Colour Grading system choices are a bit like boxing. Not all boxers are equal:
weight, skill and strategy play a major role in the type of events in which they
partake. Boxers develop a style using their advantages and hiding their
disadvantages. It’s pretty much the same with grading systems. Some are turnkey
solutions, others are software only. Just like boxers, the performance varies,
depending on what they are put up against.
Historically, hardware-based systems offered better performance and a smaller
feature set than systems based around software or plug-ins.
The real-time performance was optimised to particular resolution and bit depths
unlike software platforms that use standard computer industry hardware and often
trade speed for resolution independence. While hardware-based systems always
offer real-time performance, most software-based systems need to render as the
complexity of the colour grading increases. On the other hand, software-based
systems tend to have more features such as spline-based windows/masks and
advanced motion tracking.
The line between hardware and software is thinning out as many software-based
colour correctors use multi-processor workstations and GPUs (graphics processing
units) as a means of hardware acceleration.
Added to this, some newer software-based systems use a cluster of multiple
parallel GPUs on the one-computer system to improve performance at the very high
resolutions required for feature film grading. Some colour grading systems run as
software only and will even run on computers with less grunt quite adequately.
It is important to state that colour correction and colour grading are often
misinterpreted and one process is mistaken for the other. While they do share some
of the same tools and processes, they are different. Colour correction alters footage
to a consistent technical standard of appearance. The goal is to match the recorded
image with a standard that is an accurate portrayal of the subject, as it would be
viewed from the human eye. It is usually used to conform multiple shots to the
same quality.
Colour grading is the process of altering an image for aesthetic and communicative
purposes. The colourist creates a look and a feel to further the purpose of a shot.
There are many grading and finishing systems out there so lets take a brief look at
a few most popular and compare their features.
Blackmagic Design DaVinci Resolve
The DaVinci name is legendary among colour correction products, but that
reputation was earned with its hardware products, like the DaVinci 2K. Resolve was
the software-based product built around a Linux cluster. When Blackmagic bought
the assets and technology of DaVinci, all of the legacy hardware products were
dropped, in favor of concentrating on Resolve as the software, which had the most
life for the future. There are now four versions, including Resolve Lite (free),
Resolve (paid – software only), Resolve with a Blackmagic control surface and
Resolve for Linux.
Adobe SpeedGrade CC
If you are current as a Creative Cloud subscriber, then you have access to the most
recent version of Adobe Premiere Pro CC and SpeedGrade CC. With the updates
introduced late last year, Adobe added Direct Link interaction between Premiere Pro
and SpeedGrade. When you use Direct Link to send your Premiere Pro timeline to
SpeedGrade, the actual Premiere Pro sequence becomes the SpeedGrade sequence.
This means codec decoding, transitions and Premiere Pro effects are handled by
Premiere Pro’s effects engine, even though you are working inside SpeedGrade.
Avid Technology Media Composer + Symphony
Although it started as a separate non-linear editing (NLE) product with dedicated
hardware, today’s Symphony is really an add-on option to Media Composer.
The main feature that differentiates Symphony from Media Composer in file-based
workflows is an enhanced colour correction toolset. Symphony used to be the “gold
standard’ for colour correction within an NLE, combining controls “borrowed’ from
many other software and systems, like Photoshop, hardware proc amps and
hardware versions of the DaVinci correctors. It was the first to use the colour wheel
control model for balance/hue offsets.
A subset of the Symphony tools has been migrated into Media Composer. Basic
correction features in Symphony include channel mixing, hue offsets (colour
balance), levels, curves and more.
Nucoda from Digital Vision
Nucoda colour grading and mastering solutions have been used on many of the
best-known films, commercials, documentaries, music videos and television
programs around the globe and is considered by many as the premium colour
grading and finishing solution for feature films, commercials and broadcast
applications.
Nucoda combines a creative tool set with a very tight integration to the Avid
workflow, including full support for Interplay. Nucoda is a fully featured ACES
grading system, featuring HDR grading and real time EXR file format support.
Base Light from Filmlight
From 2002, UK firm FilmLight has designed, created and manufactured unique
colour grading systems, image processing applications and workflow tools for the
film and television industry.
Baselight is used for HD, 2K, 4K and 3D colour grading. Grade operations are
controlled via Blackboard. Program supports variety of film and video formats and
codecs. FilmLight systems utilize cluster and cloud technology in Linux environment.
Mistika from SGO technologies
Mistika from SGO is an advanced resolution independent post-production system
that incorporates editing, vfx, colour grading, text, paint, audio and stereo 3D.
Mistika can run on a laptop; a standalone PC with internal storage; open SAN
connected; collaboratively networked; multi-GPU; and multi-linked systems.
Pablo Rio from Quantel
Quantel Pablo had long been a high-end turnkey industry leader but recently
Quantel re-invented their workflows and introduced Pablo Rio, a software based
high quality colour and finishing system. It builds on the Pablo pedigree but runs on
standard COTS (Commercial Off The Shelf) hardware. Offering new levels of
interactivity, Pablo Rio handles everything from high frame rate file-based media to
multi-layer Stereo3D working.
Scratch from Assimilate
Also a software based system, Scratch is a bit of a hidden gem and has advanced
colour grading and compositing tools and is used for creating digital dailies and for
final finishing. It runs in Mac and Windows environments. Assimilate also has a
player that will decode almost any RAW format and is great for use in the field.
Conclusion
There are so many systems out there and the features of each have advantages and
disadvantages depending on individual workflow. Not all systems are the same,
some are best suited for specific tasks, some are good all-rounders.
Budget obviously has a role to play in the effectiveness of the suite, the more you
throw at a system, the more powerful it will be. But the true power behind a
grading and finishing system is ultimately the talent driving it – and, just as with
boxers, it’s training and overall experience that makes a world champ!
– Ian Dormer
