Using Scopes Versus Looking at an External Monitor
There are two pieces of information that you have available to work with while
performing color correction: the readouts displayed in the Video Scopes tab, and the
visual image as displayed on your NTSC or PAL broadcast video monitor. Each has
advantages and disadvantages; you’ll want to use both equally to determine what
needs to be done.
The Final Cut Pro video scopes are very good for showing you quantitative information
about the relative distribution of luma, the balance of different colors, the amount of
saturation, and the range of color that exists in your clip. This information can help you
decide how to adjust the controls of the color correction filter being used and spot
details that you may not have noticed in the picture.
Chapter 27
Color Correction
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III
Window Layouts for Color Correction in Final Cut Pro
There are two window layouts that are especially convenient for color correction
in Final Cut Pro:
 Color Correction: This layout arranges the Viewer, Canvas, and one Tool Bench
window displaying a Video Scopes tab along the top of your computer screen. The
Browser and Timeline are arranged beneath. This is a good layout for examining one
clip in your sequence at a time in the Canvas while viewing an analysis of that frame
in the Video Scopes tab and making color correction adjustments in the Viewer.
 Multiple Edits: This layout arranges four windows along the top of your computer
screen—the Viewer, a Tool Bench window showing a Frame Viewer tab, the Canvas,
and another Tool Bench window showing another Frame Viewer tab with a Video
Scopes tab in the background. The Browser and Timeline are arranged beneath. The
Multiple Edits layout is ideal for comparing adjacent clips in your sequence to one
another on your computer screen for a relative comparison.
You may also find it useful to create a custom layout of your own, depending on how
you like to work. You can open as many Tool Bench windows as you like, each with
different sets of Frame Viewer and Video Scopes tabs comparing different frames in
your sequence. For more information on using and saving window layouts in
Final Cut Pro, see Volume I, Chapter 10, “Customizing the Interface.”