ColorChecker and Sony Vegas

[Norman Black]

I don’t know of any plug-in that can create/use a profile by using a color checker chart. Maybe others have info here.

What you can do and is probably the biggest thing in correction is to get the white balance neutral. You would use the gray patches on a colorchecker or neutral grey card with the White Balance plug-in in Vegas.

[John Rofrano]

I’m really not clear on what you are trying to accomplish. Are you trying to color correct your video because it doesn’t look right? As Norman pointed out, perhaps all you need to do is use the White Balance plug-in to adjust the white balance?

I’m just not clear on what this “color checker” is supposed to be doing for you?

~jr

http://www.johnrofrano.com
http://www.vasst.com

[John Smith]

How does correcting White Balance also correct colors?

This is what i’m looking to do at some extent, or using the output color results for filters or what ever Sony has to offer (from 7m10s to 9m30s):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_m44L8o2Fwk&time=7m10s

Seems like others were able to do it:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mPURa0CJXpc
https://vimeo.com/102497735

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[John Rofrano]

[John Smith] “How does correcting White Balance also correct colors?”

Because you need to start your color correcting by getting your whites correct first. Then your blacks and then your mid-tones.

[John Smith] “This is what i’m looking to do at some extent, or using the output color results for filters or what ever Sony has to offer (from 7m10s to 9m30s):”

You can use the Sony Color Corrector to do this once you shoot the color checker footage. The Color Corrector has the standard three color wheels. Use the highs on the white swatch, the lows on the black swatch, and the mids on the grey swatch. Then adjust to taste.

This all assumes you have a computer monitor that has been calibrated with a hardware calibrator like a Spyder 4 Pro. Otherwise you can’t trust the colors you are seeing.

~jr

http://www.johnrofrano.com
http://www.vasst.com

[Norman Black]

[John Smith] “How does correcting White Balance also correct colors?”

Because it removes a color cast. Your examples show a clear color cast that ends up being corrected.

With auto white balance, cameras are guessing what the lighting is when shot. This guess is often not correct. Neutral tones, aka the greys, are the best thing to white balance on since we know the color component primitives are all supposed to be equal. If not, then they, the color primitives, can be equalized which will remove a color cast. This shifts all colors.

Of course, outdoors one can have multiple what balances in a scene. Someone in shade and someone in sunlight. The three controls in the Sony color corrector can help here, but the range of tones considered “low” is fixed and not under our control. The secondary color corrector can help here.

[Ricardo Senise]

I have made a tutorial explaining how I do to use ColorChecker Passport with Sony Vegas.
Hope you like it.
Fell free to make any comments.
https://youtu.be/MCmAu4oTPOE

Thanks

[Chuck Fiorella]

Hello Ricardo, is the video still available?

[Aaron Star]

You can start off pretty simply by just reducing the mixed lighting in your shots. Tuen off interior lights and go with only window or the other way around. Pay close attention to how the camera is white balanced for the light falling on your subject. Shoot a good chip chart with your subject holding the chart. Making sure to reduce reflections on the chart. Make sure you are getting a solid exposure that is set well.

I prefer this chip chart mounted to a black piece of foam core. I like the old school film charts because it reminds of the days of shooting 35mm. I am sure the X-rite chart is good, but don’t cheap out on your chart because the inks may not be accurate.

https://www.amazon.com/Tiffen-Color-Separation-Guide-Scale/dp/B00009R7GB

In Vagas you can use pan/crop to zoom in on you chart and chart squares, then use the video scopes to adjust levels.

You can also use the eye droppers from the Sony color wheels to hit the white squares. This will get you in the ball park for white balance. The same for the blacks.

In the end an expensive monitor and video card that displays 100% of the color space you are working in, is pretty much mandatory for good color work. There is a reason you pay 500-1000/hr for a good color studio and operator.

If any of that sounds like I am talking over your head, then you have a lot of study to do. Because I overly simplified that explanation.

[Marco Baer]

Maybe SeMW Graide Color Match is another helpful tool here.

[Chuck Fiorella]

This looks interesting for $90 but is really small. but the larger size is $250 direct from DSC labs. It comes with a alpha file that you lay on top and then match the one shot on set with the overlay. https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1282967-REG/dsc_labs_cselfie_chroma_selfie_pocket_only_electronic.html