Question-and-Answer Session with AJA Video: Highlighting Color Management and Visual Style Adjustment
In a recent 10-minute Executive Q&A video, Tim Walker, senior product manager for colour management products and HDR solutions at AJA Video, discussed the complexities and solutions surrounding colour-related issues in the current mixed Standard Dynamic Range (SDR) and High Dynamic Range (HDR) production environment.
The unique looks developed by producers to evoke specific moods and emotions among the audience need to be maintained and carried accurately forward throughout the production pipeline. However, the emergence of HDR adds complexity to the production pipeline, as the audience is split between those watching standard dynamic range TVs and those viewing HDR sets. This dual-target delivery complicates colour matching and pipeline metadata management.
The video also provided insights into the colour and look management issues created by the introduction of digital cinema cameras with cinematic lenses into live video capture workflows. The rise of Cine Live, a live production approach that incorporates cinematic techniques, introduces new colour and look management considerations.
Moreover, the use of specialty cameras and drone cameras is creating new colour management challenges for broadcasters and producers. Each of these diverse camera systems has its own colour science and response curves, which must be normalized within a production to maintain colour continuity across shots.
Tim Walker underscored the need for specific colour and look management considerations in the Cine Live production approach. He also highlighted the challenges in matching specialty camera sources with more conventional video production cameras in live events.
However, solutions are emerging to address these challenges. Products like AJA Video’s ColorBox support active colour management to transform, match, and maintain colour fidelity and artistic intent across camera inputs and outputs, even in live workflows. Editing software such as Adobe Premiere Pro incorporates automated colour management that supports wide-gamut camera raw and log-encoded formats, enabling easier colour space transformations, better grading flexibility, and improved monitoring for multiple output target standards (e.g., SDR and HDR).
Real-time configurable colour management allows creators to visualize and adjust colour grading and look effects in the intended output colour space, streamlining the workflow and avoiding the need for toggling back and forth between timeline views and settings. False colour exposure tools help videographers ensure proper exposure levels and highlight/shadow detail preservation, crucial for consistent look management in multi-camera setups.
Overall, the industry is addressing these challenges by combining advanced colour management hardware and software that enable transparent and flexible handling of mixed-format workflows, tailored look creation in live environments, and normalization of diverse camera colour profiles. This ensures that productions can maintain artistic intent and deliver consistent viewing experiences across various display technologies.
You can watch the full 10-minute Executive Q&A video with Tim Walker here. It provides valuable insights into the current state and future of colour management in the broadcast and production industry.
[1] AJA Video Systems. (n.d.). Color Management for Live Production. Retrieved from https://www.aja.com/resources/articles/color-management-for-live-production
[2] Adobe. (n.d.). Premiere Pro: HDR Workflows. Retrieved from https://www.adobe.com/uk/creativecloud/video/premiere-pro/features.html
[3] Blackmagic Design. (n.d.). False Colour Exposure Tools. Retrieved from https://www.blackmagicdesign.com/uk/products/davinciresolve/features/falsecolour/
- The unique visions crafted by producers to elicit specific sentiments among audiences must remain consistent across the entire production process, despite the challenges presented by the emergence of HDR.
- In the current production landscape, managing colour and metadata becomes more difficult due to the dual-target delivery of content for both SDR and HDR viewers.
- The integration of digital cinema cameras with cinematic lenses into live video capture workflows adds to the colour management issues producers face.
- As Cine Live production becomes more prevalent, new colour and look management concerns arise due to the diverse camera systems involved.
- Tim Walker emphasized the importance of specialized colour and look management considerations in Cine Live production, as well as the challenges in synchronizing specialty camera sources with conventional video production cameras.
- Solutions are being developed to tackle these issues, such as AJA Video’s ColorBox, which supports active colour management and maintains colour accuracy across camera inputs and outputs.
- Adobe Premiere Pro also offers automated colour management, allowing for easier colour space transformations, improved grading flexibility, and better monitoring for multiple output target standards like SDR and HDR.
- To ensure artistic intent is preserved and a consistent viewing experience is delivered across various display technologies, the industry is turning to advanced colour management hardware and software that can handle mixed-format workflows, create custom looks in live environments, and normalize diverse camera colour profiles.
