DaVinci Resolve
Blackmagic’s full post-production suite — edit, colour, VFX and audio in one application.
What it does
Resolve began as a colour grading system and grew into a complete post-production application. It is organised as pages rather than modes:
- Cut and Edit — two editors, one built for speed and one for precision.
- Fusion — node-based compositing and motion graphics.
- Color — the node-based grading system Resolve is still best known for.
- Fairlight — a full DAW for audio post.
- Deliver — render queue and encoding.
The free version is genuinely complete for most work. Resolve Studio adds hardware-accelerated H.264/265 encoding, some noise reduction and effects, and multi-user collaboration.
Notes
- Not in Homebrew — Blackmagic distributes it behind a registration form on their support site.
- Install Blackmagic RAW if you shoot BRAW, and use Blackmagic Proxy Generator Lite to keep timelines responsive with camera-original footage.
- The free macOS build relies on system codecs, so anything exotic is worth transcoding with
ffmpegto ProRes or DNxHR first.
Alternative to
| Alternative | Type | Trade-off |
|---|---|---|
| Adobe Premiere Pro | Subscription | The industry-standard NLE, subscription only |
| Final Cut Pro | Paid | A one-off purchase, the fastest editor on Apple Silicon |
| Avid Media Composer | Subscription | Still the standard in scripted television and film |
| Adobe After Effects | Subscription | The alternative to Resolve’s Fusion page |
| Avid Pro Tools | Subscription | The alternative to its Fairlight page |
| Kdenlive, Shotcut or CapCut | Open source / Freemium | Far lighter, for simple cuts |