In lieu of shooting tons of tape for comparisons between various presets, is shooting still photos to the card a decent compromise? I wouldn't have to spend the time capturing from tape, not to mention saving wear on the heads.

Anyone else finds this works for them?

Consider using a Macbeth ColorChecker chart. it is a standard used in photography for checking color rendition/balance, and provides both color patches and gray scale patches. Available for good photo suppliers.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/465286-REG/Xrite_MSCCC_Original_ColorChecker_Card.html

Thanks for the suggestion. My question revolves around the differences between shooting stills to the card and shooting video to tape. I was wondering if anyone uses photos to capture images using various presets, and finds them a fair representation of how the same image would appear on tape.