PremierePro

Apply the Color Correction effects

The following procedure is a general overview of applying the Color Correction effects. See the following sections in this chapter for making adjustments using the specific controls.

  1. Set up your workspace for color correction. If possible, make sure a calibrated NTSC or PAL monitor is connected to your computer.
  2. Apply one of the Color Correction effects to the clip in the Timeline panel.
    Note: If the clip is already selected in the Timeline panel, you can drag the effect to the Video Effects area of the Effect Controls panel.
  3. In the Effect Controls panel, expand the Color Correction effect.
  4. Move the current‑time indicator to a frame that provides the best example of colors that need to be adjusted.
  5. (Optional) Do any of the following to set preview options when correcting color:

    • To view only the luminance values in a clip, choose Luma from the Output menu. This option only affects the preview in the Program Monitor, it doesn’t remove the color from the video.

    • To display a before and after view of the clip in one monitor, select the Show Split View option. You can specify whether the split view is horizontal or vertical by choosing from the Layout pop‑up menu. You can also adjust the relative proportion of the before and after views.

  6. (Optional) Use the Tonal Range Definition control to define the shadow, midtone, and highlight areas in the clip. You can choose Tonal Range from the Output menu to view the tonal ranges you defined. Once defined, choose from the Tonal Range menu to restrict the color corrections to a specific tonal range. See also Define the tonal ranges in a clip.
    Note: Only the Luma Corrector, RGB Corrector, and Three‑Way Color Corrector effects let you apply adjustments to a specific tonal range.
  7. (Optional) Click the triangle to expand the Secondary Color Correction controls if you want to correct the exposure for a specific color or range of colors. Use the Eyedropper tool or the other Secondary Color Correction controls to specify the colors to correct. See also Specify a color or range of colors to adjust.
    Note: All Color Correction effects have Secondary Color Correction controls except the Fast Color Corrector effect and Video Limiter effect.
  8. Do any of the following:

    • To adjust color balance and saturation using color wheels, adjust the Hue Balance and Angle wheels or numeric controls in the Fast Color Corrector or Three‑Way Color Corrector effect. See also Color balance, angle, and saturation controls.

    • To adjust luminance or color using a curve control, use the curve adjustments in the Luma Curve or RGB Curves effect. See also Adjust color and luminance using curves.

    • To adjust luminance by setting the black, gray, and white levels, use the levels controls in the Fast Color Corrector or the Three‑Way Color Corrector effect. See also Adjust luminance using levels.

    • To adjust luminance or color using numeric controls, use the controls in the Luma Corrector or RGB Color Corrector effect. See Luma Corrector effect and RGB Color Corrector effect.

      Use keyframing to animate your color correction adjustment. This is especially useful when the lighting changes in a clip. See also About keyframes.
  9. (Optional) Apply the Video Limiter effect after you’ve made your color corrections to make the video signal conform to broadcast standards while preserving as much of the image quality as possible. It’s recommended to use the YC Waveform scope to make sure the video signal is within the 7.5 to 100 IRE levels. See Video Limiter effect.