ColorGradePanel
An editor plugin that adds DaVinci-style color grading tools to UE PostProcessVolume.
Provides two tools:
- Log Color Wheels (Shadow / Midtone / Highlight / Offset) — corresponding to DaVinci Primaries → Log mode
- Spider Web (Color Warper) — corresponding to DaVinci Color Warper's hue–saturation grid warping
Requirements
- Unreal Engine 5.8 (source or Launcher build; must be able to compile C++ plugins)
- Visual Studio 2019/2022 (Windows)
- Editor-only use (grading / preview / rendering), not intended for packaged game runtime
Installation
Copy the entire ColorGradePanel folder into your UE project's Plugins/ directory:
YourProject/
└── Plugins/
└── ColorGradePanel/
├── ColorGradePanel.uplugin
└── Source/...
(If the project doesn't have a Plugins directory yet, create one.)
Open the .uproject and make sure the plugin is enabled (or add it to the Plugins array with a text editor):
{
"Name": "ColorGradePanel",
"Enabled": true
}
Reopen the project; UE will prompt you to compile the plugin — click "Yes". Once compilation finishes, the plugin takes effect.
Usage
1. Add the component
- Select a Post Process Volume in the level.
- If there isn't one, drag one into the level from the Place Actors → Volumes → Post Process Volume panel.
- In the Details panel, click Add Component, search for and add Color Grade Panel.
- The component appears in the Details panel, showing two grading sections.
2. Log Color Wheels
Four color wheels control different luminance ranges (independent of each other):
| Color Wheel |
Range |
| Shadow |
Dark areas |
| Midtone |
Midtones |
| Highlight |
Bright areas |
| Offset |
Overall (global offset, similar to printer lights) |
Controls:
- Drag the dot inside a wheel → adjust hue (drag in a direction to bias toward that color)
- Numerical box on the right (Master) → adjust the brightness of that range
- Shadow/Midtone Split / Midtone/Highlight Split → adjust the segment boundaries
3. Spider Web (Color Warper)
- Check Enable Spider Web → a hue disk + grid appears.
- Drag a grid intersection → "move" the color at that hue to a new position (single-point drag; other points stay put).
- Warp Strength → adjust drag sensitivity (default 2, higher is more sensitive).
- Reset Warp button → restore all points to their default positions and clear the grade.
Notes
- This is a C++ plugin: the first compilation requires Visual Studio, and you must close the editor (or disable Live Coding) before compiling.
- The Spider Web shows a slight white-screen flicker while dragging — a known issue that does not affect the final grade result.
- The color wheel and Spider Web grades only preview in real time inside the editor viewport; they are editor tools and are not packaged with game builds.
File Layout
ColorGradePanel/
├── ColorGradePanel.uplugin # Plugin descriptor
├── Source/
│ ├── ColorGradePanel/ # Runtime module (grading data + engine integration)
│ │ ├── Public/PostProcessGradeComponent.h
│ │ └── Private/PostProcessGradeComponent.cpp
│ └── ColorGradePanelEditor/ # Editor module (Details panel UI)
│ ├── Private/PostProcessGradeDetails.cpp # Panel assembly
│ ├── Private/SLogColorWheel.cpp # Color wheel widget
│ └── Private/SSpiderWebWidget.cpp # Spider web widget