I understand these days that programming on prime time network television can come from a variety of productions companies.
However, for ever since I could remember, it has always appeared to me that each of the big three networks (nbc, cbs abc) seemed to have their own distinctive overall color range and editing technique.
In other words, even without seeing a network logo in the lower corner of the screen, or knowing the name of the show on, or the channel number, each network seems to have some sort of “look”.
The only concrete example I can think of is that CBS seemed to have a lot more filmed programming (rather than taped), and a bit more soft-focus programming.
Is this my imagination, or is something really going on here?
It’s your imagination. Most likely you are seeing the effects of different engineering at your local network affiliates, including channel placement on the dial if you have cable TV (loose connections affect lower channels first).
It seems to me that ABC had a yellowish tinge back in the 3’s Company/Love Boat era. NBC always seemed to have the most natural looking stuff, with less saturated colors, and stuff on CBS was just plain soft. If you look at All in the Family or MAS*H, they still look soft to me in reruns. I thought I was the only one to notice this.
Nowadays, not so much. The look of any show is up to the DP and what they do in post. You have a lot more creative control these days.
CBS only showed MASH*. CBS didn’t produced it, and CBS doesn’t distribute it now. It was produced at 20th Century-Fox, using the same film stock, the same cameras, the same lenses, and the same film processing labs as they used for the other network shows made there. They didn’t whip out their special CBS film stock or their CBS lens filters.
Yes, but the network engineers get their hands on it before it goes out. Perhaps they conform the video to an in-house standard.