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gamma shift in VLC but displays correctly in Quicktime !!
Hi there,
I just finished a project within AE and exported it as H.264 in an mp4 container.
When reviewing the video, I noticed a gamma shift in VLC, DivX player as all the colors appear duller than in AE.
However, the video displays properly in Quicktime 7 and Quicktime X and matches AE.
In order to check some more, I exported the video as a .flv and noticed the same gamma shift in SWF&FLV player and VLC.
The problem is there no matter if I output to sRGB or to HDTV (Rec 709) color space
This is very strange to me since I am aware of the gamma shift issue that plagues Quicktime … but here I have the opposite situation !!!
I searched the forums and the internet but I did not find anything about this opposite problem.
Thank you for your help !
Some screencaps:
On the image above, you can see from top left to bottom right (normal reading direction) :
VLC (gamma shift)
Quicktime X (ok)
Quicktime 7 (ok)
DivX player (gamma shift)
After Effects (ok – original)
On the above image : Quicktime 7 default settings –> color ok
On the above image : Quicktime 7, checked “enable FCP color compatibility” gamma fix –> gamma shift
On the above image : AE project settings
On the above image : AE output module settings – main
On the above image : AE output module settings – color management
The problem is there no matter if I output to sRGB or to HDTV (Rec 709) color space -
5 Replies
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Color Management across apps is still largely an iffy, especially with less than professional apps – I do like a lot VLC but it still doesn’t have the development resources for frequently used/required processes.
WHat you can do is to determine the exact gamma shift and then to offset that shift prior to rendering out from AE. An application of Exposure onto an Adjustment Layer should do the trick.
How much gamma change you need can be determined by running a few test renders from AE. YOu can render out a color bar from AE and then eye-ball that in VLC. THen make gamma corrections in AE until things look right in VLC. Save the Exposure effect setting as an Animation Preset for future use.
HTH
RoRKIntensive AE & Mocha Training in Singapore and Malaysia.
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Yeah Roland, I could do that.
Actually, my only option right now is just that : getting a good compromise between the differences I see between players’ display.I have two questions.
1.
The screencap attached is from a Pixar anime played on VLC (left) and Quicktime (right) on Mac OSX Lion.
I took an anime for the screencap because it is more straightforward to see.
VLC seems a bit darker with more contrast and Quicktime a little brighter/washed out.
Looks like a gamma difference to me.Do you guys all observe the same difference in tonality on any video you may play on these players ?
Which on to trust then when making your own videos ?2.
The more general version now.
Imagine the guys from Pixar or Dreamworks for example. They have to make movies that looks OK nearly everywhere (cinemas, tv, internet, etc … ) as a video but also other products as pictures (posters, ads, magazine, commercial toys, etc …).
What is their typical worflow and checkpoints for color and tone (i.e. gamma) since the same digital file will generate plenty of stuff in different final mediums ? How to handle color management the right way for big projects ?
Yeah, pretty big question I know. I just began to read the book from Bruce Fraser but didn’t yet read anything addressing this.
😛
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actually, it’s better with the screencap …
😛
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nobody on this ?
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Choose “Dummy Video Output function” in video preferences output module. This worked for me.
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