John's link went pear-shaped. This should work:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/5f1idy39r5qidty/Color+Correct+This.zip?dl=0

Looks like dropbox.com was doing updates while I was posting. I changed the original link. Hope the new updates didn't break the last eight years worth of links.

Very difficult one! Here's my effort with a single Color Curves FX.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B8ftVT5A1FqQZEg0aS1HOVk5a0k/view?usp=sharing

I almost never use more than a single anchor point at each end of the curve, but I made an exception here to try and hold onto some detail in the window. I put the blacks at 16 and the whites at 235 ready for rendering for web, DVD etc.. I usually do that on an event-by-event basis. Others do it on a track or project level. If you don't do it, highlights and shadows will clip in most situations on final delivery. So it will look flat/washed-out in Vegas unless you adjust preview levels from studio RGB to computer RGB. For my screen grab I applied SeMW Extensions "PC" preview level to show what this should look like when delivered:

I could spend ages tweaking those curve tangents and the position of my middle anchor (with the arrow keys), while referring to the waveform scope, to get this right.

It could perhaps also do with a little denoising, as noise is showing up a lot on those walls.

Nick, I like your preservation of detail in the kitchen. I have to deal with this all the time when swimmers are on starting blocks in front of a white awning in the bright sun, then they dive into blue (darker) water. Not only could one spend hours getting it just right but also have to keyframe it as the light changes.

"but also have to keyframe it as the light changes"

Just a shot in the dark ... would using a fixed K WB setting help?

my attempt...

and the project file:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/klx3xszyjocdmck/cc.veg?dl=0

*i'm using FBmn as one of the elements of the chain though

http://www.fbmn-software.com/en/white-balance.php

You can also use the Sony Broadcast Colors Video fx to easily set your project's blacks and whites for broadcast legal. From the drop box in the plug in, you have choices for lenient and conservative settings.

JN_

"... would using a fixed K WB setting help?"

Usually the extremes go from blinding sun to deep shade in a matter of seconds. I like to lock down exposure and white balance when I can but my attempts in the past were not good. Maybe that next camera will be better.

My quick attempt:

FIlters: Invert, Levels (gamma at 0.6), Invert, Unsharp Mask (Amount 0.2, Radius 0.5)

OBS: Image has TV > PC Levels applied.

Wow, thanks for all the replies! I'll have to read through and see what works, some really nice work here though!

Very difficult one! Here's my effort with a single Color Curves FX.https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B8ftVT5A1FqQZEg0aS1HOVk5a0k/view?usp=sharing

Nick, when I download your zip file, it appears to be empty, no files inside.

and the project file:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/klx3xszyjocdmck/cc.veg?dl=0
*i'm using FBmn as one of the elements of the chain though
http://www.fbmn-software.com/en/white-balance.php

Redpaw, I downloaded your veg file, but there doesn't appear to be any FX on the track, or on the event

My attempt

and the project file:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/klx3xszyjocdmck/cc.veg?dl=0
*i'm using FBmn as one of the elements of the chain though
http://www.fbmn-software.com/en/white-balance.php

Redpaw, I downloaded your veg file, but there doesn't appear to be any FX on the track, or on the event

hmm... not sure why... it should be applied to the event. (ignore the pic used in this screenshot).

Do you have the FBmn white balance plugin?

I don't have that plugin. I just used malowz's instructions and it looks better now, so I'm going with it.

I've never understood all this stuff Nick was saying in his post for as long as I've been using Vegas.

"I put the blacks at 16 and the whites at 235 ready for rendering for web, DVD etc.. I usually do that on an event-by-event basis. Others do it on a track or project level. If you don't do it, highlights and shadows will clip in most situations on final delivery. So it will look flat/washed-out in Vegas unless you adjust preview levels from studio RGB to computer RGB."

Very difficult one! Here's my effort with a single Color Curves FX.https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B8ftVT5A1FqQZEg0aS1HOVk5a0k/view?usp=sharing

Nick, when I download your zip file, it appears to be empty, no files inside.

Sorry. Self-induction in the marmalade circuit. Try it now.

Thanks Nick, now it works; don't have a clue what it means, but it looks pretty good! I added a little more contrast.

For anyone interested in malowz' solution, there's background in these 2 threads:

• https://www.vegascreativesoftware.info/us/forum/help-with-over-exposure--70669/
• https://www.vegascreativesoftware.info/us/forum/color-correction-and-white-balance--80727/

Well, here's the finished deal! Still looks like it's missing contrast, but oh well, better than the original.

Are you shooting with sunlight? I notice it changes brightness and contrast around 1:40.

I didn't shoot it, it was submitted to me; it's someone else's video. I noticed the changing light too. No biggie, not a hollywood epic :)

I sampled the YouTube playback with Just Color Picker. On Windows 10 version 1511 in Firefox 56.0 and Internet Explorer 11 your deepest blacks are at about RGB17, which is why the contrast looks a little low.

Did you use malowz' method or another method in the end?

Which format did you render for YouTube upload?

Could you show us how your waveform or histogram looks in your project at the point you grabbed the still in the original post? I fear there may be a shift here because we've all been correcting a screen-grabbed jpeg and not the original footage.

Also be aware that hardware acceleration in Google Chrome can affect YouTube colors. That's accessed through Settings > Advances Settings > System > Use hardware acceleration when available. If I don't disable that, the colors go horrible and the blacks get even paler.