# Use Cases

Nobe LutBake turns DaVinci Resolve into a LUT authoring tool. Your color corrections — curves, wheels, lift/gamma/gain, qualifiers, color space transforms, color-based OFX plugins — get baked into a portable `.cube` file with a single keystroke.

Here are the most common ways professionals use it.

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## Live Production & LiveGrade

Use DaVinci Resolve as a **software LUT box** in your live color pipeline.

Grade live footage using Resolve's color tools and node graphs, then capture the result as a high-quality 3D LUT. Load that LUT into **LiveGrade**, **Teradek COLR**, **Flanders BoxIO**, **TVLogic IS-Mini**, or any LUT-based device in your live production chain.

Resolve stays in the loop for its superior grading tools without being the primary switching or playout tool — you're injecting Resolve into the middle of the live pipeline purely for its color capabilities, then moving the result out as a LUT.

**Typical workflow:**

1. Feed live signal into Resolve (via SDI capture or similar)
2. Grade using Resolve's color page — curves, wheels, OFX plugins, PowerGrades
3. Press your capture hotkey
4. Load the `.cube` file into LiveGrade, your LUT box, or monitoring device
5. Adjust and recapture as needed — each iteration takes seconds

{% hint style="info" %}
This workflow is ideal for professionals who already use LiveGrade for live production but prefer Resolve's color tools for the actual grading work.
{% endhint %}

***

## On-Set LUT Creation

Design looks in Resolve and export them as **camera LUTs for on-set monitoring**.

Instead of manually baking LUTs through Resolve's export pipeline, iterate directly in the color page and capture the result with a keypress. The updated LUT is immediately ready for your video village, director's monitor, or camera preview output.

**Example scenarios:**

* DIT creating show LUTs during pre-production
* Colorist building camera-specific LUTs for on-set monitoring
* DP designing a look and exporting it for the camera team
* Creating dailies LUTs that match the intended creative direction

***

## Performance Optimization

Replace **heavy color correction chains** with a single baked LUT for the same look at a fraction of the render cost.

When stacking multiple color corrections or color-based plugins creates playback or rendering issues, bake the chain into a 3D LUT. The visual result is identical (within LUT resolution), but GPU load drops significantly because a single LUT lookup replaces multiple processing passes.

{% hint style="warning" %}
Only color-to-color transforms can be represented in a 3D LUT. Spatial effects (blur, sharpening, keyers), temporal effects (denoise, motion blur), and texture effects (grain, lens flares) cannot be captured in a LUT — disable them or place them on nodes outside the LutBake capture range before capturing. The app will warn you if it detects suspicious tools in the capture range or spatial corruption in the extracted LUT.
{% endhint %}

**When to use this:**

* Timeline playback drops below real-time due to plugin load
* Multiple instances of the same plugin chain across clips
* Final delivery where the creative look is locked and render speed matters
* Archiving a grade as a self-contained LUT instead of relying on plugin availability

***

## Look Sharing & Archival

Capture any grade as a **portable `.cube` file** for use anywhere a 3D LUT is accepted.

The `.cube` format is an industry standard supported by virtually every color-aware application — other NLEs, compositing software, LUT boxes, camera firmware, and monitoring tools.

**Use this for:**

* Sharing looks across editing systems (Premiere, Final Cut, Baselight, etc.)
* Delivering LUTs to clients alongside final deliverables
* Building a personal LUT library from your Resolve grades
* Creating LUT packs for distribution or sale
* Archiving creative looks independent of project files or plugin versions

***

## Cross-NLE Workflows

If your post-production pipeline spans multiple applications, Nobe LutBake bridges the gap.

Grade in Resolve where you have the most powerful tools, then export the result as a LUT for the conform or online editor working in a different NLE. This avoids round-tripping entire projects and ensures the colorist's intent translates accurately.


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