Input Color Space
Declares the source gamut/color space.
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Color & Image ProcessingAdvanced
ColorSpaceTransform
Color space, gamma, tone and gamut conversion
Converts between input and output color spaces and gammas with optional tone mapping, gamut mapping and white-point adaptation.
ColorSpaceTransform
DaVinci Resolve · Fusion
ColorSpaceTransform is a production color-management node for normalizing camera material, moving between working spaces and preparing display/output transforms when a manual CST is required.
Overview
What ColorSpaceTransform does
ColorSpaceTransform is a production color-management node for normalizing camera material, moving between working spaces and preparing display/output transforms when a manual CST is required.
Mental model
Declare what the pixels mean now and what they should mean next; the node performs the technical conversion between those definitions.
Common uses
Normalize Log camera media
Convert to a wide-gamut working space
Prepare Rec.709 output
Build HDR-to-SDR transforms
Standardize mixed-camera sources
Flow anatomy
Inputs & outputs
The port structure shows how this node fits into a Fusion graph.
Input
Source image for the operation.
Effect Mask
Optional mask that limits the operation to selected areas.
ColorSpaceTransform
Fusion node
Output
The processed result from this node.
Inspector
Important parameters
Start with these controls before reaching for more complicated workarounds.
Input Gamma
Declares the source transfer function.
Output Color Space
Chooses the destination gamut/color space.
Output Gamma
Chooses the destination transfer function.
Swap
Swaps input and output transform definitions for reverse operations.
Tone Mapping Method
Controls luminance compression between dynamic ranges.
Use Custom Max. Input
Uses a custom maximum input value instead of the default for the selected color transform.
Max. Input (nits)
Sets one boundary of the active range.
Use Custom Max. Output
Uses a custom maximum output value instead of the default for the selected color transform.
Max. Output (nits)
Sets one boundary of the active range.
Adaptation
Controls chromatic adaptation between white points.
Gamut Mapping Method
Controls how out-of-gamut colors are compressed or mapped.
Apply Forward OOTF
Applies the selected color space’s forward opto-optical transfer function.
Apply Inverse OOTF
Applies the inverse opto-optical transfer function before the color-space transform.
Use White Point Adaptation
Enables white-point adaptation during the color-space conversion.
Use it when the source and destination spaces have different reference white points.
Pre-Divide / Post-Multiply
Protects premultiplied edges.
Practical setup
A reliable workflow
- 1
Identify the real input color space and gamma from metadata or camera settings.
- 2
Choose the project working/output space.
- 3
Enable tone/gamut mapping only when needed by the conversion.
- 4
Check skin, saturation and highlight roll-off.
- 5
Avoid stacking duplicate transforms.
Typical node chain
Input→
ColorSpaceTransform→
Output
Examples
Where this node fits in real work
Log to Rec.709
Normalize camera Log for an SDR pipeline.
MediaInColorSpaceTransformGrade
Wide-gamut workflow
Convert sources into one wide working space and back at output.
SourceCST to WorkingCompositeCST to Output
Troubleshooting
Common mistakes
Guessing input gamma
Confusing gamut with gamma
Applying the same CST twice
Disabling gamut mapping while saturated colors are clipping
Production notes
Practical tips
Normalize mixed-camera sources into one well-defined working space.
When a transform looks wrong, verify metadata before changing creative controls.
Related nodes