Motion 5.8

Motion 5.7

Motion 5.6.6

Motion 5.6.4

Motion 5.6.1

Motion 5.6

Motion 5.5.2

Motion 5.5.1

Motion 5.5

Motion 5.4.6

Motion 5.4.4

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Table of Contents

Welcome
What’s new in Motion
- What is Motion?
- Motion workflow
- Motion interface
- Basic components of Motion
- Using input devices
- Intro to creating projects
- Create a new project
- Open an existing project
- Search for projects from the Finder
- Bypass the Project Browser
- Create and modify project presets
- Save, autosave, and revert projects
- Intro to adding and managing content
- Intro to project playback
- Define the play range
- Project playback performance
- Intro to basic compositing
- - Modify layer opacity
- Intro to 3D compositing
- - Intro to 3D coordinates
  - Relative coordinates
- Transform layers in 3D space
- - Create 3D intersection
  - 2D and 3D group properties
- Intro to the Timeline
- Display or resize the Timing pane
- Navigate in the Timeline
- Show and modify keyframes in the Timeline
- - Intro to the Timeline ruler
  - Edit a range of frames in the Timeline
- Edit in the mini-Timeline
- Intro to behaviors
- Behaviors versus keyframes
- - Browse for behaviors
- - Intro to adjusting behaviors
  - Adjust behaviors
- Intro to keyframing
- Add keyframes
- - Add an animation path in the canvas
  - Modify animation paths
- Animate from the HUD
- - Apply keyframes to behaviors
  - Combining keyframes and behaviors
- Use the mini-curve editor
- Animate on the fly
- Simplify a keyframe curve
- Intro to Final Cut Pro templates
- - Template workflow
  - Placeholders vs. drop zones
- - Convert a Motion project to a template
  - Convert a template to another type
- Use placeholder images in templates
- Set template resolution
- Add multiple aspect ratios to templates
- Override the Final Cut Pro color space
- Create templates that conform to the Final Cut Pro color space
- Where are templates saved?
- Using masks in templates
- - General template guidelines
  - Tips for color processing in templates
- Intro to rigging
- How does rigging work?
- Build a simple rig
- Work with widgets
- Control rigs from Animation menus
- Publish rigs to Final Cut Pro
- Intro to Particles
- - Add a particle system
  - Anatomy of a particle emitter
- Create 3D particles
- Particle system timing
- Using graphics in particle systems
- Using filters and masks with particles
- Save custom particle effects
- Intro to replicators
- Replicators vs. particle systems
- - Add a replicator
  - Anatomy of a replicator
- Work with 3D replicators
- Replicator timing
- Using filters and masks with replicators
- Save custom replicators
- Intro to basic text
- Select and modify text in the canvas
- Preview and apply fonts
- Use preset text styles
- - Intro to editing text
  - Display the Text Inspector or HUD
- Convert standard text to 3D text
- Check spelling
- Find and replace text
- Using filters with text
- Intro to 3D text
- 3D text workflow
- - Add 3D text
  - Convert 2D text to 3D text
- Apply a preset 3D text style
- Move and rotate 3D text
- Add a glow or drop shadow to 3D text
- 3D text intersection
- Intro to animated text
- Apply a text behavior
- - Use the Scroll Text behavior
  - Scroll Text controls
- - Use the Text Tracking behavior
  - Text Tracking controls
- - Use the Type On behavior
  - Type On controls
- Animate individual text glyphs
- Animating 2D text in 3D space
- When to use keyframes to animate text
- Adding nontext behaviors to text
- Save a modified text behavior
- Intro to shapes, masks, and paint strokes
- - Intro to complex shapes and masks
  - Draw complex shapes and masks
- Edit fill, outline, and feathering
- Keyframe shape control points
- Convert between shapes and masks
- Using filters and masks with shapes
- Copy shape styles
- Save custom shapes and shape styles
- Intro to using generators
- Add a generator
- - Modify or animate a generator
  - Controls common to all generators
- Save a modified generator
- Intro to filters
- Browse and preview filters
- Apply or remove filters
- - Animate filter parameters with keyframes
  - Animate filters using behaviors
- About filters and color processing
- Publish filter controls to Final Cut Pro
- Using filters on alpha channels
- Filter performance
- Save custom filters
- Intro to color keying
- - Intro to the Luma Keyer filter
  - Luma Keyer filter controls
- Intro to 3D objects
- Add a 3D object
- Move and rotate a 3D object
- Reposition a 3D object’s anchor point
- Exchange a 3D object file
- 3D object intersection and layer order
- - Intro to 3D object timing
  - Modify 3D object timing in Motion
- Using cameras and lights with 3D objects
- Save custom 3D objects
- Guidelines for working with 3D objects
- Working with imported 3D objects
- Intro to 360-degree video
- 360-degree projects
- Create 360-degree projects
- Add 360-degree video to a project
- - View 360-degree projects
  - View 360-degree video in a VR headset
- - Intro to graphics in 360-degree projects
  - Use graphics in 360-degree projects
- Create a tiny planet effect
- Reorient 360-degree media
- Creating 360-degree templates for Final Cut Pro
- 360-degree-aware filters and generators
- Export and share 360-degree projects
- Guidelines for better 360-degree projects
- Intro to tracking
- How does motion tracking work?
- Analyze and record motion in a clip
- Track shapes, masks, and paint strokes
- Track the position of a filter or object
- Adjust onscreen trackers
- Load existing tracking data
- Use a range of frames for analysis
- Save tracks to the Library
- Intro to audio
- View audio files
- Add audio files
- Play audio files
- Intro to exporting projects
- Export a QuickTime movie
- Export audio only
- Export a still image
- Export an image sequence
- Export to Apple devices
- Export to email
- Export using Compressor
- Create share destinations
- Render settings
- View the status of shared items
- Share notifications
- About color space
- Intro to color management
- Set the color processing method
- Manage automatic color processing
- View HDR media
- Adjust HDR media
- Choose HDR colors
- Display luminance values
- Tips for color management
- Intro to Cinematic mode video
- Move Cinematic clips to your Mac
- Enable Cinematic mode video adjustments
- Adjust focus points in Cinematic mode video clips in Motion
- Adjust depth of field in Cinematic mode video clips
- Intro to settings and shortcuts
- Touch Bar shortcuts
- Move assets to another computer
- Work with GPUs
Glossary
Copyright

Use the Color Curves filter in Motion

You can use color curves to adjust the components of individual color channels in an image. You can adjust the global luma channel as well as the red, green, and blue color channels. You can also select a custom color in a clip and adjust its intensity, or select a mix of different colors in a clip and adjust their intensities at the same time.

When you apply the Color Curves filter, its settings appear in the Filters Inspector:

Color Curves controls in the Filters Inspector

A color curve is a graph that lets you remap a color channel’s luminance (intensity) values. The straight diagonal line represents the tonal ranges of the color channel before you make changes to the image, with shadows on the left side of the diagonal line, midtones in the center, and highlights on the right.

The Red color curve showing tonal areas of the image (shadows, midtones, and highlights) distributed along the curve

The vertical axis in the graph represents the luminance changes you make to the color channel, by dragging up or down at any point along the diagonal line. So, for example, in the Red curve control, dragging up on the left side of the diagonal line increases the intensity of red in the shadows—making the dark areas look more intensely red. Dragging down on the left side of the line reduces the intensity of red in the shadows—making the dark areas look more blue-green.

Note: Because you can apply multiple color filters to an image, you’re not required to follow all of the steps below, nor the order of those steps. For example, you might adjust the overall contrast with the Color Curves filter and adjust a color tint with the Color Wheels filter. Or you could achieve the same results with multiple instances of the same effect.

Tip: You can simultaneously animate all parameters of the Color Curves filter. See Globally animate all parameters of a Color Curves, Color Wheels, or Hue/Saturation Curves filter.

Apply the Color Curves filter

In Motion, open the Library, click the Filters category, then click the Color category to reveal the color-correction filters.
Drag the Color Curves filter to the layer in the Layers list you want to adjust.
The Color Curves controls appear in the Filters Inspector.
In the Filters Inspector, click the View pop-up menu at the top of the filter controls and choose a display option:
- All Curves: Displays all four curves (Luma, Red, Green, and Blue) at once.
- Single Curves: Displays one large curve at a time. In Single Curves view, click a button above the curve to display a specific curve.

To color-correct the image, follow the instructions below.

Adjust the intensity of a primary color channel or luma channel

In Motion, apply a Color Curves filter to a clip or image, as described in the previous task.
Do one of the following:
- Adjust a primary color channel: Click the Red, Green, or Blue curve (the diagonal line) to add a control point.
  Tip: Click somewhere on the lower-left side of the line to adjust mostly shadows of a given color; click in the center of the line to adjust mostly midtones; or click the upper-right side of the line to adjust mostly highlights
- Adjust the luma channel: To set the black and white points, drag the control points on the ends of the Luma curve. Click the Luma curve (the white diagonal line) to add a control point.
  Adjust the white point to modify the very brightest parts of an image; adjust the black point to modify the very darkest parts of an image. You can expand the tonal range of your image by increasing the white point and black point as far as you can without clipping (forcing values out of the allowable range).
Drag the control point up to increase the intensity of the color or luma value, or down to decrease the intensity.
To constrain the control point to vertical or horizontal movement, press and hold the Shift key as you drag. To make fine adjustments, press and hold the Option key as you drag.
Adjusting the image with a single control point affects most of the midtones as well as some shadows and highlights.
To narrow the tonal range for your adjustments, add more control points.
The default diagonal line for each curve indicates the original state of the image. Wherever the curve diverges from the diagonal line, the image is altered. Wherever the curve touches the diagonal line, the values of the image at that tonality are the same as in the original image. For example, to prevent any change to the shadows, you could add a control point to pin the curve to the diagonal line in the shadows area.
Add and drag control points as needed.
To delete a control point, select it and press Delete.
To reset the values for a color curve, click its reset button (the curved arrow). To reset the values for all color curves and value sliders, move the pointer over the upper-right corner of the filter controls, then click the Animation pop-up menu (the down arrow that appears) and choose Reset Parameter.
At the bottom of the filter controls, adjust any of the following:
- Preserve Luma: Select this checkbox to maintain the overall brightness of a clip despite changes in one or more color channels.
- Mix: Set the amount of the original image that’s blended with the color-corrected image.

Adjust the intensity of a custom color or range of colors

You can also select a custom color or a range of custom colors and then adjust the intensity.

In Motion, apply a Color Curves filter to a clip or image.
Do one of the following:
- Select a custom color using the eyedropper tool: Click the eyedropper tool at the top of one of the color curves, then click in the canvas to select a single color, or drag in the canvas to select a range of colors.
- Select a custom color using a color wheel control: Click the name of a color curve (in the top-left corner of the curve), then click or drag in the color wheel.
Click the curve (the diagonal line) to add a control point.
To delete a control point, select it and press Delete.
Tip: Click somewhere on the lower-left side of the line to adjust mostly shadows of a given color; click in the center of the line to adjust mostly midtones; or click the upper-right side of the line to adjust mostly highlights.
Drag the control point up to increase the intensity of the color or down to decrease its intensity.
To narrow the tonal range for your adjustments, add more control points.

Reduce color cast in a clip

If a clip wasn’t white-balanced properly during shooting, it may exhibit a strong color cast (a bluish or other hue). Oftentimes, you can correct or reduce this issue using the Color Curves filter.

In Motion, apply a Color Curves filter to the clip or image.
Click the eyedropper tool at the top of one of the color curves, then click or drag in the canvas over an area of the image that’s supposed to be white, such as a white sheet of paper.
A vertical gray line appears on the color curve.
Click to add a control point where the gray line intersects the curve, then drag the control point down until the selected color in the canvas turns white.
To delete a control point, select it and press Delete.

After you apply a color correction, you can copy it to another image or group. See Copy and paste a filter to another layer or group.

Tip: If you frequently add a particular color filter, you can speed up your workflow by saving the correction as a Motion template. (However, you cannot publish the Color Curves filter as a custom Final Cut Pro effects template.)

Download this guide: PDF

Helpful?

Motion User Guide

Use the Color Curves filter in Motion

Apply the Color Curves filter

Adjust the intensity of a primary color channel or luma channel

Adjust the intensity of a custom color or range of colors

Reduce color cast in a clip