SOFTLINK — SKIN TONE CORRECTION GUIDE
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Version 1.0 | Softlink Editorial Team
Free for personal and commercial use

THE SKIN TONE LINE
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In a vectorscope, all natural skin tones fall along a diagonal line
running from the center toward the upper-left (between Red and Yellow targets).
This is called the 'skin tone line' or 'flesh tone line.'

How to use this in Premiere Pro:
1. Open Lumetri Scopes (Window > Lumetri Scopes)
2. Select the Vectorscope display
3. Adjust Temperature and Tint until skin tones track the skin tone line

PRIMARY CORRECTION FOR SKIN TONES
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Step 1: Set correct white balance
- Adjust Temperature (warm/cool) and Tint (green/magenta) until neutrals are neutral
- Use a gray card reference if available

Step 2: Set exposure
Skin should generally be in the upper quarter of the IRE range:
- Very light skin: 60-75 IRE in well-lit conditions
- Medium skin: 50-65 IRE
- Dark skin: 35-50 IRE
These are guidelines, not rules.

Step 3: Evaluate contrast
- Avoid crushing shadows that contain skin detail
- Highlights should retain skin texture

SECONDARY CORRECTIONS
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When the scene is balanced but skin still looks off:

Lumetri Color > HSL Secondary:
1. Use the eyedropper to select a mid-tone area of skin
2. Enable the mask (key display) to see selection
3. Adjust H, S, L sliders to refine selection to skin tones only
4. Common adjustments:
   - Slightly warm the skin (+2 to +5 temperature equivalent)
   - Reduce green if skin looks greenish
   - Add slight magenta if skin looks washed out

MIXED LIGHTING
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- Correct the dominant light source first
- Use secondary corrections and masks for secondary lighting areas
- White balancing for mixed lighting is always a compromise

COMMON MISTAKES
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- Over-saturating skin (looks sunburned or unrealistic)
- Over-retouching with HSL (skin looks plastic)
- Ignoring shadow-side skin after focusing on lit side
- Not checking on a calibrated monitor

CREDITS: Softlink Editorial Team