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Chapter 9 Primary In 205
RGB Controls
These parameters provide per-channel control over contrast and color. These are not
numerical representations of any of the other controls in the Primary In room. Like the
parameters in the Basic tab, they’re available as an additional set of controls.
Typically, these parameters are adjusted when the Auto Balance button is used to
automatically adjust a shot (for more information, see “Auto Balance” on page 206).
However, you can use them as you see fit.
 Red, Green, and Blue Lift: These parameters work exactly like the Master Lift
parameter, but affect the individual color channels.
 Red, Green, and Blue Gain: These parameters work exactly like the Master Gain
parameter, but affect the individual color channels.
 Red, Green, and Blue Gamma: These parameters work exactly like the Master Gamma
parameter, but affect the individual color channels.
Printer Points Controls
These parameters are available for colorists who are used to working with the printer
points system for color timing film. Employed by film printing machines, the printer
points system allows color correction to be performed optically, by shining filtered light
through the conformed camera negatives to expose an intermediate positive print, in
the process creating a single reel of film that is the color-corrected print.
The process of controlling the color of individual shots and doing scene-to-scene color
correction is accomplished using just three controls to individually adjust the amount
of red, green, and blue light that exposes the film, using a series of optical filters and
shutters. This method of making adjustments can be reproduced digitally using the
Printer Points parameters.
∏ Tip: These parameters are controllable using knobs on most compatible control surfaces.
What Is a Printer Point?
Each of the red, green, and blue parameters is adjusted in discrete increments called
printer points (with each point being a fraction of an ƒ-stop, the scale used to measure
film exposure). Color implements a standard system employing a total range of 50
points for each channel, where point 25 is the original neutral state for that color
channel. Technically speaking, each point represents 1/4th of an ƒ-stop of exposure
(one ƒ-stop represents a doubling of light). Each full stop of exposure equals 12 printer
points.
Making Adjustments Using Printer Points
Unlike virtually every other control in the Primary In room, the Red, Green, and Blue
Printer Points parameters make a uniform adjustment to the entire color channel,
irrespective of image tonality.