.wmv files flat

24Peter wrote on 6/5/2010, 8:23 PM
When I render files to .wmv (WMV11 presets in Vegas 9e 64), I notice they are very flat looking - poor contrast, saturation, weak blacks. When I render the same project to .mp4, the files look much better. I think this has always been an issue with rendering to Windows Media Video in Vegas but don't recall a solution.

I'm adding a track level brightness-contrast effect/filter but it's tough to match the look of the original.

Any ideas?

Comments

musicvid10 wrote on 6/5/2010, 8:41 PM
That's because WMV automatically does something approximating sRGB conversion even if it's already there. It is not a Vegas issue. Try adding a sRGB=>cRGB filter as a starting point. There is more information by doing a search. Personally I see no reason to use WMV.
tonyatl wrote on 6/5/2010, 10:17 PM
What do I have to search for to get more info. I tried wmv and I got nothing about this. Thanks.
24Peter wrote on 6/6/2010, 8:04 AM
Tony - if you're looking for where the cRGB filter is, it is a preset in the Color Corrector (Secondary) filter/effect. There is a preset there for "Studio RGB to Computer RGB".

Thanks musicvid for pointing that out. It is a good start. BTW - I use .wmv to distribute videos to friends/family, most of whom use WMP in Vista
musicvid10 wrote on 6/6/2010, 8:52 AM
Got it -- no AVC support in WMP until Windows 7, right?.

Get them all going on VLC Player, and they'll love you even more!
They can't put WMV on their iPhones.

if you're looking for where the cRGB filter is, it is a preset in the Color Corrector (Secondary) filter/effect.
There is also a quick preset in the "Levels" plugin that does essentially the same thing.