Academy · Lesson 3 of 5
Moody Matte
Quiet, heavy, cinematic — control the shadows.
What this lesson teaches
- Cool temperature sets a mood before any grading
- Deep blacks with soft highlights create weight
- Desaturation makes the remaining colour deliberate
The 3 stages you rebuild
- 1. White balance — Set the temperature and tint first — every colour decision depends on it.
- 2. Exposure & tone — Brightness, contrast and the tonal extremes. Watch the highlights and blacks.
- 3. Presence & colour — Clarity, dehaze and saturation give the look its intensity — restraint wins.
The target look, in numbers
Exposure −0.1 EV · Contrast +22 · Highlights −34 · Shadows +14 · Vibrance +4 · Saturation −16 · 4500 K · 5-point curve · HSL 4 bands · 3-way grade · split tone.
You are not shown these while playing — the exercise is to reach them by eye and find out how close you got. The same values can be opened in the Studio afterwards.
← Academy
3 stages · hints cost points · precision earns stars