Brightness Contrast Node

Brightness Contrast is the "Swiss army knife" node for simple color grading in Fusion. 6 parameters, each affecting a different tonal range (shadows / midtones / highlights).

For finer, more precise grading, prefer the Color Corrector, which offers controls per tonal range (shadows/midtones/highlights) and per hue/saturation. Brightness Contrast is simpler but is enough for 80% of everyday adjustments.

Recommended in 32-bit float for the best results - corrections in 8-bit can introduce banding.

• Effects Library: Tools > Color > Brightness Contrast
• Quick add: right-click in the Node Editor → Add Tool > Color > Brightness Contrast

• Input (orange) - required. The 2D image to correct.
• Effect Mask (blue) - optional. Limits the correction to an area. Applied after the processing.

MediaIn → Brightness Contrast → Merge 2D → Saver

Key rule: the parameters are applied in the order they appear in the Inspector. You cannot change the order - but by chaining two Brightness Contrast nodes you can work around this constraint.

1. Gain

Multiplies pixel values around black. A Gain of 1.2 turns a pixel R0.5/G0.5/B0.4 into R0.6/G0.6/B0.48. Maximum impact on midtones and highlights, minimal on shadows.

2. Lift

Multiplies around white. A Lift of 0.5 turns a pixel R0.0/G0.0/B0.0 into R0.5/G0.5/B0.5. Maximum impact on shadows and midtones.

3. Gamma

Values > 1.0 brighten the midtones; < 1.0 darken them. The existing black and white points do not change - only the midtones are repositioned.

4. Contrast

Widens the gap between bright and dark areas. Positive values push toward black/white; negative values compress toward gray.

5. Brightness

The slider value is added to every pixel evenly. Unlike Gain (which multiplies), Brightness shifts the whole image by a constant value. A less natural effect than Gain for brightening, but sometimes wanted for a specific look.

6. Saturation

Color intensity. 0 = black and white, 1 = unchanged, > 1 = boosted saturation.

Low / High Range

Sliders similar to Gain, but they act as anchor points of the tonal range. Lowering High from 1.0 is equivalent to raising the Gain. Useful to control the extremes of the histogram.

An essential option for premultiplied images (images whose alpha is already baked into the RGB, typical of 3D renders and PNG/EXR).

When on: Fusion divides the RGB channels by the alpha before the correction, then multiplies them again afterward. This prevents illegal additions on semi-transparent edges (which would produce halos).

Rule: turn on Pre-Divide/Post-Multiply for any 3D render or image with premultiplied alpha. Leave it off for 2D sources without alpha or with straight alpha.

Checkboxes that prevent out-of-range values (< 0.0 or > 1.0) in 32-bit float processing. Useful at the end of grading to prepare the export - a renderer receiving negative values can crash or produce artifacts.

No effect in 8-bit or 16-bit - these formats already clip naturally. The option only makes sense in 32-bit float.

Buttons that invert the node's effect. Handy to undo a correction further down the chain - for example, apply a temporary correction for keying, then reverse it once the key is done.

MediaIn → Brightness Contrast (Forward) → Key → ...
                                                    → Brightness Contrast (Reverse, same values)

The second node exactly cancels the first if the values are identical.

• Quick brightness correction - Gain at 1.1-1.2 for a slight boost. Positive Contrast to bring back some punch after a gain.
• Desaturation - Saturation at 0 for full B&W, at 0.5 for a washed-out/cinema look.
• Preparing for a keyer - Contrast + in Forward to separate foreground/background, key, then Reverse on the output to get the original look back.
• Matching two shots - apply it to one shot to bring it to the brightness/contrast level of another reference shot.
• Per-channel grading - uncheck B in Color Channels, Brightness +0.1 → a pink tint added to the reds/greens only.
• Stylized low-contrast look - negative Contrast + slightly raised Gain = a vintage / bleached render.

• Fixed order = chaining - to apply Saturation before Contrast (reversed order), use two Brightness Contrast nodes - the first sets Saturation, the second sets Contrast.
• Gain to brighten, not Brightness - Gain multiplies (preserves black), Brightness adds (raises everything, including black → loss of dynamic range). Gain is almost always preferable.
• Pre-Divide/Post-Multiply by default as soon as there is a premultiplied alpha in the flow - it avoids halos.
• For pro grading with more control, move to the Color Corrector or to the nodes of DaVinci's Color page.
• Clip Black/White only at the end of the chain - clipping too early destroys valuable values needed by downstream corrections.
• For a correction on one area only, plug a mask into Effect Mask - otherwise the correction applies everywhere.