Collecting shots

Each shot in Livegrade integrates a reference media item (clip or still), a look, and the corresponding metadata.

Every single shot in your library is, therefore, not only a visual reference but also associated with important information to enable you to reproduce settings or draw connections at a later date.

For example, you can always look up the focal length with which a particular still was taken, the location in which a particular look was created, or how the look of a particular scene fits in with another scene.

All the collected shots in their entirety thus form a visual memory of the production, the components of which can be shared with other team members as stills and look metadata throughout the production.

In this article, we want to give you an overview of

• Components of a shot
• Preparing for shot collection
• Possibilities to collect and use shots

Components of a shot#

Media item#

A shot most commonly consists of a log-encoded ungraded media item in order to allow a non-destructive application of look metadata.Depending on the workflow and the individual needs, a media item can be

• a clip:
  • If the shot is created using the recording mechanism
  • The following recording formats are available: ProRes 422, ProRes 422 HQ, ProRes LT, or ProRes Proxy
• a still:
  • If the shot is created using the create still shot mechanism
  • The following recording formats are available: *.TIFF or *.JPEG

Look#

A look always consists of one or more image processing steps, which are called nodes in Livegrade. Depending on the selected grading mode, these can include different image processing steps, such as CDL, 3D LUTs, various curves, or ACES input and output transforms.

When loading a shot, which is usually saved log encoded, the look can be applied, disabled, and adjusted.

Filter#

In addition to the editing steps of the look, a shot can also consist of additional filters, which can be used, for example, to apply a crop to an image.

Metadata#

In addition to the look and filter data, each shot can also be used to collect production-specific data, such as the location and slate number, as well as camera-specific metadata such as the focal length or white balance.

Preparing for shot collection#

Before starting the recording or creating stills, the following steps should be taken in preparation:

1. Set up the used devices: Use the slot manager to set up your individual image processing chain.
2. Set up the clip identifier: Use a meaningful naming scheme for the identifier of each shot via Livegrade’s library settings (Livegrade > Settings … > Library > Clip Identifier)
3. Set up the look: Make sure that your look is set up accordingly to your production’s needs. Read more about how to set up the look pipeline.
4. Enter metadata: Use the global and slot metadata input panels and set camera-specific fields to be auto-populated via SDI.

Collecting shots#

Shots can be collected by:

• Creating stills, where shots with a still image as reference medium will be stored.
• Recording clips, where shots with a clip as reference medium will be stored.

With every recording and with every still, you will store a shot in the library consisting of

• a media item (clip or still),
• a look, and
• metadata

Using shots for various purposes#

Shots can be recalled for various purposes.

Within Livegrade, they can be used as

• Look, to be applied to a slot
• Reference, to be shown in the viewer

But they can also be shared as stills and looks with others using the following items, which can be accessed via the contextual menu of a shot.

• Export Shot(s) As …
  • allows exporting the stored look together with an associated reference image from the thumbnail frame’s position
• Export Images From Shot(s) …
  • allows exporting still images from clips with marked frames