Work in Color mode

Last updated on Apr 15, 2026

Learn how to get started with Color mode in Adobe Premiere (beta) and understand the basic workflow for adjusting color in your sequence.

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To begin working in Color mode, open a sequence in the Timeline panel and select the Color tab in the Premiere (beta) header.

Color mode opens with a dedicated workspace for color correction and grading, so you can focus on evaluating and refining your image.

Color mode selected in the top bar with Color Tools panel and Clip Grid visible. — Switch to Color mode to access tools for adjusting and refining your clips.

Basic workflow

Color mode is built around a simple workflow for adjusting clips in your sequence.

Select a clip in the Clip Grid to make it the current clip. Then choose an operation in the Color Controls panel, such as making clip-level adjustments or applying a sequence-wide style. Use the available controls to refine the image.

Repeat this process as you move through your sequence, making adjustments where needed.

Color mode workspace

The Color mode workspace is organized to keep your focus on the image while providing quick access to essential tools.

The Color monitor displays the current frame for evaluation.
The Color Controls panel provides controls for making adjustments.
The Clip Grid shows all clips in the sequence for quick navigation and selection.

Configure Color Management

Prior to using Color mode, it’s always a good idea to double-check that Color Management is configured the way you want it. Color mode is automatically set based on the format of the first clip you add to your sequence, so it’s possible that the automatically selected color mode isn't the one you really want to use, and it’s critical that you choose the right color setup for your purposes to get the best results.

A common example is that importing iPhone media (which is often in the HLG color space) will set your sequence to the Direct HLG (HDR) color setup, which is inappropriate if your intention is to deliver Rec. 709 standard dynamic range output (Direct Rec. 709 (SDR) is the preferable color setup to use in this example). This only happens when you import the first clip(s) into a sequence, so checking that your sequence’s color setup is correct immediately upon editing or adding the first clips to it is all you need to do, and you’ll be fine for the rest of that edit.

To quickly configure all critical color management settings for a new project:

Open the Color Management panel.

Open the Preferences section and make sure that Display Color Management is turned on. If you’re working on an HDR program, turn on Extended Dynamic Range Monitoring; if you’re working on an SDR program, leave it off.

Open the Project section and turn on Color Manage Auto Detected Log and Raw Media to ensure that all media formats capable of automatic color management are handled.

Note

You may still need to manually tag clips that lack the metadata to be automatically detected, so their color space can be properly color-managed.

Open the Sequence section and select the Color Setup that best suits your needs. This will be one of the following options:

For most projects, if you’re outputting video the same way you’ve been doing it for years, select Direct Rec. 709 (SDR) if it’s not selected already. This guarantees the greatest compatibility with the widest range of workflows.
Select Wide Gamut (Tone Mapped) for enhanced image processing and output tone-mapping that automatically manages extreme peak and shadow levels during grading. This is particularly beneficial if you want to grade HDR output.
If you’re doing a passthrough workflow where you don’t want anything altering the specific type of media you’re editing into a sequence, that’s what the Direct HLG (HDR) and Direct PQ (HDR) setups are for. However, if you’ve imported iPhone media or intend to output the most widely compatible deliverable to a general audience, you should instead select either Direct Rec. 709 SDR or Wide Gamut (Tone Mapped).

To decide how you want to output your media:

If you want to output your sequence in the most widely compatible way, then leave Output Color Space set to Direct. 709, which is the default setting. This will output standard dynamic range media that will play on almost anything.
If you want to output your sequence as HDR, then either select Rec. 2100 HLG or Rec. 2100 PQ, depending on the HDR format you need to deliver. If you don’t know which to choose, consult the documentation for the streaming or video-sharing service you intend to use.

Choosing and managing mode workspaces

Now that there are multiple workflow modes in Premiere (beta), there’s a different way to manage the workspaces specific to each mode. Both the Color and Edit modes ship with a variety of workspaces that make working on different kinds of projects easier. Furthermore, as you become accustomed to the various panels and features available in each mode, you’ll likely start creating your own workspaces that are tailored to how you like to work and how much screen real estate you have.

Note

The panels in Color mode can be customized just like any other panel you’re used to customizing in Premiere. Additionally, the Clip Grid, Color Controls, and Video Scope panels have both horizontal and vertical orientations allowing for even greater customization to optimize for a wider variety of displays.

To choose a workspace for the current mode:

After selecting Edit or Color mode, select that tab again to open the workspace drop-down menu, which provides access to all available workspaces in that mode, along with all workspace management controls.

Select the different layouts from the drop-down menu.

This menu gives you the following options for managing workspaces:

Reset to Saved Layout: Resets all changes you’ve made to the panels in the current workspace to the originally saved version.
Save Changes to this Workspace: Overwrites the currently selected workspace with all changes you’ve made.
Save as New Workspace: Creates a new workspace based on the state of all panels in the currently selected layout.
Edit Workspaces: Opens the Edit Workspaces dialog, in which you can rearrange the available workspaces, delete selected workspaces, or hide them by moving them to the Do not show section.

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Using Color mode with Color Management

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