Picture Shop's Mark Kueper Grades Billy the Kid With DaVinci Resolve Studio
Brie Clayton May 28, 2024
0 Comments
Blackmagic Design today announced that Colorist Mark Kueper of Picture Shop graded season one and two of the MGM+ series Billy the Kid using DaVinci Resolve Studio editing, color grading, visual effects (VFX) and audio post production software.
An epic romantic adventure series based on the life of famous American outlaw Billy the Kid, the show follows the title character from his humble Irish roots, to his early days as a cowboy and gunslinger in the American frontier, to his pivotal role in the Lincoln County War and beyond. Season one's pilot was shot by Cinematographer Paul Sarossy and directed by Otto Bathurst. The series' cinematography was by Paul Sarossy, Ronald Paul Richard, Sylvaine Dufaux and Craig Powell.
Involved early in the process of pre production, Kueper was excited about working on a show shot in Calgary, in the Canadian province of Alberta. I jumped at the chance to grade images of such a beautiful place, said Kueper.
With neither the director nor the cinematographer having experience shooting a western before, they insisted on doing some test photography in and around the shooting location, located in the town of Drumheller. We were able to do look development and set the visual language for the show, continued Kueper. We talked about ways to make the landscape more foreboding. Everywhere you point the camera in Calgary looks great, and springtime outside of Calgary is very lush and green. We needed to make it feel more arid and dustier, like New Mexico. We could see desaturating the foliage and resisting postcard skies would help set the mood.
To achieve a unique look for the show, Sarossy and Bathurst chose to shoot film with vintage Petzval lenses. The character of these lenses was a big part of the look, but there are actually only two focal lengths available for this lens, added Kueper. The lenses have specific aberrations, and vignetting and focus fall off at the edges of frame depending on what stop you are at.
For wider shots and second unit, Sarossy needed to bring in other lenses, which meant matching the Petzval style in post. Kueper noted, We had to emulate those lenses in DaVinci Resolve by defocusing edges with tilt shift blur and aperture diffraction.
While Kueper created an interior and exterior shooting LUT for production, he found he could also add to the filmic look after shooting. I used FilmConvert Nitrate plugin because it has a luma mode that compresses the low blacks but also lifts them to give ambience like print does, continued Kueper. It was something we could have incorporated into the shooting LUT, but I didn't want to bake it in since it would be too aggressive for night scenes. We also used it to add grain to the show as well.
New tools in DaVinci Resolve Studio also helped speed up the grade. During the grading of season one we used match move for sky replacement. Now, in season two we can use the sky replace tool, which is quicker and better, Kueper explained.
Other tools in DaVinci Resolve Studio have helped Kueper add or enhance practical effects or manage on set challenges. Fast noise has been really helpful to add smoke or fog for continuity. There were several instances that we needed to add dust in scenes where horses are running through town or add gun smoke ambience to match shots that were missing it. Flicker addition worked nicely to get lanterns to have a more natural feel, as some LED lanterns have a rhythmic flicker that doesn't look natural, he noted.
While Kueper does start with a set node tree in his grading process, his focus is on moving past the heavy lifting and focusing on the artistic side of the scenes. Things like action scenes take the most amount of time, said Kueper. You may work on a scene for an hour and think, hey I did a lot of work here,' then find out you only did a few minutes of show. When you finally get that scene to a good place it's a good idea to move on and look at it again later with fresh eyes so you don't get lost in small details. I usually get some ideas to sweeten shots that I struggled with to make the scene better. This is every colorist's challenge. For me, when I grade a scene that really speaks to me because I think it looks great, it is rewarding. When you are seeing how you are enhancing a shot instead of fixing it, it drives the creativity up. We as colorists are only as good as the images in front of us. I guess what I am saying is that the reward doesn't come from the struggle, it comes from the art.
Billy the Kid is now streaming on MGM+.
Enjoying the news? Sign up for the Creative COW Newsletter! Sign up for the Creative COW newsletter and get weekly updates on industry news, forum highlights, jobs, inspirational tutorials, tips, burning questions, and more! Receive bulletins from the largest, longest-running community dedicated to supporting professionals working in film, video, and audio.
Enter your email address, and your first and last name below!
-- Sign up: * indicates required
Email Address *
Name
--
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
14/11/2026
Marcelo Dai's Live Session Captured with URSA Cine Immersive
Brie Clayton November 14, 2026
0 Comments
Artist takes viewers on an immersive journe...
14/11/2026
Share
{alert(Link copied)}).catch(err => {console.error(Failed to copy: , err)}) data-platform=copy_link data-action= class=font-ui-heading py-2 text-sm tex...
14/11/2026
Share
{alert(Link copied)}).catch(err => {console.error(Failed to copy: , err)}) data-platform=copy_link data-action= class=font-ui-heading py-2 text-sm tex...
14/11/2026
Newest Lenses, Horizon Anamorphic Seminar & Guided Lens Character Experience Highlight Creative Possibilities
At the 2026 Toru CAMERIMAGE Film Festival, ZEISS...
14/11/2026
Sonnet Announces Black Friday Sale on Select Products
Brie Clayton November 14, 2026
0 Comments
WHAT: Sonnet Technologies is having a sale on a select...
14/11/2026
Berklee Alumni Shine at the 2026 Latin Grammy Awards This year's winners included songwriters, engineers, and performers who contributed to acclaimed reco...
13/11/2026
The UIM E1 Series wraps its third season this week with the Bombay Sapphire E1 Miami GP, Nov. 11-14, on Biscayne Bay at the Miami Seaplane Base on Watson Island...
13/11/2026
In-venue and creative video staffers at the professional and collegiate level ha...
13/11/2026
Singer-songwriter Benson Boone will headline entertainment for the Discover NHL Winter Classic between the Utah Mammoth and Colorado Avalanche at Rice-Eccles St...
13/11/2026
Blackmagic Design has announced the Blackmagic Ambisonic Microphone, a 7th order ambisonic microphone array that captures spatial audio for immersive video prod...
13/11/2026
SMPTE has announced that The Studio B&H and Riedel Communications will provide the video infrastructure and communications technology for the Solutions Hub at t...
13/11/2026
The Hollywood Professional Association (HPA) has announced the theme and program focus for the 2027 HPA Tech Retreat, which takes place Feb. 14-18, 2027, in La ...
13/11/2026
Football Manager 27 Touch is available on Apple Arcade starting today. The game ...
13/11/2026
MotoGP has announced a two-year media rights agreement with ESPN covering the Un...
13/11/2026
Apple Sports, the free iPhone app, has added the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) to its lineup of supported sports, in time for Saturday's UFC 334. The...
13/11/2026
The NBA and Fanatics Studios, the joint venture between Fanatics and entertainme...
13/11/2026
ESPN held its annual EDGE Innovation Conference last night and offered up an ove...
13/11/2026
Regional sports network gives Ithaca College, SUNY Cortland students a platform to thrive
One of the biggest games in Division III college football will be pla...
13/11/2026
Studer-inspired 500-series PWM compressor unveiled
The HLabs range already includes a couple of Studer-inspired offerings in the form of the PRE169 and EQ16...
13/11/2026
Download Now!
To view the white paper, please enter the following details:
--
First Name* First Name
Company*
Country* Please select your countryA...
13/11/2026
Share
{alert(Link copied)}).catch(err => {console.error(Failed to copy: , err)}) data-platform=copy_link data-action= class=font-ui-heading py-2 text-sm tex...
13/11/2026
Share
{alert(Link copied)}).catch(err => {console.error(Failed to copy: , err)}) data-platform=copy_link data-action= class=font-ui-heading py-2 text-sm tex...
13/11/2026
Share
{alert(Link copied)}).catch(err => {console.error(Failed to copy: , err)}) data-platform=copy_link data-action= class=font-ui-heading py-2 text-sm tex...
13/11/2026
Blue Lucy, the workflow orchestration and integration platform for broadcasters, rights owners and localisation companies, today announced an integration with c...
13/11/2026
Krotos announces Black Friday offers on Studio Pro and Studio Max
Brie Clayton November 12, 2026
0 Comments
First-year annual plans start at US$195.99...
13/11/2026
Blackmagic Design Announces Blackmagic Ambisonic Microphone
Brie Clayton November 12, 2026
0 Comments
New 7th order ambisonic microphone with 108 MEMS...
13/11/2026
Meet the Berklee Student Setting Planetary Motion to Music With his compositional platform SoniKosmos, Javier Roqueni aims to make the universe the ultimate i...
13/11/2026
Share
{alert(Link copied)}).catch(err => {console.error(Failed to copy: , er...
13/11/2026
Share
{alert(Link copied)}).catch(err => {console.error(Failed to copy: , err)}) data-platform=copy_link data-action= class=font-ui-heading py-2 text-sm tex...
13/11/2026
Share
{alert(Link copied)}).catch(err => {console.error(Failed to copy: , err)}) data-platform=copy_link data-action= class=font-ui-heading py-2 text-sm tex...
13/11/2026
Share
{alert(Link copied)}).catch(err => {console.error(Failed to copy: , err)}) data-platform=copy_link data-action= class=font-ui-heading py-2 text-sm tex...
13/11/2026
Share
{alert(Link copied)}).catch(err => {console.error(Failed to copy: , er...
13/11/2026
Share
{alert(Link copied)}).catch(err => {console.error(Failed to copy: , err)}) data-platform=copy_link data-action= class=font-ui-heading py-2 text-sm tex...
13/11/2026
Share
{alert(Link copied)}).catch(err => {console.error(Failed to copy: , err)}) data-platform=copy_link data-action= class=font-ui-heading py-2 text-sm tex...
13/11/2026
Share
{alert(Link copied)}).catch(err => {console.error(Failed to copy: , err)}) data-platform=copy_link data-action= class=font-ui-heading py-2 text-sm tex...
13/11/2026
Share
{alert(Link copied)}).catch(err => {console.error(Failed to copy: , err)}) data-platform=copy_link data-action= class=font-ui-heading py-2 text-sm tex...
13/11/2026
Share
{alert(Link copied)}).catch(err => {console.error(Failed to copy: , err)}) data-platform=copy_link data-action= class=font-ui-heading py-2 text-sm tex...
13/11/2026
Amagi, the media industry cloud company, today announced a partnership with Golden Times Media Technology (stock code 920021.BJ), a Beijing-based media and tech...
13/11/2026
CGI (TSX: GIB.A) (NYSE: GIB), one of the largest independent IT and business consulting services firms in the world, together with its Malaysian partner, Cedar ...
13/11/2026
SMPTE, the home for media professionals, technologists and engineers, today announced that The Studio B&H and Riedel Communications will provide the video infra...
13/11/2026
iWedia, a global leader in connected TV software solutions, will present its software-first approach to DRAM optimization at Android TV APAC Summit 2026 in Bang...
13/11/2026
Beginning today, November 13, Apple HomeView is available for purchase at Apple Store locations, on the Apple Store online, and in the Apple Store app in select...
13/11/2026
From pediatric research to smart hospitals, AI is helping care teams spend less time on routine tasks and more time with patients.
Health systems and startups...
12/11/2026
Industry leaders examine how Dynamic Media Facility, Media eXchange Layer, and c...
12/11/2026
The junior Tar Heel is embracing the technical and creative challenges of live production while emerging as a leader and mentor in the control room...
12/11/2026
Gracenote, Nielsen's content intelligence business, has released its fifth a...
12/11/2026
RTL Deutschland will bring the NHL to free-to-air TV in Germany starting Nov. 30...
12/11/2026
Clear-Com supported On Air 2026, a 24-hour student-led broadcast connecting 45 u...
Picture Shop's Mark Kueper Grades Billy the Kid With DaVinci Resolve Studio 
