Color Management Workflow

Hey there.

I've read the docs and I'm trying to wrap my head around CM in Resolve. For starters, I'm familiar with CM in general, and how nuke, ae and 3d renderers deal with it. So essentially transforming all inputs into a particular color space, typically scene referred linear, then using a view transform to view while you're working - usually sRGB on a workstation or rec702 or 2020 on a ref monitor. Then choosing your output space and rendering to that on output. Pretty typical VFX CM workflow.

I have a number of questions, but I'll start with a few:

Output Color Space
This is my biggest question. Why does changing the OCS affect what you see in the viewers? My thought would be that the Timeline Color Space is equivalent to your working space, and that the viewers would be transformed (based on a view LUT) from that working space into whatever you're working on (say an sRGB monitor) and the output transform shouldn't affect this. But it clearly does. What's going on there?

My theory is that since OCS is project based (right?) that Resolve is always taking OCS into account in what it displays. So if for instance I want to deliver scene referred linear files, I would set the OCS to linear and set the view luts to linear > sRGB (or whatever). My quick test with our BMPCC4K and both raw and video encoded files seems to bear this out. But in that case, the clips in the source monitor and timeline don't seem to get that same transform. But is that basically how Resolve is working?

If that's correct, I'd lobby to decouple OCS from the project. At least make it Timeline based. As it is, it would be cumbersome to deliver to multiple different color spaces. But I could be missing something fundamental here.

Input Color Space
I'm referring to the setting in the Color Space and Transforms panel in the Project Settings. Does this only apply to imported items that haven't been explicitly set? In other words, does setting an ICS explicitly on a clip over ride this setting? Seems like it but want to check.

BM Color Profiles
I guess this is more specific to the camera, but it came up in testing. There is a Blackmagic Design Pocket 4K Film, but there is no Blackmagic Design Pocket 4K Video and Extended Video. There are Blackmagic Design Broadcast Video and Extended Video. When we choose Video and Extended video on the BMPCC4K, are those what we're choosing?

Thanks for any insight

maybe worth looking at working in ACES instead of RCM?
you seem very comfortable with the concepts
and the excution is closer to what your model seems to be

* note that currently unlike Baselight and Nucoda, Resolve does not scale the operators - so some functions like curves need alot of movement before anything much happens on screen

Thanks. Looked at that, but seems like the documentation isn't quite up to speed. The 15.2 manual states that "As of DaVinci Resolve 14, only ACES 1.0.3 is supported." but 15.2.2 allows us to choose 1.1 The manual also states that "you can assign different IDTs to clips using the Media Pool’s contextual menu.." but it's not really clear how to choose IDT's at the clip level. And really the same questions apply. If the output transform is being taken into account for the viewers, don't I need to explicitly set Output Transform > view LUT?

maybe worth looking at working in ACES instead of RCM?
you seem very comfortable with the concepts
and the excution is closer to what your model seems to be

* note that currently unlike Baselight and Nucoda, Resolve does not scale the operators - so some functions like curves need alot of movement before anything much happens on screen

Join Mixinglight.com and watch Robbie Carman’s series on the Aces workflow. It’s fully explained in four parts and will answer all your questions in detail. This site is an invaluable resource if you’re going to be serious about color and give you lots of other information that you will find helpful in the future.


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Thanks Dario. I'll take a look. Resolve does seem to be doing some different things than we're used to, so maybe be Robbie has some insight into that. Though I would hope that BMD would be able to explain what their product is doing as well

Join Mixinglight.com and watch Robbie Carman’s series on the Aces workflow. It’s fully explained in four parts and will answer all your questions in detail. This site is an invaluable resource if you’re going to be serious about color and give you lots of other information that you will find helpful in the future.


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it's not really clear how to choose IDT's at the clip level.

in the media pool right click on a clip and select "ACES input transform"

If the output transform is being taken into account for the viewers, don't I need to explicitly set Output Transform > view LUT?

correct, the working color space (AP1) is mapped to the chosen output transform

it's not really clear how to choose IDT's at the clip level.

in the media pool right click on a clip and select "ACES input transform"
...

Thanks Dermot. Well that explains a bit. That menu item is missing in Resolve. I see it in Resolve Studio, but not Resolve. Is that a bug?

i only have studio, but one thought is that menu is not reveled unless you selected ACES in prefs -> color managment

i only have studio, but one thought is that menu is not reveled unless you selected ACES in prefs -> color managment

Thanks. No I'm definitely using ACES. Odd, must be a bug since it's pretty useless without being able to set the IDT.

weird indeed

i'd have thought that such a bug would be mentioned quite loudly by now;-)

one more thought, if the footage is RAW then IDT's are not in play, there camera linear = AP1

one more thought, if the footage is RAW then IDT's are not in play, there camera linear = AP1

In case of raw files, Resolve processes these conversions automatically. Raw data itself is not in AP1 gamut for any camera, but it will land in project working space after processing from original data is done.

true,
should have said;
camera linear -> AP1 after debayering with camera mfg's assumptions/tweaks burnt in

one (good) reason to get exposure and white balance in the ballpark with raw controls... cam mfg's change debayering to best suit the selected exposure & white balance