Your channel is the best find of 2024. And thank you, I can now say that there is a German creator who is finally watchable :D. Grüße nach Leipzig.
Wow, thanks! Yeah, UA-cam-Germany is borderline useless in pretty much any regard. That's why my channel is in English. Liebe Grüße zurück! :)
@@iamericlenz Yes sadly. When I'm streaming or create small stuff, I'm always thinking if I should rather make it in German, because the content itself isn't international. But still, I go for english most of the time.
Where'd you get ur sounds from? Ur sound taste is as good as ur colouring
Thanks! I subscribe to artlist. All of my music is from there. You will find the piano chords under sound effects. :)
@@iamericlenz thank you! Great choic3
Where does the adjustment layer come from?
I make plugins for Final Cut Pro. Here: ericlenz.photography/final-cut-pro-plugins
Love to see other creators using Final Cut for coloring. Your workflow seems very similar to the workflow I've developed over the years. I've also experimented with where to put certain looks or LUTS. If you put them before the main transformation, you get some really interesting results!
I’m working on a system for FCP that will simplify this. Will be out this year! :)
I tried myself to make FCP work for me but the fact that you can't define the input color space on the custom LUT effect outside of the display standards (709, HDR) is annoying.
It makes it so that any transform LUT from a log profile to an output display profile can't be correctly interpreted.
In short, it's lacking in color management options.
@tyler_cine Yes and no. If used correctly, you can still get there. I made a whole video on that: Pro - Settings for HLG Log & Raw
ua-cam.com/video/bLUO2jnyvvw/v-deo.html
wow dude.