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Vadym B.
Vadym B.
Inspiring
December 1, 2025
Question

Video/project color space settings

  • December 1, 2025
  • 2 replies
  • 324 views

Hi! I am a DaVinci Resolve user and recently purchased a software package and am currently learning Adobe products.
This problem haunted me in DaVinci, it is also present in Premiere Pro. Maybe I did not set the color space correctly. Please help me solve it.
In the screenshot, I marked where the original video looks and you can see the difference in color saturation and overall brightness between the view inside Premiere Pro. I cannot accurately adjust the brightness and color saturation because after exporting to a file, the video will be less saturated than it was during the editing process. This also applies to light. It is important to adjust so that when editing the video I see the real color and light, what it really is and what it will be after rendering.
This video was shot on a Pixel 8 Pro, 4K 60 fps, 8 bit.
I need to figure this out so that in the future I know how to adjust the color space for editing video from other cameras.
Thank you, with respect!

2 replies

R Neil Haugen
R Neil Haugen
Legend
December 1, 2025

First, very important data ... what are you viewing this on to determine "correct" ... both the hardware device and the app used?

 

As if you are on a Mac withou Reference modes, or a Mac with Reference modes but not set to HDTV, you will see an incorrect view of all Rec.709 media in QuickTime player, and Safari and Chrome browsers.

 

So we need to sort that out first.

 

After that, the PrPro color management panel with all the settings is in the Lumetri panel, Settings tab ... the tab named Settings.

 

Use that to control CM in Premiere.

 

As to the first issue, that of the incorrect Mac view of Rec.709 media, that is due simply to a decision by Apple. Which chose to set the display transform in their ColorSync CM utility app to the camera transform for Rec.709 media.  Essentially gamma 1.96. They also do an imperfect job of remapping sRGB color data within the native P3 color space screen.

 

All other systems ... PCs, Android, TVs, and all broadcast compliant systems, along with those Macs that do have Reference modes and are set to HDTV ... will show the image with a display transform of essentially gamma 2.4.

 

There ain't no fix. Depending on what system you media is viewed on, it will get one of those two different transforms.

 

But don't worry about it much ...  as all screens show a different view of the image anyway. All over the freaking place. Seriously.

 

And I can go way, WAY OFF deep into the weeds on this technically if'n you want. I've over a decade working with/for/teaching pro colorists, who are mostly based in Resolve (though some are in Baselight) and especially dealing with PrPro/Resolve differences.

Everyone's mileage always varies ...
Vadym B.
Vadym B.Author
Inspiring
December 1, 2025

I'm watching a video in the standard QuickTime player mac os. I have a Macbook Pro M1.
So you're saying that quicktime displays the wrong color? Can I fix it somehow?
Although I watched the video on my Pixel 8 Pro the same video and it is identical to what I see in Quicktime. SO I thought that in DaVinci Ta PrPro the colors are more saturated than they are in the video. And this difference in DaVinci was even greater. It made me very nervous, because there it was even harder to guess what result I would get in color saturation after rendering to the file. Sometimes it was too little, sometimes too much oversaturated.

R Neil Haugen
R Neil Haugen
Legend
December 1, 2025

Did you understand the basic, simple problem? 

 

Which is all Macs without Reference modes, and all Macs with Reference modes not set to HDTV, display an incorrect image transform. 

 

That is not  fixable and it drives pro colorists, most clearly based in Macs, around the bend. Has for years. There will be different 'base' views of the image depending on which side of the chasm it's viewed on. Period.

 

If you want an accurate view, towards what colorists need, then ... in Premiere set the Viewing Gamma option to gamma 2.2 unless you are doing your work in that nearly dark room colorists work in by spec. ALL color work done in 'norma' room lighting should by the Rec.709 accompanying documentation use gamma 2.2. Because of the viewing situation while working and viewing, not the system you are on.

 

Then typically you can use VLC or Potplayer on Macs without Reference modes to see what it looks like outside of Premiere. 

 

But as I noted, no two screens are alike. 

 

For example, on several occasions noted color scientists and calibration experts have set up a test ... with two identical monitors side by side, highly calibrated by top people and high end gear ... fed an identical signal by a BlackMagic or AJA breakout box, and sitting side by side in the same room.

 

With a room full of highly experience video post pros, most of them saw differences between the two screens. Some say they saw magenta corners or shading, others saw green in the same places.

 

It's metamerism failure, and is the result of the difference between human visual systems and the mechanical devices that we use to view the image on. Our eyes and those systems are somewhat sorta in the same ballpark, but not totally.

 

That's not even talking about manufacturing differences ... the reason that some screens or devices cost a ton more is typically they have the higher quality screens. Flanders monitors buys the top tested screens off the manufacturing line.

 

You may see that "this monitor uses the same screens as a Flanders!" stated ...  but understand, that cheaper monitor is not as 'clean' and evenly correct as the Flanders one. 

Everyone's mileage always varies ...
Peru Bob
Community Expert
Peru BobCommunity Expert
Community Expert
December 1, 2025

@R Neil Haugen 

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