Hey! Im after your opinions on something, if you will oblige -
I recently shot a personal music video project, which i self funded, and shot on a Sony F55 with Cooke S4 minis, 2K, XAVC 4:2:2. Video looks nice and Im happy with how its turned out but now wondering about grading.. I dont know a lot about grading but have film school friends with access to good davinci suites who could help me out (though none of us are pros by any means). Alternatively a quote to professionally grade the clip is about 600$ or so.. which is already a LOT considering this is a self funded project.
I think I have a decent eye and am not bad with photo manipulation, so I'm wondering, am I going to get 90% of the way there if I have access to a davinci suite and plenty of time? Or would you highly recommend a professional grade? The final product will be mainly for internet, maybe a bit of TV.
I know when I finish mixing music, there's no question about getting it professionally mastered - its just such a dark art, you really need a professional to what they're doing. Grading to me feels like its perhaps a bit more accessible.. but by all means explain to me why Im wrong.
Thanks for your input!