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Color encyclopedia · Color Management
Color Management in DaVinci Resolve
A practical guide to DaVinci YRGB, DaVinci YRGB Color Managed, CST, ACES and Log to Rec.709 workflows. The page is built on real Resolve panels rather than abstract diagrams, so you can see where the settings actually live and why they matter.
3
main systems: YRGB, Managed and ACES
2
core control points: Project Settings and CST
1
goal: predictable colour from camera to delivery
0
magic tricks — only a clear signal path
Project settings
See the real Resolve controls before building the workflow
DaVinci YRGB
Manual control of transform logic
Managed
Predictable SDR and HDR workflow
ACES
A standardised camera-to-delivery pipeline
Why this page matters
Color management is what makes the rest of grading behave predictably
If the technical base is unclear, LUTs, primaries and creative looks start fighting each other. These blocks explain the core logic in human language, not in dry menu labels.
Color management defines the technical foundation of the project
This is not just an extra setting. It tells Resolve what came from the camera, which working space you use and what the signal should become at the output.
DaVinci YRGB, YRGB Color Managed and ACES are different approaches
Plain YRGB leaves more manual control, a managed workflow automates transforms inside the project, and ACES is useful when a unified standardised colour system matters.
CST is used when you need an explicit transform
Color Space Transform lets you describe the path honestly: which colour space and gamma you start from and which one you convert to. That is better than guessing with LUTs by eye.
Log → Rec.709 is a technical transform, not a creative look
First normalise the signal, then shape contrast, skin tone, saturation and style. If the technical base is broken, creative grading starts to fall apart.
Three main approaches
Choose the system before you choose the look
All three options can be valid. The key is understanding what each one expects from you and what kind of project it serves best.
Manual control
DaVinci YRGB
The base mode where you define the technical logic yourself. It is useful when you know exactly where the transform happens: through CST, LUTs, Camera Raw or inside specific nodes.
Useful for manual node-based workflows
Requires understanding of source and output spaces
Good for deliberate CST-based pipelines
Managed workflow
DaVinci YRGB Color Managed
Resolve takes care of a large part of the technical transforms. This is convenient for mixed-camera work, clean SDR/HDR delivery and stable grading in a wide space such as DaVinci Wide Gamut.
Faster to configure at project start
Convenient for SDR and HDR deliverables
Reduces the risk of accidental double transforms
Standardised pipeline
ACEScct / ACEScc
ACES is especially relevant in larger mixed pipelines where a shared standard between cameras, VFX, grading and delivery matters. In Resolve it is a separate colour-management system, not simply a prettier mode.
Works well for multi-camera and VFX pipelines
Uses Input and Output Transforms
Requires stricter discipline in setup choices
Real settings
Where the core choices live in Resolve
These screenshots are useful not only for beginners. They help align terminology, menus and workflow decisions when discussing a real project or writing a grading pipeline.
Project Settings in standard DaVinci YRGB
Here Resolve is not performing a managed pipeline for you. If the footage is shot in Log, the rest of the technical logic should be explicit: through CST, a LUT or another deliberate stage.
Choosing the Color Science
This single dropdown decides the logic of the whole project: manual mode, a managed workflow or ACES. It is a foundation choice, not a secondary option.
Color Processing Mode and Output Color Space
A managed workflow becomes clearer because you explicitly define the working context: SDR or HDR, together with the intended output space. That makes the pipeline predictable from the start.
Extended managed presets
When Automatic color management is disabled, Resolve exposes more manual configuration choices. That is useful when you need exact control over the working space or a non-standard delivery chain.
Practical workflow
A simple sequence that prevents most color-management mistakes
You do not need an overly academic setup. In practice the most important thing is to make the technical path visible, separate it from the creative grade and keep the delivery target clear.
01
Decide which system the project lives in
Do not start with a LUT. First decide whether the project is in DaVinci YRGB, a managed workflow or ACES. Otherwise every later decision becomes random.
02
Describe the source honestly
If the camera shot Log, choose the correct input. If the clip is already transformed to Rec.709, do not make Resolve apply another transform on top of it.
03
Separate technical and creative grading
Normalise the signal first, then add contrast, saturation, skin work and the look. That makes node trees easier to read and fix.
04
Check the result on both the Viewer and scopes
Even the most correct workflow does not replace image evaluation. Watch the levels, channels and saturation instead of trusting one checkbox in settings.
CST and ACES
The tools that make the transform explicit
Instead of guessing what happens to the signal, use the controls that describe the transform directly. This is what keeps large projects readable and repeatable.
Color Space Transform: the core manual transform tool
A CST node lets you define Input Color Space, Input Gamma, Output Color Space and Output Gamma explicitly. This is where the exact transform path becomes visible.
ACES Transform and ACES version
In ACES it matters not only that the system is enabled, but also which ACES version is selected. This affects compatibility with an existing pipeline and specific transforms.
Input Transform: where the signal comes from
If the wrong camera or log profile is selected, everything that follows is built on a bad foundation. That makes Input Transform a critical technical choice, not a formality.
Output Transform: where the image is delivered
Rec.709, sRGB, Display P3 and HDR all describe different viewing contexts. Resolve lets you define that stage explicitly instead of guessing.
Gamut Compression: protection for problematic colours
In more complex ACES scenarios, gamut compression helps handle extreme colours and saturations more gracefully. It is not a random checkbox but a deliberate technical tool.
Processing mode: SDR or HDR
In a managed workflow, choosing SDR or HDR affects more than a label. It changes the logic of the project and the final delivery chain.
Typical mistakes
Most problems come from hidden transforms, not from the wheels themselves
The most painful grading issues often begin before creative correction starts. Use these reminders as a quick sanity check when the image behaves strangely.
Applying LUTs before understanding the pipeline
A LUT can be useful, but if the signal state is unclear, the LUT easily becomes a random patch on top of a broken foundation.
Applying a double transform
One of the most common mistakes is transforming already-normalised footage again through CST, an input LUT or a managed transform. That often creates a harsh or unnatural image.
Mixing technical and creative nodes into one mess
When CST, contrast, skin work and the look are piled together without structure, it becomes harder to trace errors and maintain the project. A clean structure saves time throughout the whole job.
Expecting color management to create a cinematic look by itself
Color management is mainly about technical predictability. It does not replace taste, references, lighting or full creative grading.
Where to go next
After the technical base, move to actual grading decisions
Once the signal path is under control, the rest of the Color page becomes much more logical. These sections continue the workflow in the right order.
Camera Raw
If the source is RAW, understand where debayer settings end and where the project-wide colour-management workflow begins.
Open section
Color Wheels
After the technical base is set, move to Lift, Gamma, Gain, Offset and primary correction in a clear working space without signal confusion.
Open section
Nodes and pipeline
Structure CST, technical nodes, secondaries and the creative look so the node tree stays readable and maintainable.
Open section
Signal state
Colour management starts with three questions: what came in, where we grade, where we output
The most common colour-management mistake is treating RCM, CST, ACES and LUTs as interchangeable buttons. They are different ways of describing transitions between image states. Each clip needs a known input colour space, the grade needs a working/timeline space, and delivery needs an output space. If one stage happens twice or not at all, the image is already wrong before creative grading begins.
Timeline
the state in which grading tools operate
Output
the display/delivery state being produced
Main risk
double transform
Technical reference
RCM, CST, ACES and LUTs — what each actually solves
Choose an architecture for the project, not by fashion. The key test is whether you can state unambiguously what colour state the signal is in at each point in the chain.
| Approach | Where transforms are defined | Strength | Main risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| DaVinci YRGB + CST | explicit CST/LUT/node transforms | maximum visibility and order control | missing or duplicated transform |
| DaVinci YRGB Color Managed | Project Settings + clip input tags + output | scalable mixed-camera workflow | wrong Input Color Space or a hidden manual conversion on top of RCM |
| DaVinci Wide Gamut / Intermediate | as a wide working space inside RCM or a manual pipeline | wide gamut/headroom for scene-referred grading | an early Rec.709 transform inside the graph |
| ACEScct | IDT/input transform → ACES working state → Output Transform | standardised interchange and VFX pipeline | mixing ACES and non-ACES transforms without a clear reason |
| LUT-only | a lookup table at a chosen point | fast fixed transform/look | a LUT does not automatically know input state, display peak or project context |
Working sequence
1. Inventory the sources
Record the camera gamut/gamma for each source family. Use reliable metadata where possible; otherwise assign Input Color Space manually and verify with a test shot.
2. Choose one working space
In RCM this is often DaVinci Wide Gamut / Intermediate; in ACES it is ACEScct. The important point is to avoid unnecessary jumps into display spaces during the main grade.
3. Define one output transform
Rec.709 Gamma 2.4, P3, PQ or HLG is a specific delivery state. There should be one logical output transform even if Resolve can technically perform it through different mechanisms.
4. Test graphics, generators and external renders separately
Files without camera metadata, PNG/EXR graphics, titles and VFX plates may require explicit input interpretation. Do not assume RCM can infer the semantic colour state of every asset.
Diagnostics
Log suddenly becomes too contrasty and saturated
Likely cause
an input/output transform is applied twice: RCM + CST/LUT or RAW decode + RCM
What to check
Project Color Science, clip Input Color Space, Camera Raw and every technical node
One camera family looks wrong in a mixed-camera project
Likely cause
wrong input tag/gamma/gamut or a camera LUT before colour management
What to check
metadata, Input Color Space and the first technical transform for that camera
Resolve looks correct but exported playback differs
Likely cause
output tags, display management and player behaviour are being confused with the grade
What to check
Output Color Space, video/data levels, tags, calibrated output path and an independent reference player
DaVinci Resolve 21
Resolve 21: improved ACES AMF handling
DaVinci Resolve 21 improves ACES AMF workflows by displaying the AMF transform name, supporting a custom ACES AMF folder, AMF tree selection in Project Settings, project-level look transforms and an indicator for the current working location. This matters not as another look feature but as a more explicit way to exchange ACES pipeline state between production stages.
Colour science behind the tool