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Ed.Macke
Ed.Macke
Inspiring
July 26, 2012
Question

How To Improve GoPro Video Quality / Make it "Pop"?

  • July 26, 2012
  • 1 reply
  • 34408 views

The video you see on GoPro's website and in their in-store displays is gorgeous - bright, crisp, super vibrant. The video my son has actually been getting with his GoPro Hero2? Decidedly less exciting. It's definitely sharp and nice HD quality, but my complaint is that it almost a desaturated look, with the colors muted and a little washed out.

Given the differences between GoPro website footage and our footage, I'm guessing their website and in-store display video has had some liberal video editing applied, which is fine, except... I can't figure out how to get the same results!

If it was a picture and I was using Lightroom, I could probably get it pretty close, but I can't seem to get anywhere close to what I'd like to see using the PRE Image Controls (brightness, contrast, saturation). The image controls seem kind of limited in what they do.

Brightness seems to wash everything out instead of just increasing the highlights.

Contrast... I don't know what the heck it's doing - moving it definitely has an effect but I have yet to find an effect that actually improves anything.

Vibrance definitely helps with the washed-out colors, but it gets garish quickly.

So, am I pretty much stuck with those three options, or is there a video effect in the PRE library that gives better results? Is there a 3rd party tool?

Also, in the fall, we'll be upgrading to PrPro CS6 - does that offer any advanced (read: better) tools for boosting my so-so GoPro footage to something closer to what the web site shows?

Here's some details, if it matters

Using Hero2, not original Hero

I know the GoPro's don't do well in dim light, but footage is shot in broad daylight

Using 1080p mode (1920 x 1080, 30p) h.264 MP-4

Video sucked in directly from SD card, has green render bar upon import

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    1 reply

    B
    Community Expert
    Bill SpragueCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    July 27, 2012

    Ed,

    The usual culprit is light.  The pros get up early and stay up late.  The rest of us play with our toys at noon and have a hard time getting results that have the pop of morning and evening. 

    You might try looking through some of the tools at http://www.newbluefx.com.  You might notice that some of there tools have been included in PRE10, but also that there seem to be many more tools/effects that are available with a little more horsepower. 

    In the Video Essentials III package there are a couple that look like they could up the "pop" a little and they are free to try. 

    Bill

    Ed.Macke
    Ed.MackeAuthor
    Inspiring
    July 27, 2012

    Bill,

    Thanks. We just got the GoPro and haven't played with it enough in various light to see what kind of difference that makes. I've tried enough to know that the GoPro does not do well in low-light. But experimenting with different light is easy enough, and usually fun, so that is something I'll definitely try.

    I'll take a look at the NewBlue stuff.

    I was hoping there'd be something included with PRE (or PrPro) because I'm cheap! Well, maybe not cheap, really - I'm not opposed to paying for tools to do what I need, I'm just opposed to paying for them unnecessarily.

    B
    Community Expert
    Bill SpragueCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    July 27, 2012

    Ed.Macke wrote:

    I was hoping there'd be something included with PRE (or PrPro) because I'm cheap! Well, maybe not cheap, really - I'm not opposed to paying for tools to do what I need, I'm just opposed to paying for them unnecessarily.

    There are free tools included.  They are called 'effects'.  I didn't want to insult you by suggesting you didn't know what they are or how to use them.  If you have not found how to add effects and then adjust them, we should start there. 

    If the free and provided effects are not sufficent for the "pop" you want, it has to be the original lighting.  Mid day pictures are always flat.  The pro's use big reflectors held by assistants to help provide pop on the subject.

    Until you posted your question, I had not even considered looking for third party "plug ins" that add additional effects.  But, the idea is intreguing. 

    Bill

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