1.5

The Printer Points Parameters
These parameters control calibration and individual printer points for each color channel.
• Printer Points Calibration: This value calibrates the printer points system according to
the film gamma standard you wish to use. The default value of 7.8 is derived by
multiplying the value 12 (points per ƒ-stop) by a value of 0.65 (the default film gamma
standard used). 0.65 * 12 = 7.8. To recalibrate for a different film gamma value, insert
your own gamma value into the equation.
• Printer Points Red: The value with which to raise or lower the red channel.
• Printer Points Green: The value with which to raise or lower the green channel.
• Printer Points Blue: The value with which to raise or lower the blue channel.
Note: There is also a printer points node available in the Color FX room, which works
identically to the parameters covered in this section.
Using the Auto Balance Button
The Auto Balance button performs an automatic analysis of the current shot, based on
the frame at the position of the playhead. This is useful for quickly bringing a problem
shot with a subtly inobvious color cast to a neutral state, prior to performing further color
correction.
When you click this button, Color automatically samples the darkest and lightest 5 percent
of the image’s Luma channel in order to determine how to make shadow and highlight
adjustments to neutralize any color casts that are present in the image. In addition, the
black and white points of the image are adjusted to maximize image contrast, so that
the shot occupies the widest available range from 0 to 100.
Note: Unlike the Auto Balance controls in the Final Cut Pro Color Corrector 3-way filter,
the Auto Balance button is completely automatic, and does not require you to select
individual areas of the image for analysis.
To use the Auto Balance button
1 Move the playhead in the Timeline to a representative frame of the shot you want to
automatically color balance.
251Chapter 9 The Primary In Room