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Table Of Contents
- Color User Manual
- Contents
- Color Documentation and Resources
- Color Correction Basics
- Color Correction Workflows
- Using the Color Interface
- Importing and Managing Projects and Media
- Creating and Opening Projects
- Saving Projects and Archives
- Moving Projects Between FinalCutPro and Color
- Reconforming Projects
- Importing EDLs
- Exporting EDLs
- Relinking QuickTime Media
- Importing Media Directly into The Timeline
- Compatible Media Formats
- Converting Cineon and DPX Image Sequences to QuickTime
- Importing Color Corrections
- Exporting JPEG Images
- Setup
- Monitoring
- Timeline Playback, Navigation, and Editing
- Video Scopes
- Primary In
- Secondaries
- Color FX
- Primary Out
- Managing Corrections and Grades
- The Difference Between Corrections and Grades
- Saving and Using Corrections and Grades
- Applying Saved Corrections and Grades to Shots
- Managing Grades in the Timeline
- Using the “Copy to” Buttons in the Primary Rooms
- Using the Copy Grade and Paste Grade Memory Banks
- Setting a Beauty Grade in the Timeline
- Disabling All Grades
- Managing Grades in the Shots Browser
- Using the Primary, Secondary, and Color FX Rooms Together to Manage Each Shot’s Corrections
- Keyframing
- Geometry
- Still Store
- Render Queue
- Calibrating Your Monitor
- Keyboard Shortcuts
- Setting Up a Control Surface
- Index
74 Chapter 4 Importing and Managing Projects and Media
What Is a Color Project?
The only shots that are in your project are those in the Timeline (which are also
mirrored in the Shots browser). Color projects only contain a single sequence of shots.
Furthermore, Color projects have no organizational notion of shots that aren’t actually
in the Timeline, and so they contain no unused media.
The Contents of Color Projects
Color projects are actually bundles. Inside each Color project bundle is a hierarchical
series of directories, each of which contains specific components belonging to that
project, which are either image or XML files. It’s possible to open a Color bundle using
the Show Package Contents command in the Finder. This section outlines the
directory structure and contents of these bundles.
 Archives directory: Contains all the saved archives of that project. Each archive is
compressed using both .tar and .gzip compression (a “tarball”) and is identified with
the .tgz extension.
 .lsi file: This is an image file that contains the frame at the position of the playhead
when you last saved.
 .pdl file: This is the XML-based project file itself, which contains all the information
that organizes the shots, timing, and grades used in that project.
 Shots directory: Each shot in your project’s Timeline has a corresponding
subdirectory here. Each subdirectory contains some or more of the following:
 Grade1 (through 4) subdirectories: These directories contain all the correction files
associated with that grade.
 ShotName.lsi file: This is that shot’s thumbnail as displayed in the Timeline.
 ShotName.si file: This file contains that shot’s name, media path, and timing
information.
 Grade_Name.date.pcc: Primary correction description.
 Grade_Name.date.scc: Secondary correction description.
 Grade_Name.date.cfx: Color FX correction description.
 PanAndScan subdirectory: This directory contains a .kfd file that stores keyframe
data, and a .pns file that stores pan and scan data.
 shot_notes.txt file: If a note is present for that shot, it’s saved here.
 StillStore directory: This directory contains all the Still Store images that you’ve
saved for reference within that project. Each reference still has two corresponding
files, a .lsi file which is that image’s thumbnail icon, and a .sri file which is the full-
resolution image (saved using the DPX image format).
Important: It is not recommended to modify the contents of Color project files unless
you know exactly what you’re doing. Making changes manually could cause
unexpected problems.