Learning Davinci Resolve 12: A step-by-step guide to editing and color grading. Paperback – January 1, 1889

I've purchased two video courses on using DaVinci Resolve which assume that the student knows all about color correction. If you're new to coloring, these courses show you how, but don't explain why to make an adjustment. The videos will say, "Just boost the gain. . ." but you'll have no idea what boosting the gain does except that it changes what you see in the viewer.Learning DaVinci Resolve 12 shows why to make the adjustments, why to boost the gain, or not. Now the Kindle version on the Mac works quite well, except that it doesn't display--at least I could not find it--which chapter you're in. In "this chapter" which is chapter 4, Advanced Editing, it says to "use the timeline you created in Chapter 3. If you have not completed Chapter 3, return to it and complete it before continuing." But you don't know where Chapter 3 is unless you go to the start "How to Begin" and make a note that it is Chapter 0--you thought that it would be Chapter 1, didn't you? Some of these lessons build upon each other and if you skip a chapter because, say you use Final Cut Pro and don't care to learn the slightly different manner that Resolve handles sound, then you may get lost. If you want to use Resolve for it's strongest feature, Correcting Color and Grading, then skip to Chapter 11 directly--again, it's not labeled so go to the Chapter labeled "Correcting Color.' Then go back to Chapter 6, "The Trim Tool" and read the first few pages on how to Restore the Archived Project so that you have the material ready for Correcting Color. (I spent a few evenings working through Chapters 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10 just so I was in the correct place to start Chapter 11.) Resolve is sufficiently different from Final Cut Pro that you'll learn a different way to edit your video, but it's like learning French so you can travel to Spain; it's nice to know another language, but as I'm already comfortable with Final Cut Pro--and already paid $299 for it--then I'm better off staying with Final Cut Pro. On the other hand, if you're new to editing, DaVinci Resolve 12 is free for the basic version, so read the entire book from the beginning.There is at least one error in the editing of this book that caused me some confusion. At location 4465 the author directs us from scene 6 to scene 35, which contains 1 node, but the next section "Caching in the Color Page" in location 4487 describes 3 nodes which were present back in scene 6. (I thought that there was another similar example where the photo didn't match the words, but I've scanned the book and can't find it.)It's nice that the author describes how to use Resolve on a smaller screen, but if your workspace is sufficiently large (I'm using a 4K display) there is no need to keep hiding the node editor every time you just need to look at the Viewer. If you have a slower machine, you may want to open and close the scopes every time the author points to one, but you could just open all four scopes and see everything during the coloring and grading lessons.In spite of these small critiques, the chapters on Correcting Color and Grading are excellent. They describes the color basics that has been missing from so many books, sites, and videos on everything I've read back to Introduction to PhotoShop. It describes what to look for in the scope, instead of assuming that you know what all those clusters of dots mean. The simple graphic "The X axis corresponds to the video frame" in Location 3535 describes a waveform better than I've ever read.How many books have I read where they assume that I can look at a scene and instinctively figure out the proper tone of skin? The price of the book alone is worth the two paragraphs describing the Skin Tone line in the Vectorscope in Location 3504.

Useful

I've read a lot of software training books over the years and here's what I've found: it's very rare to find an author who can comprehensively cover the material without wasting your time. This book nails the balance between clarity and brevity. Everything you need to know to be useful in Resolve and nothing you don't. Doesn't insult your intelligence but never assumes you already know how to do something. If you're thinking of moving to Resolve as your editing and finishing platform, this book is probably the quickest way to get there.

Very clear and easy to follow book covering the basics and more advanced techniques of editing and grading with DaVinci Resolve. The supplied video and audio material makes it a very hands-on learning process so you can apply the techniques as you read about them which helps the learning technique. I have the Kindle version which I run on a laptop keeping the computer with Resolve free to edit with. New versions come out fairly soon after a major update to the software.