According to at least one study, in order to achieve a comparably error-free 3D-LUT to those used for SDR, a LUT size larger than 55x55x55 is required for 12-bit HDR (Rec.2020 ST2084). "In 10-bit SDR, in order to achieve unnoticeable interpolation errors using the trilinear interpolation method, a 3D-LUT larger than 41×41×41 is necessary. However,... Continue Reading →
DaVinci Resolve Update Fixes HDR Controls Bug
DaVinci Resolve firmware update 17.4.6 addresses an issue that caused the app to crash when using some of the HDR controls with Apple Silicon. Prior to the update, clicking on any of the range indicators in the HDR palette - the small icon to the upper left of each of the HDR wheels that allows... Continue Reading →
Cullen Kelly’s Kodak 2383 LUT + DL
The aggressive compression algorithms of streaming platforms destroy grain, which is why we don’t upload videos with grain to YouTube. Instead, we’re offering subscribers the opportunity to download clips, allowing you to view the picture as it was intended. We recommend throwing the movie on the timeline of your favorite NLE, setting the project to... Continue Reading →
Apple’s Studio Display Unsuitable for Video Editing
Author, consultant, pro audio/video specialist, tech journalist and broadcaster Allan Tépper voices his suspicions that Apple’s Studio Display is not a true 10-bit panel at all but 8-bit FRC and discovers that it is limited to a single framerate/refresh rate, making it a much less attractive proposition for video editing/grading. “Despite it’s raved internal speakers... Continue Reading →
Cullen Kelly’s Kodak 2383 LUT
Adding a Kodak 2383 LUT is one of the easiest ways to add color separation to your videos. We just used the LUT at around 25% strength here. https://youtu.be/-RDIfpD_0nQ
Don’t Buy an M1 Max Mac Studio!
For video editing, the MacBook Pro has virtually the same performance as the desktop, plus you get the great keyboard and the best display found on any laptop on the market today. https://youtu.be/V8lc3ORcFL4
Why We No Longer Make Recommendations for Hybrid Shooters
This comment by a frustrated reader over at DPReview that we just came across illustrates why we no longer make recommendations for those wanting to use a hybrid camera for both stills photography and video. There are just too many features, like burst rates, pixel shift, auto bracketing, EVF resolution, stills RAW formats and dozens... Continue Reading →
Generate MaxCLL and MaxFALL HDR10 Metadata in DaVinci Resolve
As consumer HDR displays have differing peak luminance and contrast capabilities that are not infrequently less than the mastering display, it's necessary to map PQ content to match the capabilities of the target consumer display device. This scaling or mapping is controlled and managed by metadata. According to YouTube's help page, "HDR videos must have... Continue Reading →
ICtCp, or Why We Can’t Have Nice Things
Here at the Daejeon Chronicles, we've tirelessly championed RAW for a long time now, for a multitude of reasons: it responds better to grading than heavily compressed, low bit rate chroma subsampled codecs and is less prone to banding; sharpening, noise reduction and white balance aren't baked into RAW files, giving more flexibility in post;... Continue Reading →
Grade Reveal & Download with Grain Added
This video is the culmination of the many changes we've made since around the time we switched over to P3-D65 - some tiny, some significant - from shooting S-Gamut3.cine rather than S-Gamut3, avoiding yellow in the false color guide of the Ninja V for anything but specular highlights, monitoring with video levels instead of full... Continue Reading →
Mac Studio M1 Ultra Review Raised to The Level of Art
Not only does Faruk Korkmaz set the bar when it comes to gorgeous looking reviews, he also addresses our most pressing concern from the very start - which is how fast the computer can transcode footage to HEVC 10-bit in Apple Compressor. As it turns out, the Mac Studio finished the job around 80% faster... Continue Reading →
The Verge: Apple Studio Display A Confounding Miss
Good to see that SDR displays are finally being recognized as outdated tech by reputable reviewers. The Verge had this to say about Apple’s Studio Display: “The real issue is that $1,599 is a lot of money, and here, it’s buying you panel tech that is woefully behind the curve. Compared to Apple’s other displays... Continue Reading →
Venice 2 Rolling Shutter Crushes It
The German website Slashcam, currently testing the Venice 2, had nothing but superlatives for its rolling shutter performance, pronouncing it the very lowest they have ever measured for a non-global shutter, leaving the competition in the dust. “When measuring the rolling shutter reading times, Venice pushed us to our limits. Or to the limits of... Continue Reading →
HEVC Main10 vs. HEVC Main 4:2:2 10
A little while back, we reported that Blackmagic Design had added support for HEVC 4:2:2 Main10 on Apple Silicon in DaVinci Resolve. What we didn't realize at the time was that the render page now had three selections for encoding HEVC: Main (8-bit), Main10 (10-bit 4:2:0) and Main 4:2:2 10. Using Invisor, an app brought... Continue Reading →
HDR Fallacies #3
Last year, we reached out to Atomos to ask why they didn’t upload more HDR content to their YouTube channel and they replied that not all projects are suited to HDR. Which is patently false: the video doesn’t exist whose image quality cannot be dramatically improved by mastering and uploading to YouTube in HDR.
Film Grain: Dehancer Pro vs. DaVinci Resolve (HDR)
Download the comparison here. It’s well-nigh impossible to see how the plug-in compares to Resolve on something like the MacBook Pro Liquid Retina XDR mini-LED, which is why we recommend throwing the clip on the timeline of your favorite NLE, setting it up for HDR and viewing on an external UHD monitor or television set.
Film Grain: Downloadable HDR Sample Footage
Video details: Sony a7s III, Sony FE 50mm f/1.2 GM, ProRes RAW, S-Gamut3.cine/S-Log3, ISO 640, f/2.8. Edited in DaVinci Resolve 17 Studio HDR Rec.2020 PQ (P3-D65 limited) using an LG 55CX and MacBook Pro (late 2021). https://youtu.be/zq4aY8KpqSg Grain adds texture to an otherwise squeaky clean, sterile digital image and, as HDR is rather unforgiving, is... Continue Reading →
Split-Toning
Split-toning is a characteristic of film stocks where you’ll see cool shadows and warm highlights adding color contrast to the image. This is accomplished by un-ganging the channels and adding a few pixels of blue and green to the shadows, a tiny bit of red and green to the highlights. Once you’ve made your adjustments... Continue Reading →
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