5 ms·

Wow, so much to rage about from the article. I am a huge fan of color and go out of my way to buy bright colored cars, phones, etc. (Not like I had any viable

Wow, so much to rage about from the article. I am a huge fan of color and go out of my way to buy bright colored cars, phones, etc. (Not like I had any viable options for my MacBook Pro though). Resale value, it hides dirt well are some of the sadder excuses I hear for buying gray and "silver" cars (wouldn't be cool if they really were silver, not "metallic gray"). Meanwhile you spend your entire time owning the car and driving around like a brooding storm cloud. Color grading might be the most evil thing to descend on film making. It's to the point of distraction now. Like it draws attention to itself. (Watching "Mickey 17" in a theater and a scene comes on that screams "color graded!" and then it's become all I can see. Kind of like the nausea-inducing, shaky "hand held camera" thing that was so predominate some decades ago. Good riddance to that. Oh well, I guess all I can do is to keep voting with my shopping preferences.

RiverCrochet 2y ago
When I learned about teal-orange LUTs I started seeing them everywhere.
- JKCalhoun 2y ago
  Ditto. Maybe we should be more blissful, not sure what leads to bliss....
- joshvm 2y ago
  It's fun watching Marvel's catalogue from start to current. They really went all-in early on, then the mode-du-jour changed and it's almost obvious how hard they avoid it (a lot of red and green lights for example). Interfaces, weaponry and engines are always egregious in that franchise. I remember Midsommar being another particularly bad example - the entire apartment set in the opening scenes is dressed in orange/teal. Down to book spines, vases and light fittings. It's interesting to see films that don't use strong grading at all. I think Star Wars wasn't too bad here because the whole visual language was set up in the 70s and everything now tries to reflect it (lots of primaries in control panels because those were the lamps they could use back then). They do have "planet" grades but it's not too bad.
  - Karrot_Kream 2y ago
    I enjoyed Midsommar's overuse of orange/teal because it really led to the feeling that the viewer was on a psychedelic trip (which usually comes with oversaturating of reds and orange.) Agree that Marvel is doing a lot of trend chasing in its color grading.
    - WorldMaker 2y ago
      I think the Marvel example is interesting as much because it doesn't seem to just be trend chasing, but also one axis to view Marvel's internal struggles between homogeneity and experimentation/directorial control/capturing the joy of the art of the comics themselves. You can almost directly tell if it was a year that Marvel studio choices were more dominant or if the film's director and editor had more control that year based on the color grading alone.
Freak_NL 2y ago
> Kind of like the nausea-inducing, shaky "hand held camera" thing that was so predominate some decades ago. Good riddance to that. Shudders. A lot of shows were utterly unwatchable for me. (Now they're just unwatchable because of the mumbling/whispering and the colour palettes tweaked to the extent nothing has any contrast left.)
cyberax 2y ago
> I am a huge fan of color and go out of my way to buy bright colored cars This. If you look at the cars, pretty much the only "stock" bright color is red. I used to drive a grass green car (vinyl wrap), and it stood out everywhere. I wish car makers offered more color options by default.
- mvdtnz 2y ago
  Almost all car makers offer bright colours by default. In my driveway is a bright blue Subaru (it was hard to pick between the blue and eye-searing orange) and a bright copper coloured Suzuki. Mazda is becoming famous for their innovative colour options. Google "Nissan Micra colours" to see what even Japan's most conservative carmaker offers to those who care to look.
  - cyberax 2y ago
    On selected models only :( E.g. Ford doesn't offer anything brighter than muted red on their Escape vehicles. They do have brightly-colored Mustangs, but nothing else. Even Mazda doesn't offer them for all their vehicles.
    - mvdtnz 2y ago
      Mate there are plenty of options if you want a nice coloured car.
      - cyberax 2y ago
        Not if you also want an EV.
        mvdtnz 2y ago
        BYD does some incredibly striking colours. So does VW. Lot of excuses here when there are plenty of great colourways available.
  - autoexec 2y ago
joshstrange 2y ago
> Not like I had any viable options for my MacBook Pro though Apple really drops the ball on colors in 99% of their products. You have the iMac and.... oh wait, that's it. There are no real colors on the pro phones and even the non-pro phones looks like something that got 1 of 10 coats of color. And then the MBPs have a handful of shades of gray, I would totally buy a green or blue MBP if there was one.
deleted 2y ago
[deleted]
ryandrake 2y ago
Another thing that might also play a role is this styling trend of vehicles looking "meaner" and more and more aggressive. This was discussed[1] a bit on HN a while ago. Bright colors don't really match the "My vehicle is going to punch you in the face" styling (for cars and especially trucks) that has become popular. 1: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=32425520 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=32425520
- wil421 2y ago
  I think the generations below boomers prefer non-chrome options. The blacks and dark accents add to the meaner look.
- sixothree 2y ago
  Literally every vehicle seems to have that diagonal line incorporated somewhere. I mean the one generally near the windows that slopes downward as it moves towards the front of the car, regardless of the general shape of the car itself.
  - JKCalhoun 2y ago
    Not sure which diagonal line you mean but I expect some creases are added for structural reasons, so the large areas of the metal are rigid, not floppy.
    - sixothree 2y ago
      Just do an image search for the word "sedan" or pay attention in traffic. It's an exterior panel so I don't think it can be very much structural. Maybe aerodynamics though. Once you see it you can't unsee it and it starts to look very ugly very fast.
  - AlotOfReading 2y ago
    I assume you mean the line near the handles on this Corolla [1]? That whole part of the car is doing a lot of different things. 1. Flat vertical panels are a no-no. Adding creases increases buckling resistance. 2. That's a hugely important area for cabin noise because the side mirrors cause turbulence and the vehicle body needs a channel to constrain the turbulent flow and flex as little as possible near the door seals. 3. The skin needs to expand outwards from the line of the pillars to fit the window mechanisms, the handles/locks, and the side impact protection without intruding into the cabin space. 4. It makes the car look more sporty and interesting. The technical term for the crease itself is "character line", and it's the main reason why the Corolla has one. It's visual reinforcement for the modern standard combo of low hoods-high trunks that's considered attractive styling. 5. The greenhouse (cabin) narrows towards the top for rollover safety and aerodynamic reasons (a.k.a tumblehome), and this needs to blend with the rest of the body in a visually appealing way. The cybertruck is a good example of how unusual it can look if this is just a straight line on the body. Here's a comparison between the current design and an ai-generated "rounded" design [2] [3]. [1] https://file.kelleybluebookimages.com/kbb/base/evox/CP/44005/2024-Toyota-Corolla%20Hybrid-front_44005_032_1819x735_8X8_cropped.png https://file.kelleybluebookimages.com/kbb/base/evox/CP/44005... [2] https://www.motortrend.com/files/67a2770e2906d20008bad29f/1-2025-tesla-cybertruck-front-view.jpg https://www.motortrend.com/files/67a2770e2906d20008bad29f/1-... [3] https://static0.carbuzzimages.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/gallery-images/original/1204000/200/1204226.jpg https://static0.carbuzzimages.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploa...
UncleOxidant 2y ago
> Meanwhile you spend your entire time owning the car and driving around like a brooding storm cloud. Living in Oregon I don't want a car that blends in with the asphalt and clouds. I want a florescent lime green car that's easy to see. Those are hard to come by. Also, I recall traveling to Athens Greece back in 1999 and wondering why people were all wearing greys, charcoals, black? I posited that they were depressed or something. Recall that the 90s were still pretty colorful in regards to clothing here in the US. And then just a couple of years later people here were all starting to wear those greys, charcoals and black.
- lesostep 2y ago
  >>Those are hard to come by. Offtopic, but did you look into painting options? It's often cheaper to buy a better car and just repaint it. My friend have a lime car (with some original color saved for the accents) because they did that. You mentioned the colour specifically and I remembered that it wasn't that pricey
imjustaghost 2y ago
https://dbrand.com/shop/devices/macbook-skins https://dbrand.com/shop/devices/macbook-skins Here you go - now you can make your macbook look great and unique.
deleted 2y ago
[deleted]

RiverCrochet 2y ago

When I learned about teal-orange LUTs I started seeing them everywhere.

JKCalhoun 2y ago
Ditto. Maybe we should be more blissful, not sure what leads to bliss....
joshvm 2y ago
It's fun watching Marvel's catalogue from start to current. They really went all-in early on, then the mode-du-jour changed and it's almost obvious how hard they avoid it (a lot of red and green lights for example). Interfaces, weaponry and engines are always egregious in that franchise. I remember Midsommar being another particularly bad example - the entire apartment set in the opening scenes is dressed in orange/teal. Down to book spines, vases and light fittings. It's interesting to see films that don't use strong grading at all. I think Star Wars wasn't too bad here because the whole visual language was set up in the 70s and everything now tries to reflect it (lots of primaries in control panels because those were the lamps they could use back then). They do have "planet" grades but it's not too bad.
- Karrot_Kream 2y ago
  I enjoyed Midsommar's overuse of orange/teal because it really led to the feeling that the viewer was on a psychedelic trip (which usually comes with oversaturating of reds and orange.) Agree that Marvel is doing a lot of trend chasing in its color grading.
  - WorldMaker 2y ago
    I think the Marvel example is interesting as much because it doesn't seem to just be trend chasing, but also one axis to view Marvel's internal struggles between homogeneity and experimentation/directorial control/capturing the joy of the art of the comics themselves. You can almost directly tell if it was a year that Marvel studio choices were more dominant or if the film's director and editor had more control that year based on the color grading alone.

Freak_NL 2y ago

> Kind of like the nausea-inducing, shaky "hand held camera" thing that was so predominate some decades ago. Good riddance to that. Shudders. A lot of shows were utterly unwatchable for me. (Now they're just unwatchable because of the mumbling/whispering and the colour palettes tweaked to the extent nothing has any contrast left.)

cyberax 2y ago

> I am a huge fan of color and go out of my way to buy bright colored cars This. If you look at the cars, pretty much the only "stock" bright color is red. I used to drive a grass green car (vinyl wrap), and it stood out everywhere. I wish car makers offered more color options by default.

mvdtnz 2y ago
Almost all car makers offer bright colours by default. In my driveway is a bright blue Subaru (it was hard to pick between the blue and eye-searing orange) and a bright copper coloured Suzuki. Mazda is becoming famous for their innovative colour options. Google "Nissan Micra colours" to see what even Japan's most conservative carmaker offers to those who care to look.
- cyberax 2y ago
  On selected models only :( E.g. Ford doesn't offer anything brighter than muted red on their Escape vehicles. They do have brightly-colored Mustangs, but nothing else. Even Mazda doesn't offer them for all their vehicles.
  - mvdtnz 2y ago
    Mate there are plenty of options if you want a nice coloured car.
    - cyberax 2y ago
      Not if you also want an EV.
      - mvdtnz 2y ago
        BYD does some incredibly striking colours. So does VW. Lot of excuses here when there are plenty of great colourways available.
- autoexec 2y ago

joshstrange 2y ago

> Not like I had any viable options for my MacBook Pro though Apple really drops the ball on colors in 99% of their products. You have the iMac and.... oh wait, that's it. There are no real colors on the pro phones and even the non-pro phones looks like something that got 1 of 10 coats of color. And then the MBPs have a handful of shades of gray, I would totally buy a green or blue MBP if there was one.

deleted 2y ago

[deleted]

ryandrake 2y ago

Another thing that might also play a role is this styling trend of vehicles looking "meaner" and more and more aggressive. This was discussed[1] a bit on HN a while ago. Bright colors don't really match the "My vehicle is going to punch you in the face" styling (for cars and especially trucks) that has become popular. 1: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=32425520 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=32425520

wil421 2y ago
I think the generations below boomers prefer non-chrome options. The blacks and dark accents add to the meaner look.
sixothree 2y ago
Literally every vehicle seems to have that diagonal line incorporated somewhere. I mean the one generally near the windows that slopes downward as it moves towards the front of the car, regardless of the general shape of the car itself.
- JKCalhoun 2y ago
  Not sure which diagonal line you mean but I expect some creases are added for structural reasons, so the large areas of the metal are rigid, not floppy.
  - sixothree 2y ago
    Just do an image search for the word "sedan" or pay attention in traffic. It's an exterior panel so I don't think it can be very much structural. Maybe aerodynamics though. Once you see it you can't unsee it and it starts to look very ugly very fast.
- AlotOfReading 2y ago
  I assume you mean the line near the handles on this Corolla [1]? That whole part of the car is doing a lot of different things. 1. Flat vertical panels are a no-no. Adding creases increases buckling resistance. 2. That's a hugely important area for cabin noise because the side mirrors cause turbulence and the vehicle body needs a channel to constrain the turbulent flow and flex as little as possible near the door seals. 3. The skin needs to expand outwards from the line of the pillars to fit the window mechanisms, the handles/locks, and the side impact protection without intruding into the cabin space. 4. It makes the car look more sporty and interesting. The technical term for the crease itself is "character line", and it's the main reason why the Corolla has one. It's visual reinforcement for the modern standard combo of low hoods-high trunks that's considered attractive styling. 5. The greenhouse (cabin) narrows towards the top for rollover safety and aerodynamic reasons (a.k.a tumblehome), and this needs to blend with the rest of the body in a visually appealing way. The cybertruck is a good example of how unusual it can look if this is just a straight line on the body. Here's a comparison between the current design and an ai-generated "rounded" design [2] [3]. [1] https://file.kelleybluebookimages.com/kbb/base/evox/CP/44005/2024-Toyota-Corolla%20Hybrid-front_44005_032_1819x735_8X8_cropped.png https://file.kelleybluebookimages.com/kbb/base/evox/CP/44005... [2] https://www.motortrend.com/files/67a2770e2906d20008bad29f/1-2025-tesla-cybertruck-front-view.jpg https://www.motortrend.com/files/67a2770e2906d20008bad29f/1-... [3] https://static0.carbuzzimages.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/gallery-images/original/1204000/200/1204226.jpg https://static0.carbuzzimages.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploa...

UncleOxidant 2y ago

> Meanwhile you spend your entire time owning the car and driving around like a brooding storm cloud. Living in Oregon I don't want a car that blends in with the asphalt and clouds. I want a florescent lime green car that's easy to see. Those are hard to come by. Also, I recall traveling to Athens Greece back in 1999 and wondering why people were all wearing greys, charcoals, black? I posited that they were depressed or something. Recall that the 90s were still pretty colorful in regards to clothing here in the US. And then just a couple of years later people here were all starting to wear those greys, charcoals and black.

lesostep 2y ago
>>Those are hard to come by. Offtopic, but did you look into painting options? It's often cheaper to buy a better car and just repaint it. My friend have a lime car (with some original color saved for the accents) because they did that. You mentioned the colour specifically and I remembered that it wasn't that pricey

imjustaghost 2y ago

https://dbrand.com/shop/devices/macbook-skins https://dbrand.com/shop/devices/macbook-skins Here you go - now you can make your macbook look great and unique.

deleted 2y ago

[deleted]