Colour Grading

When colour grading my footage I used two main programmes, Adobe After Effects and Premiere Pro.

In After Effects I used SA Color Finesse 3 UI, which allowed me a full interface of controls to edit the colour of my image. I found this gave me a wide range of control, especially with being able to individually control highlights, mid tones and shadows.

There is also a split screen option that allowed me to see the contrast created, and play with how far I could push an image.

After Effects also allowed me illustrative control through the form of masking. As mentioned, in reference to The LOTR Fellowship video, selecting areas and highlighting/adjusting them gives further control to the overall scene and can bring forward a performance. I found by masking and tracking the face of my actress I could stop the colour grade of the image from seeming overwhelmingly contrasted and unnatural.

I also edited some footage in Premiere Pro, this was initially to get a feeling of the tones I overall wanted to create but some of the footage ended up being colour graded completely by this process. There is less control this way, but drastic results still can be created. By using curves I could create contrast and give my images a slightly 'unreal' look.

Colour Plan for Colouring Grading

The colour concept throughout shooting was to gradually change from warm colours to cold blue to connote the journey from fantasy to reality. During shooting, I attempted to choose locations and scenery with this in mind, filming in orange leafed areas for the warmth, and barer, colder environments for that of 'reality'. By looking at films of the fantasy genre I could attempt to colour grade the footage I collected similarly. Taking images of the footage I'd gathered and manipulating them, I created a colour plan based on this. The intention was to then colour grade the footage, referring to these plans and examples.

Red and Gold of Fantasy.

Green and Ethereal

Blue and Cold Reality.

Digital Colour grading in Lord of the Rings (Fellowship of the Ring)

Looking at the extra features of the The  Lord of the Ring's Fellowship of the Ring (2001) illustrates the use of colour grading at movie industry standard. The process (unlike the completely digital process I have been using in my practical element of research) involved scanning the film into a computer to adjust the images and then reprinting it back onto film for distribution. 

Selecting areas and highlighting or changing the colour of them, allows more control over the depiction of the performance. I could do this in After Effects to my own images, to avoid a completely wash of the same colour when colour grading.

It's interesting that the colour grading of The Lord of the Rings used the watercolours and concept art of the film as reference, hoping to get the look of a storybook to it. This links to the idea of fantasy being depicted in relation and association to childhood.