Color correcting whilst using Sync Bin

This is a third try of an earlier request placed on the v7 beta thread but within a day was pushed down to line 45 due to the heavy load of bug reports. This is not a bug - just a cry for ideas.

My first attempt to get help was somewhat sidetracked by Jim Simon. In this case he was telling me to stop using the Cut Tab and move to the Edit. As that is not the way I want to work with the Speed Editor I am hoping someone will have another solution. Simon, with his 13,500 posts, clearly does not lack dedication and I admire it. I just hope a fresh pair of eyes will have a fresh idea (or two)

Almost all my work is with three cameras. I shoot interviews and small scale amdram.

Using the Sync Bin in the Cut Tab with the Speed Editor is perfect for me.

I shoot a colour target with each camera at the start. The lighting does not change in the duration of the shoot.

How would you colour correct each of my three camera clips so that the correction was continued as I built up the timeline of shorter clips. You can do this in the Edit Tab using multicam (Jim's advice).

Is there not a way of doing it with the Sync Bin in the Cut Tab? Correcting each short clip is not only time consuming but also, for 81 year old brain, too prone to error.

If the only way is to build the assembly in Cut Page and then revert briefly to Edit to colour correct them what is the quickest and safest way that does not involve clicking on every small clip?

If I don't get a single reply then ten out of ten for Jim.

But, ever the optimist, I live in hope.

Tony
London UK

Make your first few cuts so that there is one bit of clip from each source file on the timeline (can be in the Cut page or Edit page, makes no difference for this workflow)

In the color page, select all the clips on timeline and choose “use remote grades”

Once you done that you only have to put a grade on each source file once and it will ripple through to every use of that source clip on that timeline (and also on any other timeline within the same Resolve project that is set to use Remote grades)

Remote grades will ripple through per source file, not by camera nor by track nor by reel, so if your cameras started and stopped through the shoot, you’ll have to apply the grade once per separate source file, but at least you won’t have to grade tiny edited clip by tiny edited clip.

Hi Tony,

One thing i don't understand is that you mention the edit tab for color correction a few times. I think you mean the color tab?

I think the solution is really simple if i understand it correctly. In the color page, you could for example;

-filter the clips by "common media source" (in the color tab), and just copy paste the correction to all the clips at once. This is maybe the easiest workflow to understand. A possible downside is that when you change the correction of one clip, you have to repeat the process if you want to it for the rest as well. which could also be an upside.

-use groups. A little more complicated to understand. When you are in the color page, for example after you filtered the clips like mentioned above (you can filter them in many ways), you can select all clips, rightclick and add them into a new or existing group. after that, you can grade every clip in that group simultaneously (change "clip" in dropdown menu just above the node view to "pre/post clip)
This way you are still able to change each clip individually by changing this dropdown menu back to clip.

-use remote grades. This basically means that all the clips with the same media source are linked. when you colorcorrect one clip, it will apply the same change to the rest of the clips with the same source in your timeline. you can link these clips between multiple timelines. (you activate this in the color tab by right clicking on a clip and select "use remote grades")

If you want the clips to be graded in advance, to have a pleasant picture while editing, you could create a new timeline with all the footage first (lets call it the source-timeline), grade it with this remote setting, then create a new editing-timeline, in this timeline set it (in the color page) to remote as well, and it will mirror the look of all the clips in the source-timeline.

Let me know if it helps.
edit: too late with the remote-explaination

I agree with Rick's suggestions above. I also strongly advise the o.p. not to dive into Resolve without first going through all the tutorials and textbooks on Blackmagic's Training page, and also reading the manual. Everything he's asking about is explained there, and some of it is not simple and requires making good workflow decisions. There's not necessarily one correct answer, but there are a lot of potential ways this can go wrong if you're not careful.

Some good suggestions here. Lots of them. Thank you.

Just shows one can build a sequence in the Cut Tab and colour correct it without resort to Edit.

Yes - I did refer to the Edit tab and I should have said Colour.

And the final post by Marc. We have swopped posts several times since I started using Resolve seriously last March. No I have not read every single one of the 3,500 pages of the Manual. I know what is there but sometimes not where to find it. And I have worked through the relevant lessons - but forgotten, for example, the particular lesson about 'groups'.

In reality Google is my friend and having transferred this query from the 17 beta folk who are dominated by so many hardware problems I did a quick Google Search and there were some answers to my problem of today. Not as good as the ones that have already come in here - but not useless either.

Thanks again and all further suggestions welcome. For me this thread is certainly not closed.

Rick,

If you are still around could you elaborate a bit on this suggestion.

If you want the clips to be graded in advance, to have a pleasant picture while editing, you could create a new timeline with all the footage first (lets call it the source-timeline), grade it with this remote setting, then create a new editing-timeline, in this timeline set it (in the color page) to remote as well, and it will mirror the look of all the clips in the source-timeline.

What do I put in the first (new) timeline? I have three cameras running (say) fifteen minutes. All three fifteen minute clips?

My second (editing) timeline I assume I create from the Sync Bin with a base camera covering all fifteen minutes and then working along, with my Speed Editor) putting other shots as overwrites. At what stage do I go into the Color Tab and ask for remote.

I have looked in the Manual Marc. If there is a page that explains then by all means point me to it.

EDIT.

I see how Ricks first method works. I have spent quite a lot of time seeing how to make Remote Grades but cannot find a way of introducing them whilst building up a timeline using the Sync Bin. I can grade the clips once they have been chosen but can't see how to get them to display ready graded as I pick new ones.

Tony

Hmm...


For a minute i was convinced that once remote grades was activated in a timeline, it would automatically also apply to all newly added clips. just tested it and turns out it doesn't work that way. maybe this can be changed with a setting?

Thanks Rick,

That was my conclusion yesterday. Crude logic being that until a clip, or part of one, is introduced into the timeline it does not attract the grade.

I think I will concentrate on your first method. I did a test yesterday where my first three clips were of my color charts from the three cameras. I saved them to the Gallery and then used the filter by source to apply them to their respective cameras. As long as I am not way out with my exposure I can do the cut with uncorrected images.

But thanks again.

Tony

Hmm...


For a minute i was convinced that once remote grades was activated in a timeline, it would automatically also apply to all newly added clips. just tested it and turns out it doesn't work that way. maybe this can be changed with a setting?

There’s a preference option in the project settings to “use remote grades”
Tick that box and remote grades will be the default for all new timelines and clips added.

Well spotted Jamie.

I haven't tried it yet. I wonder if it has an effect before the clip is actually added?

If not the pre adding editing will be seeing the uncorrected version so Rick's hope that one will see a corrected image as one chooses which shot to use is not going to happen.

Anyway the answer is for us to try.

But thanks Jamie.

T

Well spotted Jamie.
I haven't tried it yet. I wonder if it has an effect before the clip is actually added?

Not sure what you mean by “before clip is added”
Clips can be set to either local (the grade versions are isolated to that particular section of clip on that particular timeline) or remote (the grade versions apply to all clips derived from the source shot in every timeline in the project)
The project profile setting to “use remote grades” sets all clips to remote as the default (though they can still manually be set to local later).

J,

Will explain tomorrow as I try the method.

T.

"There’s a preference option in the project settings to “use remote grades”

Sorry Jamie,

I can't see it.

Tony

"There’s a preference option in the project settings to “use remote grades”

Sorry Jamie,

I can't see it.

Tony

Forgive me, my poor memory. The option is in Project Settings and it is the reverse of the default behavior of using local grades. So, to have remote be the default, you need to *uncheck* the option for "Use local version for new clips in timeline".

Resolve Remote Grades 1.png (724.8 KiB) Viewed 2478 times

Also useful is to *check* the option for "Automatically match master timeline with media pool" — this option will automatically create a timeline called "Master Timeline" in your media pool, and it will always contain every clip that is added to the media pool.

Resolve Remote Grades 2.png (241.16 KiB) Viewed 2478 times

So, by using both of those options, all you have to do is apply grades to the master timeline, and those grades (including all versions) will flow through to any use of the clip or section of the clip in any other timeline until such time as you manually choose "use local grades" by right clicking on the clip or set of clips in the color page clips timeline. There's is also an option to "copy remote grades to local" which both copies the remote versions to local versions and switches the selected clip(s) to use the local versions.

These functions are covered in current Resolve manual in "Chapter – 25 Using the Edit Page" on page 504

Resolve Remote Grades 3.png (447.79 KiB) Viewed 2478 times

Thanks Jamie,

Brilliant and even I ought to be able to follow that as a newbie.

If only everyone was a generous with their help!

Tony

I'm glad it's useful

BTW - Resolve color management may also help the workflows that you described. It is explained in the Resolve 17 New Features Guide on the BMD Support page. Also, Ripple Training has an excellent tutorial video series on it by Alexis Van Hurkman (who writes the Resolve manual): https://www.rippletraining.com/products ... esolve-17/

Thanks Jamie, learned something new today!

Sorry to have to bump this.

I wrote "I think I will concentrate on your first method. I did a test yesterday where my first three clips were of my color charts from the three cameras. I saved them to the Gallery and then used the filter by source to apply them to their respective cameras. As long as I am not way out with my exposure I can do the cut with uncorrected images."

Why can't I find filter by source again. I am on v17 but cannot imagine it has been removed.

Tried RTFM but filter by source is a no go.

Tony