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Washed out QuickTime Export

I know this has been covered before, but I have some information relating to the washed out export problem that has been repeatedly discussed previously.

As reported by many others, when exporting HD video (Export > QuickTime Movie) from an HDV original, I found that the darker colours and blacks become paler and kind of washed out, and do not look as good they did in the camera viewfinder, or the actual scene as filmed, or in the FCE canvas. A number of other people have reported the same problem. Like them I am using the proper easy setup and am fully rendering in highest quality before export.

To confirm the problem I imported a high quality JPEG into an HDV sequence. The image wasmy default test print from PDI, and I know exactly how it should appear on-screen and in print. Sure enough, in the FCE Canvas the colours and saturation were identical to the original, but when exported to a quicktime movie the blacks and strong colours are greyed or muted - unacceptably so.

I noted that the output movie had the HD nclc atom set (with the implied gamma of 2.0). I know that in snow leopard all gamma is now based on 2.2. I therefore wondered if the problem was gamma / nclc related - maybe the HD nclc atom was inappropriate for the exported file?

The amazing JES Deinterlacer utility gives the user control over input and output gamma and nclc settings. It is possible to instruct the app to ignore the gamma and nclc values embedded by FCE when it imports the QuickTime movie, and then to apply any gamma or nclc atom to the exported file.

This is what I found:

Leaving both import and export nclc's on HDV results in no change - the movie remains washed out.

If the import settings are changed to 'no' nclc and gamma of 2.2, and the output settings are to have 'no' nclc, the output movie's colours and tone are closer to the original - better saturated but still not perfect. This implies that the gamma in the HD nclc atom is not appropriate for the file to be rendered properly on-screen.

If I set nclc to 'none' and gamma to 2.2 on import as before, but attach the HD colour atom on export, the output movie's colours and tone become IDENTICAL to the original! The colours are now rich and fully saturated on my computer screen (maybe a little too saturated!). It doesn't what the output gamma is set to (I think the nclc atom overrides gamma settings when included; it is approximately 2.0).

Interestingly, if the import settings are changed to 'no' nclc and gamma of 2.4, and the output has 'no' nclc, the output movie's colours and tone are very good indeed (a little less saturated than the previous solution). It doesn't seem to matter much what the output gamma setting is (I've only tested 2.0 and 2.2) but I suspect that 2.2 should be used.

I suspect that there are TWO errors here; FCE is getting the Gamma wrong by about 0.4 - a massive amount!

Most likely the safest way, given that I don't really know how Apple will fix it in the longer term, would be to remove nclc both on input and output, set the incoming gamma to 2.3 to 2.4 (depending on how much contrast you needed on your output device), and fix output gamma at 2.2 (the most common monitor default).


Anyhow, at last I've found a solution to this problem! If others can confirm this, Apple should really fix it.

Cheers!

chris.


PS I'm actually using JES Deinterlacer to reduce the file size of my HD movies for playback on computers using QuickTime. To get rid of interlacing artefacts, and make each frame really sharp, I deinterlace in JES Deinterlacer using only one field. I set the colours as above and encode with the x264 codec at 960x540 using high quality VBR. The image quality is AMAZING. File size is the same as Apple's h264 codec, but each frame is far less blurry when freeze-framed (deinterlacing in QuickTime uses a blend of both frames, not just one frame). If I need a bit more 'punch' in the output video

I wonder if some other people could confirm this using their screens etc. Mine is calibrated.

If someone could write a simple utility to change gamma / remove nclc that works I'd be grateful. JES Extensifier has some issues.

MacBookProQuadIntel, Mac OS X (10.6.4)

Posted on Aug 16, 2010 12:17 AM

Reply
22 replies

Aug 16, 2010 7:01 AM in response to ctzsnooze

Viewing DVI to a TV is putting your computer screen on a television. It does not use the television transmission technology present in other devices.

iMovie is a consumer, hobbyist product. FCE is a pro app. It's based entirely on Final Cut Pro, which strictly conforms to SMPTE broadcast specifications.

If you export to QuickTime Movie you are getting the original file in its original specification, which for DV, HDV, and AVCHD via the Apple Intermediate Codec are formats designed specifically for television display. The Final Cut canvas display is set to appear as close as it can to television display, regardless of what the actually media is. You could make the adjustment in the FCE canvas, but then it would look dark and over saturated.

If you don't what the original format because you want to display your media on a computer screen, you should use QuickTime Conversion and use the filters there to make the gamma adjustments or select a ColorSync specification of your choice. Or you can use third party software, especially if you're exporting to QuickTime Movie and using that software to encode for the web or some other computer display.

Aug 16, 2010 4:03 AM in response to ctzsnooze

Apple will not, and should not, "fix" this. The output conforms to SMPTE standards for video delivery. The television format is designed for a specific luma and chroma range for broadcast transmission, which is enhanced on a properly calibrated video monitor or television set.

If your intended delivery is for computer display you have to adjust the video output.

Aug 16, 2010 6:02 AM in response to Tom Wolsky

Thanks Tom for the quick reply.

Many users want to use FCE to make QuickTime movies that 'look good' when played back on personal computers, not televisions. iMovie does this. Why is it so bad for me to hope that FCE would do this as well?

I have a mac mini hooked up by DVI/HDMI to my LCD TV, and that screen is calibrated to the mini just as my laptop has a calibrated LCD screen. So when a movie looks right on my laptop, it looks right on my TV too. Increasingly this is what people do.

I'll bet that the majority of users are in fact using - or trying to use - FCE with no intention of creating broadcast TV distribution movies.

I accept that it's great that FCE is able to create broadcast quality interlaced TV optimised files. However that's not what I, and a lot of users like me, actually want, most of the time.

If I was wanting to create a DVD, or master some file for playback on TV, then I would appreciate being able to export a file with the particular luma and chroma ranges required for TV playback.

But for me it would make sense for Apple to give me some choice in the matter, eg

Export > QuickTime for Computer Playback
Export > QuickTime for TV Playback

Maybe there could be a preferences setting of some kind in the settings file, that ensures that if the output file is intended for playback on computer then the colour rendition within FCE matches what the user gets when they export their finished work?

It is really annoying to add good looking photos to FCE and find that they look completely washed out in the output HD quicktime movies, despite looking perfect inside of FCE. This is in marked contrast to iMovie, where imported pictures look great, and they look the same in the exported quicktime movies.

Are you really suggesting that the way iMovie does things is completely wrong, and that Apple should never consider giving the user same ability in FCE ??

Please do this in both iMovie 09 and FCE 4.01. Using HD settings, drop the same contrasty well-saturated JPEG image into both, export using the same codec, and look at how great the image looks in the exported output from iMovie 09 and how washed out it appears in the FCE version. Tell me which you'd prefer if you were looking at these movies on your home computer, or sharing them on the internet with your friends. And then tell me again why Apple SHOULD NOT fix this, or at least tell me some good easy way to fix it.

You say 'if your intended delivery is for computer display you have to adjust the video output'.

But how would I actually do this 'adjust the video output' think?

The video looks 'perfect' inside of FCE on the computer, but not on export, so it's not possible to make adjustments inside of FCE, get them to 'look right' inside FCE and be sure how they will be good in the output files.

In the absence of any solution within FCE at present, could you please explain exactly how I should best 'adjust the video output' when I want FCE to export movies for display on Macs, not TV's

Thanks

Chris.

Aug 16, 2010 8:44 AM in response to Tom Wolsky

Tom -

Thanks for clarifying why so many people find exported QuickTime movies to look 'dull and lifeless' on a computer monitor.

With respect, however, FCP is the Pro app. FCE is a kind of hobbyist / prosumer app. That's how it was positioned by Apple. I'd bet that most of this user base would be very happy indeed for their video to look good on their computer screens!

The same Apple Intermediate Codec is used in iMovie. The issues we are discussing are not fundamentally due to this codec. It is misleading to suggest that the AIC codec is specifically designed for TV display - it isn't!

Take a look at the AIC files in the FCE scratch folder from imported HDV source material. They are all 'dull' or 'faded' in comparison to AIC files from the iMovie package contents from the same source material. This means that FCE is changing the gamma and/or saturation during the logging process. It is changing the colour content and intensity from that which is present on the camera. iMovie does NOT do this.

I am aware that files that look good on TV's will appear washed out on computer screens because of chroma and luma issues. So yes, if you want to make products for playback on TV, it's great that FCE internally displays these washed out files at higher gamma (mimicking a TV monitor).

However it really seems odd to me that Apple do not providing a simple solution for non-TV delivery. Increasingly sophisticated content is being delivered on the internet rather than TV. This will only increase.

That's why I think that Apple should provide FCE users with a simple means to export video that is optimised for computer, rather than TV, distribution. Lots of people want to make video for YouTube, eg promos for bands etc; they need the FCE functionality and they want good visual output quality when played on a computer.

Apple already know what gamma and saturation adjustments to make for video to look good on computers (they make it look good in FCE internally, and they know how to not make it dull in iMovie).

I just hope they recognise that only-for-TV optimisation of the exported movies is very sub-optimal on computers, and that many users don't like this, and find it a hassle to work around.

In the meantime I'll fix it up the exported video with JES Deinterlacer or other tools. The export filters in QuickTime are OK but less than ideal. It is a real shame that Apple are not supporting FCE users - and probably even FCP users - better in this regard.

People pay for FCE expecting more options than iMovie, and they get them. FCE is an amazing app. But people do NOT expect to find that their exported video looks all washed out on their computer screens. That's a very unwelcome surprise!

I suspect most users don't realise why their video lacks colour depth when viewed on their computer. It's not their fault, it's a very poorly publicised issue inherent in FCE. As soon as a user successfully corrects the gamma and saturation of the output files, they can't use them for TV distribution, but wow do they look lifelike, vibrant and realistic on their computer!

Thanks for your feedback - if there is any way you could prod Apple to consider 'for computer delivery' optimisation as well as 'for TV delivery' I would be most grateful.

Chris.

Aug 16, 2010 8:57 AM in response to ctzsnooze

"FCE is a pro app. It's based entirely on Final Cut Pro"

Apple is not going to rewrite FCE so that it does that. FCE is a cut down version of FCP. It's relatively easy to produce and fills a niche between iMovie and FCP applications.

Actually AIC is designed for video display. How iMovie handles its output is different from Final Cut. iMovie is changing the media, FCE is not.

The simple solution is to use QuickTime Conversion export. I don't see that's so onerous for the user.

Aug 16, 2010 10:34 AM in response to Tom Wolsky

I would really appreciate having FCE work more like iMovie does on export, as an option. 🙂

Could I ask how you'd recommend using QuickTime Conversion export to fix the gamma/saturation issue that we both agree ends up happening? Using QuickTime Conversion, all my resulting files appear the same (washed out colours) as the QuickTime reference movie export option (without conversion).

If you mean that I should use a filter as part of the QuickTime Conversion export options, I don't know what kind of filter or what settings are required to properly reverse the gamma related problems FCE induces. It's not just a brightness/contrast issue.

If there is a means using colorsync in which all that was required was a suitable colorsync output file.... well that would be GREAT! (but I don't know how to make a colorsync file that would just increase gamma by a nominal amount)

Cheers

Chris.

Aug 17, 2010 4:42 AM in response to Tom Wolsky

The AIC files created by both iMovie and Final Cut Express from the same HDV source material are absolutely identical; both are 'flat and washed out' (low gamma/saturation) when viewed in QuickTimeX.

Final Cut canvas displays this AIC video in the browser and canvas windows at higher gamma and saturation than QuickTimeX. I guess these windows are mimicking a contrasty TV or video monitor. Generally your video looks very close to the original appearance of the scene as shot in these windows. However, exported QT movies often are much paler, and more washed out, than expected by the preview offered in these editing windows. iMovie on the other hand displays its internal AIC data exactly the same way as it appears in QuickTime, ie a bit flat and washed out - what you see in iMovie is what you will get when you export to a QuickTime movie.

When Final Cut exports a 'reference' quicktime movie, you'll get a 'flat washed out' version in QuicktimeX. The appearance of the video data in any QuickTime movie can be modified by the inclusion of 'nclc' and 'gama' metadata (or 'atoms'). Final Cut (and iMovie) always attaches the 'HD' nclc atom to their HD sourced AIC files. If this 'nclc atom' is removed from an exported reference movie, as can be done with JES Extensifier, the same data looks a lot better in QuickTime- closer to what you see in the Final Cut timeline. However, this kind of near lossless large file should be used for TV broadcasting / distribution, not internet or PC distribution, and removing this metadata may confuse users down the track when they import or export from this file en route to a TV near you.

When Final Cut exports 'Using Quicktime conversion', a user-specified codec has to decide what to do with the colours. Often this is used to make iPod or other more compact versions of the movie. One would hope that the colours in the converted movie reflect what the person making the video intended. It would seem ideal for the colours in the exported movie to match what is seen during editing in Final Cut. However this is often not the case. Different codecs make different assumptions about the colour intent of the source, and must guess what 'nclc' atom should be applied. The 'HD' atom is not appropriate for the iPod, for example. The h264 codec results in video that closely resembles the appearance of the internal AIC files, and consequently usually appears too washed out and pale. x264 does a little better.

With these other codecs, any of a number of 'nclc' atoms can be applied, and additionally the 'gama' (gamma) setting can be set, both of which significantly alter how the same underlying source video is displayed in QuickTime X. Using JES Extensifier it's fairly easy to change these in such a way that the output video looks much closer to what we saw in Final Cut.

For instance, try exporting using the x264 codec, and then remove the 'HD' nclc atom and set the 'gamma' atom to 2.2. Hey presto, your video has saturated colours again, and solid dark shadows! It looks great!. Too dark in the shadows? No problem, fine-tune the 'gamma' setting to your liking. Making these changes is non-destructive, because they are just metadata elements. The appearance associated with metadata changes will be reliable in QuickTimeX from machine to machine, and within software that supports these tags. That it is not always consistently interpreted from app to app explains why it doesn't always work as expected. But at least this gives the user a simple non-destructive means to fine-tune the appearance of their exported movies.

A more robust way is to change the underlying data so that it does not rely on the metadata. However no-one seems to know what settings to use in QuickTime's export filters to correct the colour space, gamma and other parameters to ensure that video exported 'Using QuickTime Conversion' actually looks exactly the same as it appears within Final Cut Pro (and how you would most likely want it to appear).

The following approaches work:

1. Make a reference movie (export quicktime movie). This will use the AIC codec and the HD nclc atom. Get JES Deinterlacer. Set its input filter to 'no nclc atom' and gamma to 2.2. Export using whatever QuickTime codec you prefer. Deinterlace if intended for desktop rather than TV distribution (JES Deinterlacer does a fantastic deinterlace, with much less in the way of jagged edges. If halving vertical pixel count, you get the sharpest possible frames if you tell it to use only one field, though not everyone likes this effect.) Personally I recommend exporting with the x264 codec over Apple's h264. If you do, you can make sure that no nclc or gamma metadata is attached. Anyhow, the resulting file will have much denser midrange tones than the exported AIC movie, be really sharp and clean, just like the appearance within Final Cut. Using JES extensifier you can fine-tune the gamma of the video in a non-destructive manner.

2. As in (1), create the reference AIC movie. Open this in QuickTime 7 (pro) and export with the codec and settings of your choice. See (3) below for notes on codec and deinterlacing. Results will be much better using (1) above.

3. Export direct from Final Cut 'Using Quicktime conversion' with (say) the x264 codec. Set the size and if for desktop use enable deinterlacing. Note that Apple's deinterlacing blends both fields, resulting in blur. That's all. Unfortunately the results are not as good as using JES Deinterlacer as described above. Looked at critically, you'll find the output video is pale and washed out, probably because Final Cut does not fully correct for the gamma reduction in the base AIC files during the export process. So you'll need to get JES Extensifier and add a gamma value of 2.2 to 2.4 to the file before it starts to look right on your screen. If the HD nclc atom is included during the export, its best to remove it, because it tends to make reds a little closer to orange and lowers gamma (and this has already happened a bit in the AIC files, so it gets twice as bad if the HD atom is included).

4. Filter on export from Final Cut 'Using Quicktime conversion' so that the file itself does not depend on gamma metadata. To correct the gamma and fix colour shifts induced by the HD atom in the AIC codec, you'll need to include in the export filters a gamma correcting colorsync filter, a small hue shift, and a small increase in saturation. I don't have a recipe for these. One colorsync converter could conceivably be created to do this job.

In the end I find the very best results using the technique described in (1). The resulting file looks great on any desktop computer, and is free of interlacing artefacts at edges, particularly if the file height is halved. Colours are rich and deep. Inserted jpeg's and images will retain the full range of colour (not exactly, but nearly exactly). The file is perfect for internet sharing, youtube etc, but not suitable for broadcast TV - it will be too contrasty, though this can be fixed to some extent by changing the gamma setting downwards a bit.

One thing to note - the same 'quality' settings when using QuickTime conversion in iMovie result in smaller, more compressed files than identical settings in Final Cut.

Also note that iMovie handles inserted still images very differently from Final Cut. Final Cut renders still images on insertion, resulting in an essentially irreversible but subtle colour shift, so that even in the canvas, your image immediately looks different from the original. If the export technique in (1) is used, these renders will look good on your desktop - much better than they otherwise would. iMovie on the other had displays images within the iMovie program just like Preview, so they always look good on screen. iMovie only provides export using QuickTime conversion, so it is impossible to avoid some colour shifts during conversion.

It is possible, but quite difficult, to get excellent quicktime movies for web or computer distribution out of Final Cut., and I hope that the above info is helpful to those of us who've strugged with colour shifts when using Final Cut. I honestly believe that Apple could make all this a LOT easier, particularly when the intended mode of distribution is by the internet and playback on computer rather than TV screens.

Cheers

Chris.

Sep 5, 2010 8:17 PM in response to Tom Wolsky

I've been reading through your discussion about the washed out export issue, and wonder if one of you can recommend export settings from a NON-HD project to get better color on a computer monitor. I'm creating a corporate video that will be played on a laptop and projected onto a screen at a conference. The washed out color will be even worse in that situation. What settings can I use to improve the color saturation?

Nov 14, 2010 8:51 AM in response to ctzsnooze

Thanks for that write up. I use FCE and mostly export for viewing on a computer: YouTube, Vimeo, or just the straight QuickTime files on the desktop. I've been aware of the low gamma issue but finally decided to fix some of my videos. Your suggestion (1) worked perfect. After a couple of tests with various settings in JES Deinterlacer, I got the exact output that I wanted.

Thanks for the help and extensive posts (to all on the thread).

Jan 17, 2011 8:51 AM in response to Tom Wolsky

Hi Tom (and anyone else who can help),
We have several HD 1080P movies (exported as .MOV ProRes format) that were edited in FCP (by another party) and we intend to use it for TV broadcasting. We however need to trim a few minutes off each. iMovie is very useful but from your comments and our experience after trying several export settings, we know it is not ideal for TV broadcasting.
We are new to the editing world and thought of buying FCE to trim and then export our revised movies. However, it seems from other blogs and even Wiki that FCE does not support 1080P. Is this correct? Should we just bite the bullet and go for FCP?

Jan 17, 2011 10:26 AM in response to Tom Wolsky

Thanks for the quick reply. Is ProRes a requirement to get it in Broadcast format or is this not a real issue when considering FCE? It appears from other blogs I read that FCE uses 1440×1080 and not 1920×1080. Is this true and is it related to the export restrictions then?
Alternatively, I am considering a work around. I understand that FCE and FCP have the ability to import iMovie projects. If we trimmed the movies down via iMovie and provided the iMovie project files to someone with FCP, would it be possible to retain the 1080P quality by importing the iMovie project and exporting via FCP (in ProRes format at broadcast quality)?
In other words, is iMovie flawed only on export or is it already changed when a project is created?

Washed out QuickTime Export

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