Highest quality screencaps in preview?

hanselthecaretaker wrote on 11/8/2011, 6:28 PM

I'm looking to get raw footage screencaps of PS3 gameplay at the highest quality possible, and the ability of VMS10 to do go frame by frame is ideal, but the video preview quality, even at the "Best" full screen setting, leaves a bit to be desired.

Here's a comparison of a .bmp converted to .png capture using the Total Media Theater software that came with my capture device (Hauppauge HD-PVR 1212)-
http://img9.imageshack.us/img9/3913/unled3dy.png

...and the same screen captured in VMS10's preview at "Best" quality, .png-
http://img510.imageshack.us/img510/4388/image15s.png

another Media Theater capture-
http://img802.imageshack.us/img802/3945/unled1ksq.png

and from VMS10-
http://img849.imageshack.us/img849/2845/image13yn.png

Viewed side by side in separate windows for a better idea, notice how the VMS10 shots look a little washed out?

I love the ability to capture frame by frame, but if anyone has any idea of how to get more clarity/crispness out of the preview window please let me know!

Thanks for reading.

Comments

Eugenia wrote on 11/8/2011, 7:44 PM

To get the best quality:
1. Make sure project properties are set exactly as the source footage.
2. Temporarily change preview/auto to best/full.
3. Then snap the shot with the screengrab icon, and save as PNG.

Please note that GAMMA changes will be there depending on the format used. This is normal for any kind of app, since they all use their own kind of internal gamma value (in most cases). Gamma is what someone would interpret the "washed out" or "punched up" look. But the actual pixels are correct when grabbed with the way I described above, it's the best way the editor sees them and saves them for you.

MSmart wrote on 11/8/2011, 8:34 PM

You could add the Sony Brightness and Contrast video FX to the clip and adjust as necessary to compensate for the difference before grabbing.

hanselthecaretaker wrote on 11/10/2011, 5:08 PM

Thanks for the info. I'm already using source settings and "best/full" and saving as .png but haven't tried the brightness/contrast yet. I'll try adjusting those settings and see if it helps.

hanselthecaretaker wrote on 11/10/2011, 5:52 PM

I made some brightness/contrast adjustments and it turned out looking better than even the Total Media Theater capture!

Total Media-
http://img802.imageshack.us/img802/3945/unled1ksq.png

VMS-
http://img253.imageshack.us/img253/1427/unled18a.png

Very cool.