Exported frame looks different than the comp that rendered it when imported back in. Why?

[Walter Soyka]

[max bretherton] “I have colour management turned on to sRGB in AE and i’ve exported a frame as psd layers. Now when i bring this image back in (as sRGB) and put it back into the comp that rendered it it looks different.
Why ?”

This is almost certainly not a color management issue.

From the documentation on rendering and exporting still images [link]:

“A layered Photoshop file saved from After Effects may look different from the frame viewed in After Effects if the frame uses features that Photoshop doesn’t support.”

Walter Soyka
Designer & Mad Scientist at Keen Live [link]
Motion Graphics, Widescreen Events, Presentation Design, and Consulting
@keenlive   |   RenderBreak [blog]   |   Profile [LinkedIn]

[Max Bretherton]

Thanks for your quick response Walter.

I can’t find anything in my comp that would not be available in Photoshop. There are no effects on the layers except a Curves adjustment layer above everything. And no transfer modes either.
Its a simple animation of a clients logo and branding.
So I need the colours to be true.
Looks ok whilst in AE.
It’s very odd.

thanks and my best regards…max

Head of Post Production
STUDIO LIDDELL

[Walter Soyka]

That Curves adjustment layer will not translate. Open up the PSD in Photoshop and see. You’d need to recreate that.

You can save your Curve from within the Curve effect as an ACV file. In Ps, add a Curves adjustment layer and load the ACV.

Walter Soyka
Designer & Mad Scientist at Keen Live [link]
Motion Graphics, Widescreen Events, Presentation Design, and Consulting
@keenlive   |   RenderBreak [blog]   |   Profile [LinkedIn]

[Max Bretherton]

Thanks for that Walter. A penny just dropped for me after reading that. It’s cos it’s a layered PSD export. I get it. I just exported a jpeg and brought it back in and its identical to my comp. Of course the layered PSD export is a different process and yes the difference is the adj layer. Thanks for pointing that out. Lesson learned.

Best wishes…Max

thanks and my best regards…max

Head of Post Production
STUDIO LIDDELL