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NickiDoane
Participating Frequently
February 2, 2022
Question

Why Do My Premiere Pro Exports Look Washed Out? [QT Gamma Compensation LUT]

  • February 2, 2022
  • 7 replies
  • 303521 views

Hi There, 

Months ago I found a download here I think for the QT Gamma Compensation LUT ... I just updated my mac and now the file is a .cube and I don't know how to change it to a usable file again. Help? Does anyone know where I can find the file again to download & use?

 

[Moderator edited subject line. This issue relates to how a video exported from Premiere Pro might look different from how it appeared inside Premiere Pro. After export, the video may appear "too light" or "washed out". ]

    7 replies

    Fergus H
    Community Manager
    Fergus HCommunity Manager
    Community Manager
    April 1, 2025

    Hi all, 

     

    Premiere Pro exports appearing washed out is a commonly reported issue. It is caused by differences in gamma between devices like televisions, Windows and macOS computers, and viewers in different applications. 

     

    We have written an article that explains the cause of this issue and provides guidance on how to handle it: 
    https://helpx.adobe.com/premiere-pro/using/why-do-my-premiere-pro-exports-look-washed-out.html

     

    Regards,

    Fergus

     

     

      T
      team_4346
      Participant
      February 4, 2025

      proper colour no shown

      R Neil Haugen
      R Neil Haugen
      Legend
      February 4, 2025

      With such a minimalist post, I can't even guess at your problem. Or a fix. Details matter ... complete details. 

       

      And as this is a long-running older post that started in a completely different and now outdated color management system, START A NEW THREAD. Please.

      Everyone's mileage always varies ...
      M
      MikeB555
      Participant
      October 19, 2023

      OK I've tried this for a few hours now and read all the replies. But my issue seems to be different... 

       

      The exposure seems much higher... the colors seem more bright and vibrant not washed out. 

       

      When I use the gamma compensation it makes it "more normal" but still unusably bright. Does anyone have any ideas?

      M
      MikeB555
      Participant
      October 19, 2023

      I don't know if this is very good but this seemed to solve the issue... https://youtu.be/cN8CHBhvyJs?si=Rz-oONMa1PuRMPG7

      M
      MikeB555
      Participant
      October 19, 2023

      Ok so this didn't work either... it now makes lines across the video like old school box TV's used to do. 

      F
      Fredrik29834637r1ag
      Participant
      May 12, 2023

      Hi, 

      Hi, is there any new solution to this on a mac? After exporting with "The Gamma QT Lut", the movie becomes darker and more saturated as mentioned earlier." Very grateful for tips.

      F
      Fredrik29834637r1ag
      Participant
      May 12, 2023

      I reply myself here 🙂After reading Neal's earlier post, I will be running without "The Gamma Lut". When checking the reference in VLC, the films look good. Thanks Neil.

        H
        Hasadiah280695422fww
        Participant
        May 18, 2023

        How do you get away from using the Qt Gamma Comp LUT?

        T
        Tom28342070zxad
        Participant
        February 9, 2023

        I downloaded the LUT (which appears to be a load of text, but it works) from the link below then set export to h.264 (high-resolution 1920x1080) went to effects in the export window, selected the LUT from where I had saved it, and it worked perfectly.  Thank you for the advice!!!

          J
          JJRiley
          Known Participant
          February 28, 2023

          Hi - how did you get Media Encoder to recognize the LUT? I placed the cube files in a location and selected them, but it says there is a low level exception (see screen shot). I tried saving the cube file on my desktop as well as our video server, but it won't apply. I used the vimeo preset first and then tried the match source high bitrate preset, but it still shows as none. Thanks for the help.

          R Neil Haugen
          R Neil Haugen
          Legend
          February 28, 2023

          They have a bug where that line says "none" even though the LUT is applied ... so if you complete the export, is it applied?

           

          And of course ... if that LUT does get applied, understand the file will be very dark when viewed on a non-Mac display. Due to the underlying nature of the problem.

           

          Neil

          Everyone's mileage always varies ...
            chrisw44157881
            chrisw44157881
            Inspiring
            February 2, 2022

            i am not aware that the lut doesn't work with mac. premiere reads the file so it should still work.

            download lut here:

            https://community.adobe.com/t5/premiere-pro-discussions/quot-why-does-my-footage-look-darker-in-premiere-quot-color-q-amp-a/td-p/4788414

             

            just place it in location here:

            https://community.adobe.com/t5/premiere-pro-discussions/faq-premiere-pro-lumetri-color-custom-lut-directory-and-location/td-p/4785911

             

            and render out with lut.

              Z
              zensei24321378vihf
              Participant
              July 18, 2022

              Is this still a thing that needs to be done in July 2022 with latest Adobe?

                H
                happybelated
                Participant
                March 3, 2024

                I don't know what part of reality some people have trouble understanding. And note, I work for/with/teach pro colorists, mostly based in Resolve. I use Resolve quite a lot, and ... as I work for/with and teach pro colorists ... I have been around "this discussion" with top tier colorists and the folks that make the calibration software used by the colorists for their spendy monitors.

                 

                Over the last five or so years. Hours of presentations and discussions, both at NAB and online. Hours of reading white papers and tests ad infinitum.

                 

                 I know the issue. And the frustration that Resolve based pro colorists have with Apple ... and they're mostly Mac geeks. So ... again, here's the history of this issue.

                 

                When Apple came out with the Retina monitors and then ColorSync, for some unknown reason they built in the assumption that the OETF function of the camera ... essentially gamma 1.96 ... was the appropriate display gamma. (Boy, does that lead to some down-the-rabbit hole discussions ... )

                 

                After Apple came out with their odd 1.96 display gamma, the Resolve devs added an option called Rec.709-A, and yes, specifically, A is for Apple. Why? Very simple.

                 

                Because the entire 'broadcast world' used a screen (display) gamma of 2.4 with Rec.709/SDR media. And yes, that specifically included Resolve.

                 

                The "Rec.709-A" option was their attempt to make 'basic' Mac users happy. Even if the result wouldn't fly in professional broadcast usage. Btw, Mac has a ton of user options that users shouldn't use, normally ... because they'll mess up your media. But they seem to feel hey, you wanna mess yourself up, have at it ... 😉

                 

                (And this is a constant humor dicsussion among colorists, tales of users setting screwy things then wondering why it's ... darn ugly ... )

                 

                So did Adobe create the problem? No.  And prior to Apple's odd display gamma, Resolve didn't have the Rec.709-A option either.

                 

                So Resolve tried to give users an option to make them happy ... even if it was not "correct" ... which was the option for Rec.709-A for Apple. The problem being, a show you worked on set to Rec.709-A might well not pass the QC machines, but hey ... again, that's your problem, not theirs.

                 

                Adobe took a different direction. They kept the broadcast standard within their system, but decided on using that "gamma compensation LUT" at export as a way to allow Mac users to set their media to Apple's unique view if they chose. Essentially a different route to allow users to get to a similar result.

                 

                Neither approach was "right", both allowed users to create a file that might well not pass QC machines, but hey ... again, that's your choice.

                 

                Now, with the 24.x release, the Premiere devs have included a user settable viewer gamma for the Program monitor. You can choose 2.4 (broadcast), 2.2 (web), and 1.96 (QuickTime), the latter being the one to match your Mac's odd Rec.709 setup.

                 

                So ... Adobe is giving you now what you supposedly want ... use it!

                 

                Although ... be aware! ... Apple has recently introduced another issue ... being Apple, of course. It's actually a 'fix' for their own mistake, but it's an additional option apparently on most newer Macs.

                 

                It's to set the screen display to "HDTV" ... and if you do, you get full-on Rec.709 with display gamma of 2.4.

                 

                So ... use the 1.96 viewing gamma all you want! Just understand, on most PC/Android and pro systems, you media will not look what you would consider "correct". But past that, it won't even look "correct" on all Macs, because some Mac users are now setting theirs to "HDTV". Which gives a correct display gamma for Rec.709 'standard' setups.

                 

                Ain't life a joy?


                I'm on Mac, and Adobe's LUT does not produce the same grade as their program's display window. It's darker, but not even comparable when it comes to the color and look of the media. Adobe has still yet to offer a half-decent solution to this problem, obvioulsy keeping in mind that the world isn't just going to move to PC.

                N
                NickiDoaneAuthor
                Participating Frequently
                February 2, 2022

                Nevermind having a moment - it's fine.

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