Color Correction . . .

Color correction is the term we use to describe a
process that really does far more than just correct color...

it gives an image an individual look that includes every possible parameter
that can be changed, from contrast to vividity, saturation to shadow detail.

When you shoot for film or Digital Cinema the color and the look of the initial shot is less than perfect because you always shoot for an image that will allow the colorist to get the most possible from it in the correction stages. That is why an initial "one light" single color correction is applied to all of the footage shot prior to editing - to get everything in the ballpark as far as look is concerned, avoid scaring the Director, and make sure all the footage files going into the edit are created using the same codec and size. Then, following the content edit and high resolution re-mastering of the footage, a final, precision color correction is crated shot by shot to balance each image to the previous and following, and at the same time, apply look changes designed to elicit a specific atmosphere or feeling, or emulate a time of day or location.

The quality of the

color correction,

and the ability of the footage to take correction (DSLR footage, for example is very difficult indeed to correct and match precisely) is what more often than not separates a balanced and harmonious looking program to one that is visually unappealing and seems either flat or wildly erratic.

A good colorist is worth their weight in gold, as it takes a natural skillset that very few people can attain

(but please don't mention the weight in gold thing to our colorist!)