Complete Color Grading & Color Correction in DaVinci Resolve

Differentiate color correction from color grading to balance exposure and achieve a natural look, then apply color grading to craft a cinematic mood such as orange and teal.

Identify and distinguish highlights, midtones, and shadows by brightness levels, and learn to control these three regions independently in color correction and grading.

Learn to read color information in video clips using scopes, including parade and histogram, to guide color correction and understand how each scope informs color tools.

Explore the waveform in DaVinci Resolve to analyze brightness across shadows, midtones, and highlights, then use color wheels to adjust exposure and saturation while preventing clipping.

Analyze the waveform with red, green, and blue channels shown side by side, noting spikes and how three graphs fit into one horizontal span, blue sky elevating the blue curve.

Learn how the vector scope visualizes color directions and saturation in DaVinci Resolve, showing red, blue, green hues, and how adjustments push colors toward or away from the center.

Explore how the histogram shows exposure by mapping data from shadows to highlights, and learn to adjust lift to balance color information across red, green, and blue channels.

Use scopes to evaluate exposure and prevent clipping, preserving detail in shadows and highlights. Learn to fine-tune saturation with the vectorscope and color wheels in DaVinci Resolve.

Explore node-based color correction in DaVinci Resolve, where each node acts as a box applying color effects from left to right, with per-clip nodes, color wheels, and on/off toggles.

Learn how nodes act as containers to apply color and visual effects, stacking multiple nodes in series to guide input to output through a Resolve workflow.

Master working with nodes in DaVinci Resolve, including adding and manipulating nodes, resetting selected or all nodes, and using right-click menus and shortcuts to control color effects.

Label and rename nodes in Davinci Resolve to identify each color grading step, applying contrast, desaturation, and a red tint, while following a clear node flow from input to render.

Leverage serial nodes in DaVinci Resolve to add, order, and label effects like blue tint and saturation removal, and see how node sequence shapes the output.

Discover parallel nodes in DaVinci Resolve, unlike serial nodes, to apply independent color corrections via a parallel mixer, letting certain colors stay unchanged while others change.

Combine color correction nodes into a compound node to keep your DaVinci Resolve node tree organized; save, rename, lock, and later decompose to edit the internal nodes.

Master color wheels and primaries in DaVinci Resolve by adjusting lift, gamma, gain, and offset to sculpt shadows, midtones, highlights, and the overall image.

Power windows act as masks to confine color adjustments to selected regions in the frame, using square, circle, arc, line shapes with rotation, feathering, and gradient fall-off.

Explore the six curve types in DaVinci Resolve, from custom to saturation and luma, and learn how each curve works for precise color correction and grading.

Explore the curves tool in DaVinci Resolve to shape contrast, adjust color channels, and selectively saturate or replace colors using node-based curves and range controls.

Master qualifiers to select or isolate parts of an image or video by color, saturation, and luminance for secondary color correction. Learn the four qualifier types and practice accurate mats.

Use the qualifier tool in DaVinci Resolve to select colors with an eyedropper, refine the selection with highlighter, and adjust saturation, hue, and luminance via color wheels.

Learn to isolate regions with one of four qualifiers in DaVinci Resolve, refine selections with the highlighter tool, and adjust colors for secondary color correction using color wheels or curves.

Learn to use the HSL qualifier to make precise grass selections by adjusting center, width (weird), softness, and symmetry, then refine with saturation, luminance, and color pickers.

Refine the matte with HSL qualifiers using matte finish tools after the SSL qualifier, smoothing edges and cleaning black and white areas.

Explore the RG qualifier in DaVinci Resolve, adjusting red, green, and blue ranges with sliders to isolate grass while handling overlap with arms and other areas.

Use the luma qualifier in DaVinci Resolve to select by brightness, refine with low/high values, reduce edge noise, and shift white flowers toward yellow for clear contrast.

master the 3d qualifier in DaVinci Resolve color grading, selecting multiple colors anywhere on the frame with additive and subjective tracks, aided by highlighter toggles.

Apply green screen keying in DaVinci Resolve using the HSL qualifier to isolate greens, invert selections, and create an alpha output for a transparent background behind a subject.

Copy color correction and grading from a source clip to a target clip in DaVinci Resolve using the middle mouse button, enabling consistent looks across clips, overwriting the target grade.

Draw a window around the eyes, track movement with the cloud or plane tracker. Then adjust color with feathering for natural results and learn clip and frame controls.

Explore the blur tool to blur and sharpen video clips, adjusting radius and the horizontal–vertical blur ratio. Learn to link or unlink RGB channels for selective effects.

Explore sizing tool in DaVinci Resolve, applying pan, tilt, zoom, rotation, stretch, and flips to video. Reset values by double-clicking labels and perform transforms in edit and color tabs.

Adjust the keyer’s gain to control the strength of a node’s color effect, modulating opacity like a layer in Photoshop. Reset and tweak the gear options to refine color balance.

Use the RGB mixer to independently adjust red, green, and blue channel levels, saturate or desaturate the image, and create monochrome or artistic color effects.

Explore motion effects in DaVinci Resolve, including temporal and spatial noise removal and motion blur. Note these features require the paired version, limiting use in the free edition.

Explore the 3D tools in the DaVinci Resolve toolbar and understand that 3D imaging features require the paid or studio version.

Apply ready-made color correction and design LUTs to clips, groups, or timelines in DaVinci Resolve, then adjust their strength with the key tab.

Apply a project LUT to all clips across all timelines in a DaVinci Resolve project using the color management tab, selecting a camera-specific LUT and saving changes.

Create a custom look in DaVinci Resolve by darkening shadows and midtones with bluish tones, then save it as a 3d LUT and apply to clips or future projects.