A Crash Course in Video Color Grading with DaVinci Resolve

If you’ve been working with video in the last few years and are looking to take your post-production to the next level, color grading absolutely needs to be something you consider incorporating into your workflow. DaVinci Resolve is not only a powerful software for doing this, but it's base version is actually free for anyone.

 

In this video by Ted Forbes from The Art of Photography, Forbes takes viewers through the basic Resolve interface and workflow, geared towards the beginner user.

One important concept that really helps explain the way the Resolve works, is a comparison between layer-based editing (like in Photoshop) and the nodal-based editing of Resolve. If you’re relatively new to video editing and come from a photography background, this will really help you understand how the color grading in Resolve is truly “non-destructive.”

Forbes also touches on LUTs (Look Up Tables) and uses a flat image in an example to show a very quick color grade. He had requests from his audience to do a tutorial on color grading after he released the video below, which had a noticeable "look" to it.

For more video from Ted Forbes about famous photographers, techniques, gear and more, check out his YouTube page: The Art of Photography.

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Mike Wilkinson is an award-winning video director with his company Wilkinson Visual, currently based out of Lexington, Kentucky. Mike has been working in production for over 10 years as a shooter, editor, and producer. His passion lies in outdoor adventures, documentary filmmaking, photography, and locally-sourced food and beer.

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5 Comments

I hope that my visit to NYC coincides with ManhattenHenge.

I would love to see a longer tutorial on DaVinci. Thanks for this short introduction.

WOW that software is free!
I'll be checking that out for sure, thanks for the post.

Nice video. A great intro to grading in Resolve.

Thanks for introducing into Davinci. I'd love to see a more in-depth review of the software.