Master Curves group
In the Master stage, four groups of Curves parameters give you precision control over smooth contrast and color adjustments. There are individual controls for adjusting the Red, Green and Blue channels as well as all RGB channels together. The RGB Curves, in particular, are good for the power user or color finisher. Curves provide a quick way to boost colors or get a film-like contrast in the image.
Workflow Note: The Curves group does not support editable point control on the graph. This is because our Curves is not meant to be a targeted value-range tool or replace a full-fledged Curves tool. Instead, Curves is a quick way to build a smooth contrast curve that is parameterized, animatable and approachable.
How the Curves work
The unique part of Curves in Colorista II is that it gives you the ability to create strong contrast, but keeps you from automatically losing color data. With other Curves tools like After Effects' Curves plugin, the weighted curve by default will clip or crush itself at the blacks or whites. You will at times accidentally over-correct and lose Shadow or Highlight information because of this functionality.
With our Curve, we make it really hard to lose information in the shadows and highlights. We give you blended curves so you're not pulling individual color values as you would in a different curves control, and are not clipping or crushing. You have set Curves to their extreme values in order to clip or lose data. When you adjust the Midtones, you never touch the pure white or pure black at the end of the curve. This lets you add a pleasing contrast adjustment. Colorista's Curves are especially good for the power user or color finisher because it gives fine tuning control.
Left to right, Colorista Curves and After Effects' Curves. The Shadow's black point gets crushed in the AE Curves but not in Colorista.
Master Curves graph
Curves is weighted for three regions: the Shadows, Midtones and Highlights. Each control is weighted to a segment of the graph curve. There is an aggressive tapering that is built into the curve, which is part of what makes Curves so wonderful for fine detail adjustments.
RGB, Red, Green, Blue Curves
When you click a Curve button, you activate the controls for a single color channel or for all three channels together. For instance, when you click the Red button, you activate the Red color channel. When you click the RGB button, you activate the Red, Green and Blue channels.
Each color channel has its own graph display and subgroup of controls. For instance, when you adjust the Green Contrast slider, the Green button and Green graph are active.
The subgroups are RGB Curves, Red Curves, Green Curves and Blue Curves. Each of the four Curves subgroups allow adjustment on individual color channels or all channels together. When you move a slider in a subgroup, the related graph and button are activated.
The Green channel's button, graph and subgroup.
Reset button
Sets the controls in each Curve subgroup back to 0, the default value. If the Green graph is active, then all of the Green Curves controls go to 0, but the RGB, Blue and Red controls stay at their current values.
RGB, Red, Green, Blue Contrast
Contrast adds to the 'S' shape of the overall curve. Value range is -10 to 10. Default value is 0. High values increase contrast. Low/negative values reduce contrast. A pleasing result is usually found in the 0 to 1.0 range, depending upon how flat the subject looks.
You are always lifting or lowering the active color channel(s). If you increase or 'lift' the Red Contrast value, you shift the color towards teal, its opposite on the color wheel. If you decrease or 'lower' the Red Contrast value, you shift the color towards red.
A good tip for working is that even if you add a lot of contrast, you can still compensate with the Mids in that contrast. By doing high contrast with some midtone compensation, when you push the Mids up, that drags the shadows up a little too. This gives you a varying, targeted blend of curves.
At left, Red Contrast at 0. In middle, Red Contrast at 0.5. At right, Red Contrast at -0.5.
RGB, Red, Green, Blue Shadows
Shadows are weighted to the lower half of the curve. Value range is -10 to 10. Default value is 0. A pleasing result is usually found in the -1.0 to 1.0 range.
High/positive values lower the shadows and make them brighter. When you raise the value, you also weight that channel to its hue on the color wheel. For instance, if we raise the Blue Shadows, we are moving towards blue and away from yellow in the shadows.
Low/negative values lift the shadows and make them darker. When you lower the value, you also move that channel to its opposite hue on the color wheel. For instance, if we lower the Blue Shadows, we make the shadows more yellow.
RGB, Red, Green, Blue Mids
Mids are weighted to the midpoint of the curve. Value range is -10 to 10. Default value is 0. A pleasing result is usually found in the -1.0 to 1.0 range.
High/positive values lower the midtones and make them brighter. When you raise the value, you also weight that channel to its hue on the color wheel. For instance, if we raise the Red Mids, we are moving towards red and away from teal in the midtones.
Low/negative values lift the midtones and make them darker. When you lower the value, you also move that channel to its opposite hue on the color wheel. For instance, if we lower the Red Mids, we make the midtones more teal.
RGB, Red, Green, Blue Highs
Highs are weighted to the upper half of the curve. Value range is -10 to 10. Default value is 0. A pleasing result is usually found in the -1.0 to 1.0 range.
High/positive values lower the highlights and make them brighter. When you raise the value, you teal weight that channel to its hue on the color wheel. For instance, if we raise the RGB Highs, we are moving towards red, green and blue and away from teal, purple and yellow in the highlights.
Low/negative values lift the highlights and make them darker. When you lower the value, you also move that channel to its opposite hue on the color wheel. For instance, if we lower the RGB Highs, we make the highlights more teal, purple and yellow.