Info Wanted: Need advice on recombining b/w color records of a 2 color cartoon!

Hello list…

I need advice!

I’m working on recombining an old Cinecolor cartoon. I’ve transferred the 2 b/w records of the film (one red color, one blue/green). I’ve been taking the two sections into after effects, but so far I haven’t figure out how to combine them successfully- and get the adjustment to match the original look. Any suggestions on how to combine two color records effectively?

I've read about early color experiments (amazingly colorful -- much more than one would expect!) but no experience with them. Could you post a few sample stills (i.e.: target color, your B&W sources, and your present results) and what technique(s) you are trying?

Just off-hand, I'm thinking one would use a standard R-G-B recombine. Red obviously is from your B&W-red-separation while Green & Blue (being identical) are from your B&W-green-blue-separation. Thereafter, just work on the R-G-B channels, remembering to duplicate all Green settings to Blue.

Sounds cool- but how do I *do* this? I'm working in after effects. So- does anyone know how to take 2 b/w channels, combine them and have an adjustable color for each channel?

I've been playing with channel mixer a bit- and am able to bring both files together and give them a color- but the adjustments are  on ONE of the two color layers, with no indication of how to change my color levels...this is new territory to me!

I  haven't used After-Effects, so no help there.

As for color manipulation, I directly adjust the individual R-G-B channels in a R-G-B Histogram function for simple corrections. If things look more complex, a R-G-B Curves function allows more hands-on precision (for the more experienced). Of course, always use an eye-dropper tool to see the exact, resulting R-G-B numbers -- very good for source-target comparisons.

Other functions, like your mention of the Channel Mixer, only hide what they do to the R-G-B (or in your case R & G-B). That's really hit-or-miss, puts secondary adjustments where you don't want them, or/and damages the correction with crush & blow-out. So I don't use them.

[If you need an example, my recent demonstration http://originaltrilogy.com/forum/topic.cfm/THX-1138-preservations-Italian-Cut-available-see-1st-post/post/667478/#TopicPost667478 should give an idea of what's involved.]