Boost Your Workflow in Final Cut Pro with the Control-Command-C Shortcut for the Color Board

Keyboard shortcut: ControlCommandC

If you color correct with the Color Board in Final Cut Pro, you know it has three panes: Color, Saturation, and Exposure. Control-Command-C switches straight to the Color pane of the Color Board, so you don’t have to click through the tabs.

What the Color Pane Does

The Color pane of the Color Board is for shifting the color tint of your image. It has four controls:

  • Global: Tints the entire image.
  • Shadows: Tints the darkest parts of the image.
  • Midtones: Tints the middle range, where skin tones usually sit.
  • Highlights: Tints the brightest parts.

Drag a control up toward a color to add that color, or down to move away from it. This is how you fix a color cast or warm up or cool down a shot.

Keep in mind the Color Board is one of several color tools. Color Wheels and curves are separate corrections with their own controls in the Color Inspector.

How to Use Control-Command-C

  1. Select a clip in your timeline that has a Color Board correction applied.
  2. Open the Color Inspector so you can see the Color Board.
  3. Press Control-Command-C. The Color Board switches to the Color pane.
  4. Drag the Global, Shadows, Midtones, or Highlights control to adjust the tint, and watch the Viewer.

Tips

  • Use Control-Command-E to jump to the Exposure pane and Control-Command-S for the Saturation pane, so you can move through all three without the mouse.
  • Open the video scopes (the Vectorscope is great for color) to see what your adjustments are really doing.
  • If a clip doesn’t have a Color Board yet, add one from the Color Inspector first.

Control-Command-C is a niche shortcut, but if the Color Board is your go-to tool, it makes switching panes quick and keeps your eyes on the image.

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