Beginner's Guide to Colour Grading (DaVinci Resolve Tutorial)

A beginner’s guide to colour grading. Although basic knowledge of the Color Page is assumed, you’ll still be able to follow along if you’re completely new to the Color Page. You’ll learn how to normalize, colour balance and match shots using the Primaries and Curves palettes and how to use the Waveform and Parade scopes to achieve accurate results. You’ll also learn how to apply a simple creative look. These are the clips used in the video if you want to work along. As of January 2026 the links are valid. How long they’ll remain so is unknown. Normalization and Balancing with Primaries: https://www.pexels.com/video/man-working-warehouse-talking-4293956/ Normalization and Balancing with Custom Curves: https://www.pexels.com/video/a-man-resting-on-his-girlfriend-s-lap-inside-the-train-4770656/ Shot Matching with Primaries: https://pixabay.com/videos/mountain-desert-sun-sky-sand-road-70970/ https://www.pexels.com/video/a-sand-dune-formed-in-the-desert-3057648/ https://pixabay.com/videos/desert-road-vehicle-94823/ Shot Matching with Custom Curves: https://www.pexels.com/video/man-working-with-his-laptop-3126361/ https://www.pexels.com/video/a-woman-using-her-cellphone-while-seated-in-front-of-a-computer-3253209/ 00:00 Introduction 00:23 Colour Correction Workflow 00:57 Normalization Overview 01:17 The Waveform Scope 03:02 Using Display Qualifier Focus 05:05 Normalization using the Primaries Palette 05:15 Waveform Scope Settings 05:51 The Colour Wheels 10:18 Colour Balancing using the Primaries Palette 12:13 Zooming in on the Trace in the Scope 13:28 Custom Curves 15:11 Normalization using Custom Curves 17:02 Colour Balancing using Custom Curves 19:43 Shot Matching with the Primaries Palette 20:07 Using a Hero Shot 20:36 The Parade Scope 28:09 Shot Matching with Custom Curves 28:42 Using the Sizing Palette to help Match Shots 32:32 Applying a Creative Look to Matched Shots