Quick answer: A Color page node is one processing container in a grade. Serial nodes run in sequence; Parallel nodes start from the same image state and mix equally; Layer Mixer inputs have overlap priority; Outside nodes invert an incoming key; Key Mixer combines keys; Splitter/Combiner separates RGB channels. Start with serial nodes, branch only when the way corrections interact requires it, and read the green image path separately from the blue key path.
DaVinci Resolve Nodes: The Decision Map
- Serial: one operation after another; the usual starting structure.
- Parallel: several branches receive the same upstream image and mix with equal priority.
- Layer Mixer: overlapping branches need priority or a composite mode.
- Outside: reuse the inverse of an existing key or Power Window isolation.
- Key Mixer: combine, subtract or intersect multiple keys before one downstream correction.
- Splitter/Combiner: process red, green and blue channel branches separately.
- Compound: nest a section of a large graph without changing its internal order.
This page explains Color nodes. The complete correction workflow lives in How to Color Grade in DaVinci Resolve, and the Color Grading hub organizes the wider learning path. Here the job is narrower: understand what the image and key signals do when you connect, reorder or mix nodes.
What a Color Node Actually Contains
A Corrector node can contain one or many Color page operations: primaries, curves, a qualifier, Power Windows, a LUT, Resolve FX and key controls. It receives an RGB image input, performs those adjustments in Resolve's internal order, and outputs a new image. The Node Editor turns the order between containers into a visible graph.
Separating operations into nodes isn't a law. Blackmagic explicitly allows multiple adjustments in one node. Separate nodes are useful when they force a required order, isolate a volatile decision, or make later revisions easier. A practical convention is one clear purpose per labeled node, not because Resolve requires it, but because bypassing Balance, Skin Key or Look tells you immediately what changed.
Read Green RGB Paths and Blue Key Paths Separately
The green connections carry the image through the grade. Blue connections carry key data: the matte created by a qualifier, Power Window, Magic Mask or another isolation. A node can receive an image from one place and a key from another. That is why a Key Mixer isn't an image mixer, and why an Outside node needs both the RGB and key relationship to the source isolation.
When a result makes no sense, trace one color at a time. First follow green from input to output and confirm the image order. Then follow blue and confirm which matte limits the selected node. Disable one node at a time; don't rebuild the graph until you know whether the unexpected result belongs to the image path, the key path or the mixing rule.
Serial Nodes and Order of Operations
Serial is the simplest and most common structure. Each node's RGB output becomes the next node's input, so node 03 never sees the untouched source, it sees the result of nodes 01 and 02. That matters whenever a downstream tool samples image data. A qualifier placed after a strong desaturation, white-balance change or look transform is sampling a different image than the same qualifier placed before it.
Use serial order deliberately. A balance can establish a neutral input for later work; a clean secondary can be pulled before a creative operation damages the separation it needs; an output trim can sit after the look. There's no universal seven-node recipe for every color-managed pipeline, so name the purpose rather than copying a diagram without its assumptions.
How to Add and Label Color Nodes
With a node selected, Color > Nodes exposes the same commands as the shortcuts. On macOS the manual uses Option; Windows layouts commonly present Alt for the equivalent modifier. Keyboard mappings are customizable, so the menu command is the authority if a shortcut has been changed.
- Add Serial after selected: Option-S / Alt-S; Color > Nodes > Add Serial.
- Append Serial to the end: Option-K / Alt-K; Color > Nodes > Append Node.
- Add before selected: Shift-S; Color > Nodes > Add Before Current.
- Add Parallel: Option-P / Alt-P; Color > Nodes > Add Parallel.
- Add Layer: Option-L / Alt-L; Color > Nodes > Add Layer.
- Add Outside: Option-O / Alt-O; Color > Nodes > Add Outside Node.
- Add Splitter/Combiner: Option-Y / Alt-Y; Color > Nodes > Add Splitter/Combiner Nodes.
To label a node, right-click it, choose Change Label, type the name and press Return. Resolve numbers nodes by creation order rather than by their current left-to-right position, so a newly inserted node may receive a higher number. A clear label prevents that numbering from becoming the only description of the grade.
Parallel Mixer vs Layer Mixer
A Parallel node normally receives the same upstream image as the selected branch. The branches feed a Parallel Mixer, which combines every input with equal processing priority regardless of vertical position. This is useful when several secondaries should be built from the same image state and overlapping naturalistic corrections should blend rather than cover one another.
A Layer Mixer looks similar but follows a priority rule: the lowest overlapping input has the greatest priority and can obscure adjustments above it. It also supports composite modes. That vertical priority is the part many editors reverse by intuition, so test it with two obvious overlapping Power Windows before using it on a subtle grade.
Choose Parallel when equal mixing from a shared source is the desired math. Choose Layer Mixer when an isolated correction must override another branch or when a composite mode is the point. A Parallel Mixer can be converted by right-clicking it and choosing Morph Into Layer Mixer Node; a Layer Mixer can be changed with Morph Into Parallel Node. After converting, inspect every overlap, the connection shape may look familiar while the mix rule has changed.
Outside Nodes and Key Mixer
Select a node limited by a qualifier or Power Window, then use Color > Nodes > Add Outside Node. Resolve creates a Corrector after the selected node, connects the source image and key, and enables Key Input Invert. The new node therefore acts on the inverse region. If the original isolation changes, the Outside relationship follows that key; it isn't a separately drawn mask.
Key Mixer solves a different problem. It accepts key outputs from multiple Correctors and creates one key output. In the Key palette, inputs can be combined through add, subtract and intersect operations. Connect the Key Mixer's blue output to the blue key input of the Corrector that should be limited. Do not connect it as though it were a Parallel Mixer: it carries matte data, not the corrected RGB image.
A useful controlled example is two simple windows. Feed both key outputs into a Key Mixer, then send the result to one node with an obvious exposure change. Switch the Key Mixer operation and watch the matte, not just the final image. That makes add, subtract and intersect visible before you attempt a complex subject isolation.
Splitter/Combiner and Compound Nodes
Color > Nodes > Add Splitter/Combiner Nodes creates a premade RGB structure. The Splitter sends red, green and blue through separate Corrector branches; the Combiner extracts those channels and rebuilds one RGB image. The structure is for channel-specific processing, such as alignment or a deliberate channel effect. It doesn't automatically split into YUV, HSL or Lab, and no channel should be assumed to be the noisy one without inspecting the actual footage.
Compound nodes are organizational containers, not channel mixers. Select nodes, right-click one and choose Create Compound Node. Double-click the compound or choose Show Compound Node to edit inside it; Decompose Compound Node returns its contents to the parent graph. Adjustments made on the compound itself occur after its internal nodes, and that compound-level adjustment is lost if the compound is decomposed, so don't hide an undocumented finishing correction there.
A Beginner Node Tree You Can Actually Debug
Start with a short serial chain and add complexity only when the image asks for it. The following names describe responsibilities, not mandatory positions in every color-management setup:
- Balance: exposure and neutral starting decisions.
- Contrast: tone-shape work you may need to bypass separately.
- Subject key: qualifier or window for the person or product.
- Background: a separate environment correction when needed.
- Look: creative treatment or a deliberately placed LUT.
- Output trim: a final adjustment only when the pipeline calls for one.
Where a LUT belongs depends on what it expects as input and what should happen before or after it. The dedicated LUT workflow guide covers that boundary. The test here's simple: bypass one labeled node. If the result changes in more ways than its name promises, either rename it honestly or separate the responsibilities.
Three Tests That Make Node Behavior Visible
1. Prove serial order with a qualifier
In node 01, make an obvious saturation change. In node 02, qualify one color and view the key highlight. Swap the nodes and inspect the matte again. The second position samples the result of the first, so the key can change even though its qualifier controls did not. Return the nodes to the useful order and label both.
2. Prove mixer behavior with overlapping windows
Create two branches from the same input, give each a large overlapping Power Window and apply unmistakably different tints. Compare a Parallel Mixer with a Layer Mixer. Parallel combines the overlaps with equal priority. In Layer Mixer, reconnect the branches to different inputs and watch the lowest overlapping input take priority. This is safer than learning the rule on a subtle skin correction.
3. Prove key routing without changing RGB
Create two window keys, send their blue outputs to a Key Mixer, and connect the mixed blue output to a third Corrector. Give only that third node an exposure change. Now alter the Key Mixer operation. The corrected RGB image changes because the limiting matte changed, while the Key Mixer itself never became an RGB image branch.
How Many Nodes Do You Need?
Resolve doesn't impose a node-count limit. The current manual notes that excellent work may use only three or four nodes, while other grades use ten to twenty or more. Neither range is a target. Footage, schedule, deliverables, reuse and revision needs determine the tree. Use as many nodes as the grade needs, no more and no fewer.
A large graph isn't automatically advanced, and a small graph isn't automatically clean. Prefer visible signal flow, purposeful labels and a predictable bypass test. Use Compound nodes when a section is logically complete, not because the screen crossed an arbitrary node count.
Resolve 21 Layer List Is a View, Not a New Processing Model
Resolve 21 added Layer List in the upper-left of the node graph. It displays the existing node order as a stacked list: Node 1 is bottom-most and later or rearranged nodes appear above it. The list exposes preview thumbnails, tool icons and controls to enable, disable, lock, add or remove nodes.
Layer List doesn't replace Graph View and it isn't the same thing as a Layer Mixer. Graph View shows the wiring; Layer List offers a compact management view of that graph; Layer Mixer is a node with a specific priority and compositing behavior. The current Resolve 21 New Features Guide documents the interface addition, while the Resolve 21 Reference Manual remains the detailed source for node processing.
The same Color node logic also applies to stills on the Resolve 21 Photo page. The broader release context belongs in What's New in DaVinci Resolve 21 rather than being repeated here.
Color Nodes vs Fusion Nodes
Both pages use connected nodes, but the node types are not interchangeable. Color nodes organize grading, keys, windows, LUTs and Color-page effects around a clip's grade. Fusion nodes build image-processing and compositing flows with MediaIn, Merge, masks, transforms, generators and MediaOut. The shared skill is reading connections; the tools, data flow and page behavior differ.
If the task is a title, green-screen composite, tracked graphic or particle effect, use the Fusion beginner tutorial. Keeping that intent separate prevents a Color node explainer from becoming an incomplete Fusion course.
Blackmagic describes nodes as the building blocks of Color correction on its current Color page product overview. The practical rule is even simpler: trace the image, trace the key, identify the mix rule, then change one connection at a time.
DaVinci Resolve Nodes FAQ
What is a node in DaVinci Resolve?
A Color page node is a processing container in the grade. It receives an image, applies one or more adjustments and sends the result onward. The way nodes are connected determines processing order, branching and how versions of the corrected image are recombined.
What is the difference between serial and parallel nodes?
Serial nodes run one after another, so every downstream node sees the previous node's result. Parallel nodes normally read the same upstream image and feed a Parallel Mixer, which combines their adjustments with equal priority. Use serial for a deliberate sequence and parallel when multiple adjustments should start from the same image state.
What is the difference between Parallel Mixer and Layer Mixer nodes?
A Parallel Mixer combines input corrections equally regardless of vertical position. A Layer Mixer gives priority to the lowest overlapping input and also supports composite modes. Use Layer Mixer when overlap priority or compositing math is part of the intended result.
What does an Outside node do in DaVinci Resolve?
An Outside node is a Corrector with Key Input Invert enabled. When added from a node limited by a qualifier or Power Window, it receives the selected node's image and key paths and applies its adjustment to the inverse region.
What is a Key Mixer used for?
A Key Mixer combines key outputs from multiple Corrector nodes into one key. Its Key palette can add, subtract or intersect inputs before the combined key is connected to a downstream node's key input. It mixes matte data, not RGB images.
What does a Splitter/Combiner node do?
Splitter/Combiner separates an RGB image into red, green and blue branches, lets you process those channel branches, and recombines them into one RGB image. Add the premade structure with Color > Nodes > Add Splitter/Combiner Nodes.
What is a Compound node?
A Compound node nests selected nodes inside one container to make a complicated graph easier to navigate. You can open it to edit the internal nodes, label it, nest compounds, or decompose it later. Adjustments made on the compound itself occur after its internal nodes.
How many Color nodes should I use?
There's no fixed number and Resolve doesn't impose a node-count limit. Use as many as the grade needs, then stop. A few well-labeled nodes can solve a clean shot; a difficult shot or reusable template may need many more. Readability and predictable order matter more than the count.
How do I rename a node in DaVinci Resolve?
Right-click the node, choose Change Label, enter the label and press Return. Labels such as Balance, Skin Key and Look communicate purpose more clearly than default node numbers.
Did DaVinci Resolve 21 replace nodes with layers?
No. Resolve 21 added Layer List as another way to view and manage the existing Color node graph. It shows nodes as a bottom-to-top list with previews and controls, but it doesn't replace Graph View or turn the grade into a different layer-based processing model.
Related guides
- How to Color Grade in DaVinci Resolve: Beginner Tutorial: the full grading workflow these nodes plug into.
- Color Grading in DaVinci Resolve: the hub: where nodes fit in the full grading path.
- DaVinci Resolve 21 Photo Page: Full Walkthrough: the same node logic applied to stills.
- Free Version Features: which color tools are free and which need Studio.
- How to Use LUTs in DaVinci Resolve: where the LUT node sits in the tree and why order matters.
- DaVinci Resolve Fusion Tutorial for Beginners: the hands-on Fusion starter: three comps built node by node.
