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Colour // Light
White Balance Guide
Read the colour of light. Lock manual white balance, match cameras across a multicam shoot, and stop fixing colour drift in post.
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A working library of cinematography reference documents. Free to download, built from years on set with real cameras and real clients. Learn the fundamentals first, then step into the colour lab when you're ready to grade like a professional.
Everything you need to understand exposure, motion, light and lens. These are the same reference sheets I keep open on set. Built clean, written tight, designed to be printed and pinned to a wall.
Read the colour of light. Lock manual white balance, match cameras across a multicam shoot, and stop fixing colour drift in post.
From 16mm to 135mm. Compression, distortion, working distance, and what each focal length does to a portrait. Choose the right lens for the right story.
A PAL workflow guide to frame rates. 25, 50, 100, 200fps. When to reach for each, what light you need, and how slow motion really works in the edit.
Why every serious operator carries a variable ND and a circular polariser. Stop reflections, hold shutter, and protect the cinematic look in any light.
A complete pro workflow for the Sony FX3. S-Log3, Cine EI, 4:2:2 10-bit, native ISO 800, 24fps. Nine settings that turn a small camera into a cinema rig.
How f/stop controls light, depth of field, and the cinematic look. The trade-offs between sharpness, separation and exposure across every common aperture.
The 180 degree rule, why it matters, and when to break it. How shutter angle defines motion blur and gives footage that unmistakable film quality.
Three point lighting, motivated practicals, and reading natural light. Get on the list and we'll send it the day it ships.
The complete chain from log to delivery. CST, exposure, colour, look. Reserved for Colour Lab subscribers because this is the work people pay for.
One email, seven guides, sent straight to your inbox as printable PDFs. You'll also get the next guide the day it drops, plus occasional notes from set. No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Where the free guides end, the lab begins. A subscription library teaching the actual craft of colour grading. Real footage, real timelines, real fixes. Built for editors who are tired of LUT presets that almost work.
The grade I run on most client work. A complete DaVinci Resolve power grade with separated nodes for exposure, contrast, colour balance, skin tone, and final look. Drop it on the timeline, dial it in, ship the cut.
Free 60 minute live sessions with Martin. Real demos, real questions, no upsell mid stream. The first round of dates drops soon, secure your seat now and you'll be the first to know.
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I've spent the last decade behind cameras for brands, founders, and broadcast. Started in run and gun video work, ended up running a creative studio. Somewhere in the middle I fell in love with teaching the craft, because most of what I learned the hard way could have been a one page guide.
Martin's Guides is that one page guide. Free, because the fundamentals should be. Then if you want to go deeper into colour, the lab is open.