In this episode I chat to Kevin Shaw. He is a well know colorist and educator in our industry.
He has also been a key figure in setting up and promoting the Colorist Society, which is the topic of our following episode. In this episode however we discuss telecines. Kevin started grading 10 years before I did, at a time when color grading was either telecine or film lab based. We discuss various stages that the industry has gone through since then, all the way up to the present.

We discuss:

• (00:00) - Intro.
• (00:48) - Introduction to Kevin and telecines.
• (02:39) - Interview starts.
• (04:37) - Telecine engineers.
• (06:30) - Music videos.
• (07:34) - Study.
• (11:11) - Telecine Limited.
• (12:15) - Analog Davinci.
• (13:13) - One new feature per year.
• (13:43) - Davinci product demos.
• (14:08) - No freelancers.
• (14:53) - What is a telecine?
• (17:24) - Blue Moon.
• (17:45) - Tape playouts.
• (18:44) - Facility life.
• (21:00) - Abekus and frame store.
• (23:12) - Long hours.
• (24:21) - Tools.
• (27:55) - Picture encoding.
• (29:12) - God monitor.
• (33:21) - Titles and finishing.
• (35:01) - Low contrast prints.
• (36:45) - Telecine as loss leader.
• (42:55) - Show it on the wall.
• (44:02) - Quality vs convenience tradeoff.
• (48:21) - Taller gamut volumes.
• (52:12) - Film restoration.
• (57:07) - Software color correction systems.
• (01:01:02) - Film lab profiles.
• (01:05:01) - S curve and other tools.
• (01:06:08) - Introduction of log spaces.
• (01:10:38) - ACES archives.
• (01:17:01) - Rocket science.
• (01:20:45) - Art need limitations.
• (01:23:10) - Bezier envy.
• (01:23:38) - Tastes and trends.
• (01:32:06) - User manuals.
• (01:34:19) - Telecine calibration.
• (01:40:16) - Scopes and visualization.
• (01:45:21) - Technical vs creative transforms.
• (01:49:43) - Skin and tone curves.
• (01:51:24) - Hue vs Lum.
• (01:53:41) - Unorthodox telecine techniques.
• (02:00:45) - Psychology and resetting.
• (02:05:17) - Grading suite dynamics.
• (02:15:05) - Evolution of new tools.
• (02:16:39) - Linking pre and post.
• (02:20:06) - HDR monitors on set.
• (02:21:07) - Recent work.
• (02:26:00) - QD OLED and HDR.
• (02:29:34) - Future of HDR.
• (02:35:03) - HDR in cinema.
• (02:39:04) - Hole punches and punch tape.
• (02:42:45) - Outro.
• (02:43:12) - End.

This episode is the second part of my conversation with Troy Sobotka who is a Vancouver based lighting, rendering and all-round image creation person. You may know him as the designer of the Agx render transform. We dive further into the mechanisms of visual cognition and picture formation. He shares a vast knowledge and collection of reference material on this topic. See download link below for additional material.

In past years he has written an online blog called the Hitchhikers Guide to Digital Color. I would highly recommend people to read it.

We discuss:

• (00:00) - Intro.
• (01:11) - Episode summary.
• (01:43) - Visual examples of phenomena.
• (01:59) - Light and shade.
• (03:57) - Gilchrest’s gamut compression.
• (05:51) - Simultaneous contrast.
• (06:21) - Shimmer / luster.
• (07:26) - Induced contrast.
• (08:06) - Glare halo.
• (08:31) - Hermann grid.
• (08:57) - Watercolor effect.
• (10:31) - “Chevreul Effect”.
• (10:57) - Crispening.
• (11:46) - Neon Color Spreading.
• (12:18) - Chromatic induction.
• (12:46) - Gamut Compression/Expansion.
• (13:18) - Chromostereopsis.
• (14:11) - Face vase, Rabbit duck, Necker Cube.
• (15:39) - Kanizsa triangle.
• (15:57) - Dr. Tse cognition examples.
• (17:54) - Not the pixel you thought you saw.
• (18:45) - Pictorial exposure.
• (20:37) - Gain and offset dimensions.
• (21:47) - Image examples.
• (24:47) - Decomposition framework.
• (26:54) - Newtonian physics metaphor.
• (29:20) - Interview starts, stimuli are not color.
• (34:43) - It’s all constructed. Dr. Hoffman interface.
• (36:56) - What is pictorial exposure?
• (42:12) - Correlated signals “luminance” and “chrominance”.
• (47:28) - Colorimetry’s limitations.
• (56:38) - The domain of Metrics.
• (01:05:22) - The domain of Stimuli.
• (01:07:21) - The domain of Cognition.
• (01:08:32) - Three broad Mechanisms of cognition.
• (01:09:28) - Current predicament of image makers.
• (01:18:31) - Increment and decrement signals.
• (01:23:48) - Gain regulation.
• (01:27:46) - SDR vs HDR.
• (01:32:19) - Field propagation.
• (01:34:47) - Can output transforms be dynamic?
• (01:37:36) - Three Cognitive processes.
• (01:38:53) - Form decomposition.
• (01:44:47) - Why is the canvas flat?
• (01:46:47) - Form computation.
• (01:48:26) - Form assignment.
• (01:52:59) - Towards practical examples.
• (01:57:12) - Gain and offset dimensions.
• (02:05:03) - Cognition limits.
• (02:07:43) - Leading the eye.
• (02:08:54) - Brand colors, vanta red.
• (02:10:41) - Example of gain and offset.
• (02:13:05) - Why not just desat to white?
• (02:15:25) - Some history of picture formation.
• (02:16:31) - Versioning.
• (02:22:17) - Look creation and display transforms.
• (02:27:48) - Ergonomics.
• (02:35:35) - Bigger, better, faster.
• (02:42:00) - Outro.
• (02:41:33) - End.

Download link for additional images and pre interview discussions:

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/2o8hwqfyx9lc42dobysjg/EP0006_TROY-SOBOKTA_PART_2.zip?rlkey=jpi8ol0tnivqyugv3p6varx02&dl=0

Check out www.patreon.com/ColorMentor/ for colorist training.

In this episode, I chat to Troy Sobotka who is a Vancouver based lighting, rendering and all-round image creation person. You may know him as the designer of the Agx render transform. We discuss the topic of Visual Cognition as it relates to how we make pictures. He shares a vast knowledge and collection of reference material on this topic.

In past years he has written an online blog called the Hitchhikers Guide to Digital Color. I would highly recommend people to read it.

We discuss:

Download link for additional images and pre interview discussions:

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/jaute657ixv9sfw9cyh3y/EP0005_TROY-SOBOKTA_PART_1.zip?rlkey=1q4v43fg59d1kbkfoj6vxr1pm&dl=0

Check out www.patreon.com/ColorMentor/ for colorist training.

On this episode I must apologize in advance for having way too much fun.
My guest is Jason Iversen he is a Visual Effects Technical Supervisor who has worked at Digital Domain, Rythm and Hues and now is at Weta in New Zealand.
We have known each other since high school and worked together many years ago in South Africa.
He was the co-founder of the Odforce.net chat forum. And he has worked on more block buster films than I’ve had blocked noses.
We talk about visual effects, color pipelines and rendering techniques through the ages and discuss where things are heading with the merging of Weta with Unity games.

We discuss:

• (00:00) - Intro
• (01:32) - Interview starts
• (01:39) - Let's talk about the
• (03:06) - Lord of the Rings
• (03:48) - New
• (04:31) - Starting
• (05:23) - Early virtual reality
• (10:05) - Cybershark
• (12:24) - Odforce.net origins
• (17:23) - Digital Domain
• (19:16) - DD company culture
• (21:49) - Titanic water simulations
• (25:19) - Specialization
• (27:31) - Pipeline development
• (30:12) - What color management?
• (30:46) - Film outs
• (32:01) - Look mom, no LUT!
• (32:18) - sRGB / Linear mashup
• (33:20) - Compositors bearing the brunt
• (35:03) - Isn't it always just painting?
• (36:59) - WYSI not WYG
• (38:33) - Jackass landlord
• (40:13) - Rythm and Hues
• (40:51) - South African attractor
• (42:05) - Effects and Lighting supervisor
• (42:50) - Software development
• (43:45) - Developing into a product
• (46:13) - Color management arrives
• (50:00) - SDR to HDR rendering
• (50:18) - RGBE
• (51:34) - Open EXR
• (52:28) - OCIO
• (54:00) - Life of Pi bankruptcy
• (56:11) - Polishing the car
• (57:22) - Pressure to go international
• (57:41) - Production technology supervisor
• (01:00:01) - Moving to Weta
• (01:01:39) - Spectral rendering
• (01:02:51) - Less fictitious
• (01:05:21) - Spectral resolution
• (01:06:31) - Simulate everything
• (01:09:07) - Avatar 3
• (01:10:25) - Planet of the Apes
• (01:12:58) - Optical effects
• (01:14:20) - Phosphorescence
• (01:15:19) - Uplifting textures
• (01:17:23) - Machine learning in Manuka
• (01:18:58) - Image based lighting
• (01:23:28) - Types of Renderers
• (01:27:08) - Manuka's render method
• (01:28:25) - Coherence
• (01:29:39) - Wave striding
• (01:31:30) - Spectral rendered emulates film?
• (01:32:02) - www.youtube.com/watch?v=YE9rEQAGpLw
• (01:32:33) - Light sources in Manuka
• (01:34:50) - Caustics
• (01:37:41) - Shade before hit
• (01:39:26) - Photogrammetry
• (01:40:38) - 2D vs 3D and deep rendering
• (01:43:51) - Merging of film and games
• (01:44:42) - Gausian Splatting
• (01:45:12) - gsplat.tech website
• (01:47:50) - Splat drawn flying points
• (01:50:03) - Immersion
• (01:50:59) - Splat funeral
• (01:51:55) - R&D lifecycle
• (01:53:28) - Gemini Man
• (01:55:46) - Pure research
• (01:58:00) - Heat haze
• (02:00:41) - Confluence of Games and Film
• (02:03:09) - Unreal as renderer
• (02:04:04) - Crossover content
• (02:07:32) - Boring detail
• (02:09:17) - Atlas and VR stages
• (02:11:50) - Outro
• (02:12:19) - End

Today’s guest will probably be familiar to many of you.
Steve Shaw and his company Light Illusion are well known in the world of calibration and color grading.
I chatted to him about his work with Quantel and other companies in the past. Also, film emulation over the years and the current products and services that Light Illusion offers.

We discuss:

• (00:00) - Intro
• (01:13) - Interview starts
• (01:36) - Starting at Quantel
• (06:08) - Quantel as pioneers
• (12:38) - Quantel IQ and Pablo
• (16:03) - DI and film emulation
• (20:46) - Film Lab Profiling Service
• (24:53) - Light Illusion's film profiles
• (27:21) - Origins of Lightspace
• (34:35) - Film emulation vs film looks
• (39:20) - Film meets HDR and HDR limitations
• (41:35) - Image vs reality. Marketing bollocks!
• (42:06) - Resolution
• (45:59) - Why we calibrate
• (48:04) - Compounding error
• (59:32) - Calibration interval
• (50:14) - Client education and support
• (53:39) - Calibration process
• (58:47) - Manufacturer auto-calibration
• (01:00:37) - Display linearity
• (01:01:50) - Probe calibration and probe matching
• (01:04:54) - Checking linearity
• (00:01) - 06:03 Heat stability
• (01:09:30) - Video and full levels
• (01:11:58) - System delay
• (01:15:43) - Signal path and system setup
• (01:19:55) - Custom patch sets
• (01:23:56) - Linear and log data compression
• (01:26:11) - Visualizations in Colorspace
• (01:28:31) - Zero-1 range and negative values
• (01:30:44) - Six Primary color systems
• (01:32:57) - Colorspace for color science
• (01:35:06) - Image sequence probe and virtual studios
• (01:36:21) - Broad spectrum white LED’s for virtual studios
• (01:38:23) - Multi language interface
• (01:39:53) - P-generator
• (01:42:08) - Third-party software development
• (01:43:37) - Manufacturer integrations
• (01:46:36) - Viewing angle
• (01:49:14) - Sign-off
• (01:49:35) - End logo

This episode I’ll be speaking to Kaur Hendrikson a colorist based in Tallinn Estonia.
Any of you who use DCTL’s will be familiar with his name.

In the last few years, he has setup up a successful DCTL store and is constantly developing new tools for freelancer and large facilities alike.
He does DCTL and Python scripting training for Black Magic and platforms like Mixing Light.
We spoke about this and a lot more.

We discuss:

• (00:00) - Intro
• (01:18) - Interview starts
• (02:04) - Starting out
• (06:01) - Estonia
• (08:36) - Hockey Stick
• (13:13) - The DCTL store
• (15:49) - Vision mixing automation
• (21:41) - Coding to solve problems
• (22:58) - Black Magic teaching
• (25:22) - Resolve Certification
• (26:42) - Teaching
• (28:51) - Python Scripting
• (30:53) - Product Design
• (34:28) - Future of DCTL library
• (37:52) - Current limitations of DCTL
• (42:19) - Panel Mods
• (45:42) - Color management
• (51:16) - Issues with color management
• (52:45) - Maths in DCTLS
• (54:32) - Color models
• (56:03) - Functions and smoothness
• (59:13) - DCTL bad practices
• (01:03:25) - Problem solving
• (01:04:44) - Highlight Modes
• (01:11:29) - Recent grades
• (01:13:06) - The future
• (01:14:26) - Node tree
• (01:15:40) - What young colorists need
• (01:19:02) - Project Archives
• (01:20:41) - Open-Source vs for profit
• (01:26:32) - Interacting on forums
• (01:28:32) - Forum theatre
• (01:32:49) - Finding work
• (01:36:33) - Current interests
• (01:42:47) - End sign off
• (01:43:08) - END LOGO

Check out www.patreon.com/ColorMentor/ for colorist training.

In this episode, I'll be talking to Thatcher Freeman. He's a California-based colorist and software engineer. For his day job, he's an actual AI specialist. He's made great contributions to the color grading and software coding communities. He's also a filmmaker, so I wanted to talk to him to find out what makes him tick.

We discuss:
- Thatcher's background in film making.
- The difficulties on finding resources on color theory.
- Current industry trends.
- A colorist's value.
- The combination of art and technology.
- Freelance pressures.
- Subtle vs Pushed graded.
- Things that break the signal.
- Personal taste in films and watching as a professional.
- Thatcher's DCTL library.
- Advice for DCTL coding.
- Current Research.

Check out www.patreon.com/ColorMentor/ for colorist training.