Introduction to Lummetry Color in Premiere

Premiere's Lumetri Color is often seen as a simple effect but is much more akin to a plugin due to its extensive capabilities. While not the absolute best in its category (Da Vinci Resolve's coloring tools are often regarded as superior), Lumetri is very effective for most video projects, especially screencasts.

Preparing Your Workspace for Color Correction

When starting color correction, it's essential to maximize your screen real estate to properly utilize Lumetri Color's diverse features. By adjusting the Premiere interface, you'll have more space to work with its comprehensive user interface.

Exploring Basic Correction

Lumetri Color in Premiere includes several sections:

• Basic Correction
• Creative
• Curves
• Color Wheels and Match
• HSL Secondary
• Vignette

However, frequently, only a few of these will be necessary for your project. In Basic Correction, you can import LUTs (presets for color settings) to adjust footage shot in different formats.

Enhancing Your Footage with Basic Controls

Familiar controls such as temperature adjustment can make footage appear warmer or cooler. Under typical circumstances, if your initial setup is correct, minimal adjustments are needed. Increasing saturation slightly can enhance vibrancy without being overpowering.

Using Curves for Contrast Adjustments

Curves allow for refined control over contrast and brightness. For instance, you can adjust the black point to create a faded look or manipulate shadows and highlights to increase contrast subtly. The revert button is a handy feature to undo changes seamlessly.

Adjusting with Color Wheels

Color Wheels provide an intuitive, visual method for altering the look of your footage. If specific elements, like skin tones, need adjustment, the color wheels can help balance those by counteracting any over-dominant hues.

Stylizing with the Creative Tab

Once your footage has a natural look, the Creative Tab lets you add style elements. Adjustments like sharpening can enhance detail in your screencast, while a slight faded film effect can add an organic feel.

Applying Color Effects to Multiple Clips

To maintain consistency, copy and apply your effects across different clips, such as facecam footage. The sequence in which effects are applied matters—color correction should typically precede cropping or other transformations for optimal results.

Achieving a Professional Look

With thorough editing and color adjustments, your screencasts will look professional and ready for platforms like YouTube. But the journey doesn't stop with color grading. The next step involves adding animations in Premiere, which can elevate your screencasts from great to exceptional.

Elevating Your Screencasts with Animation

In the next module, we'll dive into basic animations within Premiere that can transform your screencast into an engaging visual experience. Animation can significantly enhance the impact of your project, taking it to the next level.