What colorspace for DCP?

[Postmaster]

I have to grade a commercial for DCP - what colorspace do I use?

709, P3, sRGB? Any special gamma?

Thanks, Frank

 

[j1clark@ucsd.edu]

I have to grade a commercial for DCP - what colorspace do I use?

709, P3, sRGB? Any special gamma?

Thanks, Frank

The color space for DCP is 'yet-another-color-space'... CIE X'Y'Z'... there is a matrix transformation but the processor package OpenDCP has a conversion option to go from Rec. 709 to CIE X'Y'Z', and I'm sure commercial packages have similar conversion capability.

Here's a glossy brochure... EDCF Mastering

There's also an Adobe PDF addressing the use of After Effects for preping media for DCP output... http://wwwimages.adobe.com/www.adobe.com/content/dam/Adobe/en/devnet/aftereffects/articles/color_management_workflow/ae_color_mgmt_wkflow.pdf

 

[Postmaster]

Thanks,

I have the OpenDCP package and I know it takes care of the XYZ - maybe I should have be more specific - I wanted to know, what colorspace on my preview monitor I should use before going to OpenDCP.
I guess 701 would be fine, but sRGB or something else would maybe give me more room to play with - no?
Also I can set Resolve to video or data level - the latter also shows the "illegal" range or flesh of the material, that is dumped in 709.

Also thanks for the links - very interesting read.

Frank

 

[j1clark@ucsd.edu]

Thanks,

I have the OpenDCP package and I know it takes care of the XYZ - maybe I should have be more specific - I wanted to know, what colorspace on my preview monitor I should use before going to OpenDCP.
I guess 701 would be fine, but sRGB or something else would maybe give me more room to play with - no?
Also I can set Resolve to video or data level - the latter also shows the "illegal" range or flesh of the material, that is dumped in 709.

Also thanks for the links - very interesting read.

Frank

Yes, well... unfortunately I have not had the opportunity to put all this (limited) knowledge of DCP to 'good use'... for my day job we were being asked a few years ago about our 'reliable transport' software that did better error detection and correction, which the movie distribution industry could take some advantage of... but as such things go, the project never really materialized. I don't think the problem has really gone away, but for the moment transporting disks seems cheaper than setting up a high capacity network 'everywhere'... had the project gotten sold, I would have graciously provided 'test' content...

 

[cpc]

Using the largest color space your monitor can fully display sounds optimal. From the ones you mention - P3, if you have all of it.
Gamma is irrelevant, it will be converted to the output gamma anyway. All you want is seeing the widest correct image possible. But, assuming that your material was shot in Rec709, grading in a wider space only makes sense if you are going to stretch the colors out of the source material space during the grade.

 

[Bruce Watson]

I have the OpenDCP package and I know it takes care of the XYZ - maybe I should have be more specific - I wanted to know, what colorspace on my preview monitor I should use before going to OpenDCP.

I'd think, to get WYSIWYG, especially for color correction work, that your monitor would have to show you the target workspace, CIE X'Y'Z' in this case.

This begs two questions. Is there a more commonly used workspace that's "sufficiently close" like Rec.709 or DCI-P3, that's supported by a production monitor, that might be substituted?

Second, what production monitors support CIE X'Y'Z' (<-that's surprisingly difficult to type, just sayin')?

Yes, I recognize that I'm in over my head here. Just trying to learn something... one never knows when information like this might come in handy.

 

[Mitch Gross]

CIE X'Y'Z' is in fact all visible light, which is beyond the capabilities of any monitor, projector, chemical dye or printing method. Nothing can capture it and nothing can reproduce it. Only the human eye/brain is capable. As a DCP stqndard, it simply means that DCPs are futureproof as a format.

Wat you should use really depends on your capabilities and your intended use. REC709 is the standard for the video world and is also the smallest. DCI-P3 is slighly larger and there are only a relative few monitors available which support it. It is chiefly the projection color space for digital cinema. sRGB is for Adobe systems in computer monitoring space, mostly for doing print & advertising work.

If you are just doing a video finish project, live in REC709. For Digital Cinema, the highest possible right now is DCI-P3.