I just want what I see in the editor to match what I see when exported

[defaultrjaomfiv0pg5]

I don't know what is going on with Adobe lately, but I've tried everything possible from every forum post, youtube video and backwater website discussion group trying to figure out why I can't get my Premiere Pro editor to match when I export my video.

I've tried absolutely everything, changing the colour space, downloading custom LUT files, manually tweaking the colours in the lumetri scope editor. But nothing ever seems to match what I see when exported.

The videos I'm working with keep going into premiere pro appearing totally different. Changing the colour spaces to REC 709 does nothing, it seems to just flatten what it thinks is over exposed footage, which it isn't. It's a totally normal, room lit shot that keeps going into premiere pro like someone is recording with stadium lights beaming into the scene.

Why is it so hard to just make what I see in my editor, 100% match what the videos actually look like, and then keep that consistent all the way to export?

[Rach McIntire]

Hi @defaultrjaomfiv0pg5,

Welcome to the Premiere Pro forums! We are glad to see you here.  I'm sorry you are having problems with your exports.  What version of Premiere are you in?  What type of footage are you working with and what are your Color Management settings?  We need a few more details to help with this issue. Please see: How do I write a bug report?.  I hope we can help you soon. Sorry for the frustration! 

[defaultrjaomfiv0pg5]

Good evening @Rach McIntire 

I'm currently working with Version 25.1.0 (Build 73)

I'm working with .MOV files recorded on an iPhone.

The footage when viewed externally on my Mac shows as normal, no over exposure.

When imported into Premiere pro, the colour of the footage completely varies. 3 of the 4 pieces of footage for no discernable reason are over exposed.

My colour management settings are set to automatically detect what the original footage should be. There's no use in me changing it because when exported, it changes again. So I can't immediately tell what the footage is even going to look like when editing.

There are 4 pieces of footage, this is the colour space for each one.

Footage 1: Rec. 709

Footage 2: Rec. 2100 HLG

Footage 3: Rec. 2100 HLG

Footage 4: Rec. 2100 HLG

Sequence settings:
Rec. 709

Auto Tone Map Media is unchecked

[Rach McIntire]

Ah, you are working with iPhone footage?  If you're able to send screengrabs of your color settings that would be helpful.  

[Rach McIntire]

"Auto Tone Map Media is unchecked" - that's likely the issue. I believe what's happening is that when you open iPhone footage, one of two things happens, depending upon hardware:

1. You're on a computer with an HDR monitor (i.e., recent MacBook or Apple Studio Display or Pro Display XDR), so the footage displays correctly.
2. You're on a computer without an HDR monitor in which case QuickTime Player automatically tone maps the footage.

So, either way, it'll look ok. When you bring that footage into Pr, it'll look bad - overexposed - unless tone mapping is turned on. The, to make matters worse, when you export the footage, we'll be default export in SDR instead of HDR so now you've got three different views of the same footage: how it looked in QuickTime Player, how it looked in Pr, and how it looked in Pr upon export.

[defaultrjaomfiv0pg5]

When I check the "Auto tone" check box, the colours and contrast of the footage just get flattened. Which doesn't match what I'm seeing in the footage when viewed in the MacBook finder preview. In the preview the footage appears normal, blacks and whites look absolutely fine.

But the moment it goes into premiere pro, it appears over exposed. And if I check to make it auto-tone to compensate for the HDR issue, all the colours and contrast just flatten. Which on export via Premiere or Media Encoder, still appear over exposed.

[defaultrjaomfiv0pg5]

All I want, is for the footage I import to look exactly as it should. The Auto-tone checkbox makes it look even less like it should.

[R Neil Haugen]

You either work with us to set a correct color management for what you want done, or ... don't. 

You need first to understand that there is no 'standard' one fits all color management anymore. Period. It's long gone.

So Premiere cannot guess what you want done with color management. Period. 

OK?

You have a mix of clips, of various both color spaces and dynamic range. The HLG clips have both a vastly greater range of possible hues, plus a wider range of dark to light values ... those are separate things for the software to manage.

So you need to tell Premiere what space you want to end up with, and how you want it to get those clips "there". If you're working on a Mac ... well, thanks to Apple, there's an entirely separate mess to deal with. I'll cover that below.

For most users, this will work:

• Display color management on.
• Extended Dynamic Range if you're on a Mac.
• Auto log detect on.
• Sequence to Rec.709 (SDR, standard video dynamic range).
• Auto tonemapping on (which 'fits' the wider color and dynamic range clips to Rec.709/SDR).

Now go through the sequence, and set the color and brightness as you choose.

PC users, and those on Macs with Reference modes set to HDTV, set your viewing gamma by ROOM brightness while working.  Use gamma 2.4/broadcast only if working in a pretty dark room. All normally lit room working spaces should use gamma 2.2 web. And skip reading the rest if you have work to do.

Working on Macs

For some unknown reason, other than perhaps Apple being Apple, they decided that Macs without Reference modes ... but only Macs without Reference modes!!!! ... would use an odd, non-standard display transform for Rec.709 video. That is ONLY used by Macs without Reference modes. Got it?

ALL other systems use the standard display transform for Rec.709 video files, whether Macs with Reference modes set to HDTV, broadcast compliant systems, TVs, Android, PCs, networks/streaming services ... everything that produces, distributes, or displays Rec.709 video.

Apple rigs without Reference modes use a display transform essentially of gamma 1.96. The correctly specified international standard for Rec.709 display transforms uses essentially gamma 2.4.

You cannot get the same apparent image with two notably divergent display transforms.

So ... on Macs without Reference modes, the image is lighter. That's the tonal, gamma issue. The secondary issue is they don't stick the color transform correctly either, to map Rec.709's form of sRGB color space into the Mac Retina's native P3 color space.

So the image is not only lighter, and "apparently" desaturated some, but the hue values are at least slightly ... off.

To check the difference, compare the playback in QuickTime Player against VLC or Potplayer. Quicktime player, on Macs without Reference modes, will be the lighter image. VLC and Potplayer will display an image more like all other screens will display.

There are options but there is NO possible actual complete fix. Period.

Ok ... what are you concerned about ... do you want the image to look similar in other Macs without Reference modes, or ... on all other devices?

To look similar on other Macs without Reference modes:

Set the Viewing Gamma to 1.96/QuickTime in Premiere's CM settings.

Do you color and tonal corrections. Export ... and it should look similar outside of Premiere in QuickTime player, but everyone not on such rigs will see too dark and oversaturated an image.

To look similar on "normal" display devices:

Set the viewing gamma according to how bright your working room space is lit.

Colorists work in a nearly completely darkened room for best color/saturation sensitivity. If and ONLY if you are working in a nearly darkened room!!!!  ... set the Viewing gamma to 2.4/broadcast.

If working in a normally lit room, set viewing gamma to 2.2/web ... not because you are sending to the web, but because by the standards your room's lighting determines the display transform while doing color correction work.