Waveform Monitor vs Histogram

P

preciousppo

New member
Is it acceptable to use the histogram as reference if the software you use for Color Correction does not have a waveform monitor?

Thx!
 
Technically any software based scope etc isn't going to be entirely accurate. For true monitoring you need to use a hardware scope.
 
Histogram and waveform monitor tell you different things. Histogram summarizes values for the entire image: usually luminance values 0-256 horizontally and the relative quantities of pixels with each value vertically. Waveform monitor shows you all of IRE concentrations for each vertical image segment. Completely different pieces of imformation.
 
Joshua Provost said:
Histogram and waveform monitor tell you different things. Histogram summarizes values for the entire image: usually luminance values 0-256 horizontally and the relative quantities of pixels with each value vertically. Waveform monitor shows you all of IRE concentrations for each vertical image segment. Completely different pieces of imformation.
Click to expand...

Can you explain this a little more for me... and in addition....in a studio multicam shoot..which is better to use if you can only use one?
 
I'd probably have to say Waveform, if you could only use one.

You can always color correct in post, but if the original image is way too dark you'll introduce noise trying to brighten it up...

..and if it's too bright, you lose detail in the overexposed areas.

Personally, I'd rather have a perfectly exposed clip with messed up colors than the other way around.
 
Phil1076 said:
I'd probably have to say Waveform, if you could only use one.

You can always color correct in post, but if the original image is way too dark you'll introduce noise trying to brighten it up...

..and if it's too bright, you lose detail in the overexposed areas.

Personally, I'd rather have a perfectly exposed clip with messed up colors than the other way around.
Click to expand...

They both give you exposure information, though in professional video they use waveforms, either built in to the cam (rarely), monitors (more often), or hardware. Histograms are for displaying values in an RGB color system, waveforms measure IRE in YUV color which is the color space in which video is shot in.
 
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