Colortend

Colortend is a term used in color grading and digital imaging to describe a deliberate, gradual shift in color characteristics along a sequence, a frame, or a spatial region. It captures the idea that color properties such as hue, saturation, and luminance are not static but tend toward a target palette over time or space, producing a cohesive mood or narrative cue. The exact meaning varies by practitioner, so colortend is considered an informal concept rather than a standardized technical term.

In practice, a colortend can be implemented by applying time-based adjustments to color wheels, curves, or LUTs using keyframes or tracking data. Common patterns include a per-scene or per-shot drift toward a specific hue (for example, a teal-tinted shadow and warm-tinted highlights) or a region-based bias that moves as a subject moves. Per-channel colortends can create stylized looks or correct color casts that emerge during production.

Colortend is related to color grading, color correction, and look development, serving as a tool for narrative emphasis or aesthetic consistency. It differs from static grading by emphasizing transition and coherence across time or space rather than a single, fixed adjustment. See also color grading, hue shift, LUTs, and color drift.