I'm a freelance videographer transitioning from basic color correction to more intentional color grading workflows for narrative short films. My current process in DaVinci Resolve feels disjointed and inefficient, often leading to inconsistent looks across scenes. For experienced colorists, what does a professional, organized workflow look like from start to finish? How do you structure your node trees for flexibility and speed, and what are your essential steps for building a show LUT versus scene-specific grades? I'm also curious about managing client expectations and delivering reviewable versions without getting bogged down in endless revisions.
Here's a practical, starter workflow you can apply in DaVinci Resolve today. Set up a clean color-management baseline (ACEScct working space, Rec.709 output) and then follow a repeatable node structure for every clip. Node 1 (Input/RAW): decode your RAW, apply white balance and basic exposure. Node 2 (Primary correction): global lift, gamma, gain to normalize exposure across shots. Node 3 (Global adjustments): adjust contrast, saturation, and a gentle lift in the shadows to preserve detail. Node 4 (Secondary tweaks): target skin tones with a qualifier or HSL picker, fix any obvious color casts in the midtones. Node 5 (Noise/clean-up): subtle spatial/temporal NR if noise is a problem, but only after primary grading. Node 6 (Creative look): add a controlled LUT or a small set of curves to establish the base mood, keeping it reversible. Node 7 (Shot matching): apply a shared look—either a PowerGrade or a saved node group—to align shots, then tweak per clip as needed. Node 8 (Output transform): ensure final delivery space is Rec.709 and scope checks (waveform, vectorscope, histogram) confirm clean skin tones and consistent contrast. If you’re building a show LUT, bake the look from Nodes 2–6 into a 3D LUT and then apply it to other clips; for scene-specific grading, leave Nodes 2–6 and 7 intact, and fine-tune exposure/contrast or skin tones per shot. Use PowerGrade or Shared Node Tree to push the same look across the timeline.