Color Correction Features in Final Cut Pro
You can use the following features in Final Cut Pro to help color correct your footage
and maintain proper video levels.
Measurement and Evaluation Tools
These tools are used for subjective and objective measurements of your video signal.
 External video monitoring: Viewing video on an external monitor is critical for
evaluating the visual quality of your footage during color correction. See Volume I,
Chapter 14, “External Video Monitoring.”
 Video Scopes tab: The Video Scopes tab in the Tool Bench window can help you spot
illegal levels and level differences between clips so you can make precise level
adjustments. See “
Measuring Video Levels with the Final Cut Pro Video Scopes
” on
page 512.
 Range-checking tools: Range-checking options available in the View menu allow you
to quickly spot illegal luma and chroma levels in your clips so you can fix them prior
to tape output. See “
Displaying Excess Luma and Chroma Levels
in the Viewer and Canvas
” on page 524.
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Part III
Color Correction and Video Quality Control
Window Layouts and Keyboard Shortcuts
 Window layouts: Final Cut Pro includes several window layouts designed for color
correction. See “
Window Layouts for Color Correction in Final Cut Pro
” on page 553.
 Keyboard shortcuts: Several keyboard shortcuts speed up navigation between clips
to make matching color between adjacent shots easier. See “
Keyboard Shortcuts to
Move Quickly Between Clips
” on page 554.
 Frame Viewer windows: You can use Frame Viewer windows to compare the color of
adjacent sequence clips in a single frame. See “
Comparing Two Frames in the Frame
Viewer
” on page 555.
Color Correction Filters
The Color Corrector, Color Corrector 3-way, and RGB Balance filters are the main filters
you use for matching color between shots and making aesthetic color changes. The
Broadcast Safe, RGB Limit, Desaturate Highlights, and Desaturate Lows filters are used
to correct illegal video levels and to correct black and white color casts.