Warning: The 'Digital Dreams' festival in Austin completely changed how I handle color grading.

I saw an artist project his work onto a 40-foot water screen, and the way the blues and purples bled into the mist made me realize I'd been relying on screen sliders instead of thinking about how light actually moves in a space. Has anyone else tried to build an environment around their art instead of just finishing a file?

2 comments

2 Comments

johnfoster23d ago

It's interesting you mention the water screen. That physical bleed of color is something a monitor can't show you. My own wake-up call was trying to paint a sunset in a game engine and realizing I had no idea how light scatters in real fog. I started leaving my files to go watch how streetlights hit the trees on a humid night. The work got better when I stopped trying to copy a look and started trying to understand the cause. It forces you to build the world first in your head, not just on the layer stack.

miles_grant3523d ago

Honestly @johnfoster that hits home. I see the same thing with new guys at the warehouse trying to learn a layout just from a diagram. They don't get it until they walk the floor and see how things actually flow from receiving to shipping. Tbh it's like you said, you gotta build the map in your head first. Copying the steps without knowing the reason just sets you up to fail later when something changes. Ngl it's cool to hear that same idea applies to making art too, that need to go see the real thing.