Video and commercials, graded.
It's important to ask your next video production company who the colorist they are using is and what their qualifications are. If you are new to production and post production, the colorist is the artist who is in charge of taking a shot that comes out of the camera looking like this:
and polish it into this:
There are a million ways to color every second of video footage you shoot. As much as the creative, the direction the acting, the color grade of your project is what imparts the message, the tone, the feel and the personality of your project. Which basically boils down to:
Your colorist is one of the most important artists on your project.
Many new clients who are working with a commercial production company for the first time pay a lot of attention to the most obvious contributors--i.e. the director, the DP, the producer, the talent. But many overlook the post production talent, especially the person in charge of the color grade. Make sure that when you are setting out on any video production endeavor, you pay attention to this crucial step. Often times it is one of the vital components that will allow your message to make it across to the viewer clearly and separate you from your competition's video productions.
