Recorded output color fidelity issue

1

Hi,

I’m recording Ebo creations via Syphon Recorder… and my recorded colors are less saturated than in the realtime .EboSuite window when the .mov files are viewed on the same monitor in QuickTime Player. The hue looks correct, but the colors are undersaturated by maybe 10 to 20 percent.

Strangely, when I bring the recordings into Adobe Premiere, the colors look correct again in the Program window… but then the H.264 .mp4 exports of these files from Premiere have the same washed-out colors.

I have Syphon Recorder prefs set to ProRes 422 codec, but I have the same issue when set to H.264 High Profile.

Running Mac Studio Max running Monterey 12.5.

Thanks!

Jeff

2

UPDATE: I just tried a proper test recording with OBS and the colors have that same slightly desaturated look as Syphon Recorder. :frowning:

3

Hello Jeff,

sorry to hear about the color issues!

This is just a shot in the dark, but what happens if you change the codec to pro res 4444, or if you play the recorded video on a laptop screen?

cheers,
nesa

4

Thanks nesa. No difference with ProRest 4444. However…

Upon deeper research, this actually appears to be a common Apple issue related to gamma… which can lead to less saturation. It’s a phenomenon known as QuickTime Gamma Shift. Basically all Apple software that uses ColorSync are affected by this, as CS imposes a non-standard gamma (although one could argue today that Apple is a standard). VLC Player seems to be one of the few exceptions. This issue is explained, along with suggested solutions, in this YT vid:

If I understand this correctly, it would appear then that EboSuite does not employ ColorSync? So when our recorded output is viewed in QuickTime Player, Finder and Mac browsers, ColorSync changes the gamma and therefore the perceived color. Can anyone corroborate this with specific regard to Ebo and/or offer any workflow suggestions? From the YT vid, it appears that hands off is the best approach.

Thanks!

Jeff

1 Like
5

Hi Jeff, you are right, EboSuite does not employ ColorSync. If EboSuite would employ ColorSync on the output, this would affect the colours of a screen recording of the output window too and the recorded video will look different on different screens/projectors.