Colorized Fights! Make it happen!

It takes a lot of time, effort, and a certain amount of skill, and investment in equipment if you do it yourself. And except for the hobbyist, it takes money. Not that many people are willing to lay down cash to see fights in color. They rather just watch vintage fights on youtube without paying anything. Feel free to step up to the bar and finance the colorization of any fight you choose. Then try to recoup the investment by selling it to a collector who will turn around and post it on the Internet for free. As one who has spent a fair amount of money tracking down 16mm films prior to the onset of the digital age, I think I have earned enough standing to suggest that "They" could be you, i. e. "They could correct it to show real time..." If you want to see colorized films, consider producing them yourself.

 

Reznik did some clips which he kindly showed here,they looked amazing.I would love to see Dempsey v Willard, and Jeffries v Johnson in colour!

 

Reznik is truly to be commended for his generosity in sharing his efforts. The only cautionary note I have is that sometimes he arranges his clips to make a fighter look greater than he really is. He's done a clip on Ike Williams where he takes clips of Ike teeing of on Beau Jack after he has been rendered defenseless and then mixes them up with other clips. It gives the impression that Williams spent his entire time as a fighter pummeling his adversaries at will. The compilation is entertaining, but it is easy to go overboard with sensational editing and distort a fighter's skill.

However, it is Reznik's show. He's gone to the effort to do these clips, and they are enjoyable. A person just has to view them with a grain of salt and keep in mind what he or she is watching. Reznik could just as easily assemble clips to make the same fighter look bad, and maybe he has? If a fan wants to evaluate a fighter, it's still best to seek out the most complete film versions of his fights and make a judgment then. This is not meant to be a knock on Reznik's efforts. It's just a matter of viewer beware. I hope Resnik keeps his clips coming, whatever their content.

I appreciate Resnik's work on colorization. I take him at his word that it takes a lot of time. The Louis clip I saw is amazing.

McVey, this is not really a response to you, but your post just triggered some things which have been on my mind. I too would love to see color version of the fights to which your refer.

 

You might be willing to pay, but how does the producer protect his work? Once it becomes available for free on the Internet, then would you be willing to pay? Probably not, and neither would anyone else.

 

I love Reznik's footage,it's first class, I've no comment on his interpretation of what he is posting here !

 

Your post is far more eloquent and to the point than mine!

 

You're on!

 

Coloring over these fights would take a ton of artistic license and guesswork too. Wouldn’t be a big deal if done responsibly though, so long as people understood that what they were watching was somewhat of an artistic recreation. Problem is a lot of people would probably lose sight of that.

 

I am surprised that it hasn't happened already to be honest.

It has been done with many classic films, and a lot of footage from both world wars!

 

Which video was this?

The same goes for every highlight.
But the viewer immediately understands that they are watching highlights, and not a good bad and ugly assortment of clips.

Of course I can make any fighter look bad in terms of the final product, but viewers will also immediately understand that they are watching a "bad moments" compilation.
I can make Jerry Rice "look bad," but people will instantly recognize that they are watching lowlights.

It would be wrong if I made an "analysis" type of video, where my outlook wasn't accurate.
I haven't stepped into that world yet, and I may never do it, because I feel that making that type of content is far more sensitive.
I'm not yet confident enough in my analytical abilities, peoples views evolve over time, and you can't be wrong.
I've very rarely seen an analysis video I've agreed with, and inaccuracies put me off.

I do agree that the best way to learn about a fighter is to watch their entire film catalogue.
But a highlight is a highlight. Nobody confuses that.
People who want to complicate it are usually doing so to jockey their favoritism.