SOLVED: Colors too vibrant.

NinjaCurlyfry

Newbie Joined: Mar 14, 2015 10:11 Messages: 9 Offline

Solved by

Mar 14, 2015 10:38

EDIT: This question has been solved! Thank you so much for your help everyone! It was an issue with my graphics card. Check my final post for more information on how I fixed it. (If you want to know.)

Hello! I am new to this forums, so I apologize if I am not following any guidelines! I have read all of the rules I have found, so hopefully I'm good! XD

Alright. So I've been messing with this forever. I really like PowerDirector, but when I render a video, it really messes up the colors very badly. I'm very frustrated with it. I've tried every default rendering option possible and I've made my own custom render settings. I use Fraps to record my screen, and then edit/render with PD12. Here's an example. (All render settings do this...)

I am using links because the pictures were too big to go on here and I don't know how or if you can make spoilers on this forums. I hope this is acceptable. e-e

This is the original picture: http://i.imgur.com/wsItk3H.jpg
This is a screenshot of about the same spot after it had been rendered. http://i.imgur.com/LVC5usY.jpg

As you can see, the colors are completely messed up. I can not for the life of me figure out what's wrong! It could be my computer maybe, or maybe PD is just not as good as I thought...

I have no idea what information to give you, so I'll just list some stuff. Here's my versions/stats:

Windows version: Windows 7 Professional 64-bit (6.1, Build 7601)
PD version: PowerDirector 12 Ultimate 64-bit 12.0.2420.0 (I assume this is the version anyways...)
SR number: VDE140226-01
The source codec is an .AVI
The only codec pack installed is the K-lite codec pack. I can't use ffdshow because if I install it, (even with no other codecs installed), PD is unable to open my fraps files.

I'm not sure what else to say. If I need to give any files or do anything at all. Any information needed I will get to you. I really want to figure this out! I can only hope that there is some sort of fix for this! :L

This message was edited 5 times. Last update was at Mar 18. 2015 14:52

cuartetto

Senior Member Joined: Jan 28, 2011 20:22 Messages: 168 Offline

Mar 14, 2015 11:18

This may not fix your problem, but there is a later version of PD.
http://www.cyberlink.com/support/powerdirector-ultra/patches_en_US.html

NinjaCurlyfry

Newbie Joined: Mar 14, 2015 10:11 Messages: 9 Offline

Mar 14, 2015 11:33

I got it. It did not fix my problem, but I thank you for that! I would have never thought of that being a problem! I wish it was the problem though... Any other ideas? (From anyone. I don't mean to be rude! Sorry if it sounds that way!)

garioch7

Senior Contributor Location: Port Hood, Nova Scotia, Canada Joined: Feb 07, 2011 06:45 Messages: 852 Offline

Mar 14, 2015 12:06

Ninjacurlyfry:

Welcome to the PD12 Forum. Just a few suggestions. If you have hardware acceleration turned on, turn it off and see what happens.

Make sure that you have the latest version of QuickTime installed.

Ensure that your video driver is up to date.

If none of that solves your problem, then please post a dxdiag file (instructions in a sticky thread at the top of this Forum), and we will take a look under the hood of your computer to see if there is something obvious that might be causing your problem. The dxdiag file does not record personal information: it simply lists the specs of your computer. Often, a hardware or driver issue is the culprit.

Hope this helps. Have a great day.

Regards,
-Phil Windows 10 Pro x64
Dell XPS 8930
Intel CoreT i7 (4.6 GHz)
32 GB DDR4-2666 RAM
1 TB PCIe -x4 SSD
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060
PD14 Ultimate x64, 4207
CD4 Ultra and AD6 Ultra
Bleeping Computer Malware Response Instructor

NinjaCurlyfry

Newbie Joined: Mar 14, 2015 10:11 Messages: 9 Offline

Mar 14, 2015 15:36

Alright. I have checked and made sure that everything is updated, but I still have the same problem.
Here are the DxDiag files. I will say that my system is fairly old. It is not anywhere near what many people use, but I don't have money for anything greater. If it is a hardware issue, I guess I'll have to upgrade though. Thanks for your help so far! ^-^

Filename	NinjaCurlyfry64DxDiag.zip	Download
Description
Filesize	8 Kbytes
Downloaded:	354 time(s)

Filename	NinjaCurlyfryDxDiag.zip	Download
Description
Filesize	6 Kbytes
Downloaded:	333 time(s)

borgus1

Senior Contributor Joined: Feb 27, 2013 00:33 Messages: 1318 Offline

Mar 14, 2015 19:58

Have you attempted to capture with a utility other than FRAPS? Here's a simple free one - for a test...

http://ohsoft.net/en/products.php

Say NO to any "extras" that may be offered during install.

NinjaCurlyfry

Newbie Joined: Mar 14, 2015 10:11 Messages: 9 Offline

Mar 14, 2015 21:13

Interesting... Using the default settings of oCam, what it captured was the same weird vibrancy that PowerDirector was rendering!
Here's the original MC screenshot with no PD rendering. (What I'm seeing): http://i.imgur.com/zUnrEa9.png
Here is what the original screenshot looks like after being rendered in PD: http://i.imgur.com/GJ0SK6j.jpg
This is what the oCam captured: http://i.imgur.com/fG7IJwR.jpg
This is what PD rendered: http://i.imgur.com/tRrwpWn.jpg

OCams original look and PD's render are almost indistinguishable! What oCam captured was definitely not what I'm seeing, but it looks exactly like what PowerDirector's render looks like. The MC screenshot is exactly what I expect to see. Once the screenshot was rendered by PD, it looks EXACTLY like the original oCam capture and the OCam capture after rendering! One thing I have learned from this are that Fraps captures the correct color while oCam (and PD) does not.

Fraps uses its own special codec. Does oCam use codecs already installed on the computer? I believe it does, but I'm not sure. If oCam uses the computers codecs (and not codecs it installed itself), then that means something is probably wrong with my stuff. Fraps' codec is untouched, so it makes sense that the colors are normal. I'm pretty sure this is a codec issue, I just don't know how to fix it. I tried going into the K-lite codec configuration and messing around a bit with color space settings, but nothing has fixed it.

I would also like to note that powerdirector's preview (Rendering and editing) is perfectly normal. It is only AFTER being rendered that it changes. (Again implying that codecs are the problem. That is if I have a decent understanding of what a codec is. XD)

Thank you borgus1 for that idea! I think I may be on to something! Even if I have no idea what I'm talking about, the results of this test could help someone else! ^-^ I am so very glad I decided to ask on this forum!

This message was edited 2 times. Last update was at Mar 14. 2015 21:16

garioch7

Senior Contributor Location: Port Hood, Nova Scotia, Canada Joined: Feb 07, 2011 06:45 Messages: 852 Offline

Mar 15, 2015 06:19

Ninjacurlyfry:

Thank you for your dxdiag file. You are correct. Your computer is under-powered for a happy video editing experience. Below is the link for PD13 minimum specs, which are pretty much unchanged, if at all, from PD12.

http://www.cyberlink.com/products/powerdirector-deluxe/spec_en_CA.html

You are very low on system RAM for a 64-bit version of Windows: only 4 GB. Your free space on your primary OS drive, where PD stores its temporary and cache files during rendering, is also very marginal: only 22.2 GB. There have been lots of discussions about how much free space is required. The consensus seems to be 50 to 100 GB free on the OS drive for HD editing.

I don't see that your video card is among those listed as supported in the minimum specs.

The problem does seem to be related to a graphics or codec issue. Did you try disabling hardware acceleration, if it is enabled?

I am not sure what else to suggest. It would be great if you had a friend with PD12 installed so you could try rendering on his/her computer and determine conclusively whether it is your computer or something to do with the video capture. From what you have said though, the video capture seems to be an unlikely culprit since you report that the editing preview is fine.

Apart from that, I am out of suggestions. Stand by though, there is a lot expertise on this Forum. Good luck and have a great day.

Regards,
-Phil Windows 10 Pro x64
Dell XPS 8930
Intel CoreT i7 (4.6 GHz)
32 GB DDR4-2666 RAM
1 TB PCIe -x4 SSD
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060
PD14 Ultimate x64, 4207
CD4 Ultra and AD6 Ultra
Bleeping Computer Malware Response Instructor

NinjaCurlyfry

Newbie Joined: Mar 14, 2015 10:11 Messages: 9 Offline

Mar 15, 2015 12:58

My dad is using a LOT of space on both of my hard drives, but he is going to move it all off today. I also plan on upgrading my RAM as I have needed to do that for awhile...

Well, I have done a LOT of testing. I have found that if I save to WMV, the color is almost the same as the original. (Still has a slight yellow tint to it.) I have checked which formats LAV video is set to decode and WMV is not checked. (Meaning that LAV will not decode WMV right?) Does this mean that the codec pack is at fault? Because if it isn't decoding WMV, that means something else is.

I tried removing all codecs and re-installing many different packs such as CCCP, ffDshow, and maybe a few others. The problem is that if I try to render a fraps video using CCCP, I get this error:

Media Source Error [Error Code2]:
A media file in your project may not fully comply with the file format standard, or your system may lack the required decoding components for this file. Please try again using another media file format.

The result is a black video with audio.
If I use ffDshow, PowerDirector can't open a Fraps file at all!

The only way I can edit a fraps video is if I install the K-lite codec pack. I'm not sure why this is...
I still can't solve the color issue. I have tried messing with the color space settings in the codec preferences, but nothing has helped. I honestly don't know what all of the different color spaces are and what ones to keep checked or if messing with them will help at all... so I'm doing this blindly, but still. Nothing has worked. The video is still over saturated.

I have messed with many different output options in the codec configuration settings, but I still can't fix the messed up color. I don't think it's a hardware problem, but a software problem. I'd like to try everything I can before upgrading. If I spend a bunch of money to upgrade my pc and the color is still messed up, then I have accomplished nothing and have lost money in the process.

I also apologize if I am using encoding/decoding wrong. I'm still kind of confused with all of these terms!

borgus1

Senior Contributor Joined: Feb 27, 2013 00:33 Messages: 1318 Offline

Mar 15, 2015 14:42

Quote:
Here's the original MC screenshot with no PD rendering. (What I'm seeing): http://i.imgur.com/zUnrEa9.png

In the attachments here you will see the original, as referenced from your URL above, and an oCAM capture of same.
At http://hevanet.com/hb/Produce.wmv there's a short low-res video of your original still, as produced in PD11.

The saturation of all three is virtually identical to this eye. If anything, the wmv may be a bit "washed out" by comparison.


Filename	orig.png	Download
Description
Filesize	267 Kbytes
Downloaded:	591 time(s)


Filename	oCam.jpg	Download
Description
Filesize	104 Kbytes
Downloaded:	557 time(s)

This message was edited 4 times. Last update was at Mar 15. 2015 14:47

NinjaCurlyfry

Newbie Joined: Mar 14, 2015 10:11 Messages: 9 Offline

Mar 15, 2015 15:05

Very strange... So it is definitely a problem with my computer (obviously). If your render and oCam capture are that close to the original, than there is no doubt in my mind that it's something fixable. I just don't know what to change to fix this! If it really is a hardware problem, what do I need to upgrade/change? If it's a software problem, what do I change, add, and/or remove? I have no idea where to begin! Anyone have any ideas? I'm lost. XD

ynotfish

Senior Contributor Location: N.S.W. Australia Joined: May 08, 2009 02:06 Messages: 9977 Online

Mar 15, 2015 15:45

Hi NinjaCurlyFry -

It's a tricky one to resolve because there's so much at play. First, there's how well your monitor displays the colours. Then there's how well the capture software interprets it. Then there's how well PDR produces the captured video. I don't think it's necessarily a hardware issue. Nor is the issue just PDR, as you first suspected.

I did a bit of testing (as borgus1 did), first using OCam with different colour conversion settings then with my go-to capture software, Camtasia Studio. Camtasia Studio also uses a proprietary codec (TechSmith Screen Capture Codec). OCam (here) captured more saturated colours but Camtasia was truer. PDR rendered the captured videos fairly accurately. I didn't test FRAPS, but I'd probably find something similar to what you have.

The attached screenshots show the comparison between your original MC screenshot, the captured video & the rendered version.

Sorry - I don't have an answer for you. It is very dependent on so many things.

Cheers - Tony


Filename	MC-CS-PD.jpg	Download
Description	Camtasia Studio
Filesize	516 Kbytes
Downloaded:	93 time(s)


Filename	MC-OC-PD2.jpg	Download
Description	OCam (best colour)
Filesize	523 Kbytes
Downloaded:	97 time(s)


Filename	MC-OC-PD1.jpg	Download
Description	OCam (default)
Filesize	511 Kbytes
Downloaded:	91 time(s)

Visit PDtoots. PowerDirector Tutorials, tips, free resources & more. Subscribe!
Full linked Tutorial Catalog PDtoots happily supports fellow PowerDirector users!

ynotfish

Senior Contributor Location: N.S.W. Australia Joined: May 08, 2009 02:06 Messages: 9977 Online

Mar 16, 2015 06:37

For completeness, I did the same test using FRAPS. Admittedly I wasn't actually capturing a game, so that may have had an effect on the result... BUT

I didn't find the same increase in vibrancy/saturation that you did (only slight) - either in the capture or the produced file. The result is attached.

Cheers - Tony


Filename	MC-FRAPS-PD.jpg	Download
Description
Filesize	532 Kbytes
Downloaded:	103 time(s)

This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at Mar 16. 2015 06:38

Visit PDtoots. PowerDirector Tutorials, tips, free resources & more. Subscribe!
Full linked Tutorial Catalog PDtoots happily supports fellow PowerDirector users!

NinjaCurlyfry

Newbie Joined: Mar 14, 2015 10:11 Messages: 9 Offline

Mar 16, 2015 21:37

Is it possible for someone to show how they have their pc set up? So color profiles, what codec pack you're using, codec set up, etc. I know that sounds crazy, but I'm really running out of ideas... Maybe if someone could show me how their pc is set up, I could figure out what's wrong with mine! Or maybe I could just use the same type of settings and see if that works. Since no one really has any ideas, but all of your tests have been fine, maybe I could learn from how you have things set up.

This message was edited 2 times. Last update was at Mar 17. 2015 10:18

PlaySound

Senior Contributor Joined: Dec 02, 2010 10:26 Messages: 2031 Offline

Mar 17, 2015 16:52

Eu não segui tudo isso post, talves eu vou repetir o que já foi pensado shown.My é sobre a placa de vídeo que tem tudo a ver com a formação da imagem, cor etc ... Faça uma instalação limpa do placa de vídeo com drivers atuais e deixe a configuração padrão. AMD-FX 8350 / 8GB DDR3
SSD SUV400S37240G / 2-HD WD 1TB
AMD Radeon R9 270 / AOC M2470SWD
Windows 7-64 / PD16 Ultimate

NinjaCurlyfry

Newbie Joined: Mar 14, 2015 10:11 Messages: 9 Offline

Mar 17, 2015 21:03

Before I reply to PlaySound, I still need someone to share thier setup. (More information in my post above.) I would really appreciate it if someone would do that! I really need something to help and I think that will do the trick! Thank you for your suggestion PlaySound, however there is no way that this will possibly work. I will try it anyways so that no one gets mad at me for not even trying. I have unistalled the drivers and re-installed the latest ones (Which were already installed as stated earlier in this thread "I have updated all drivers") and I left the default settings. Did it work? Short answer: No. Long answer: Graphic cards do not affect rendering unless hardware is checked. Even then, I am not sure if it uses the GPU, CPU or both. Anyways, My problem here is with rendering and since hardware encoding was unchecked, there is no way that the graphics card has anything to do with encoding. It does have to do with how my screen is displayed, but if that was the problem than this forum post wouldn't exist as I wouldn't be aware of any problem. If the screen was the problem, then all of the videos would be messed up. If all of the videos are messed up, then they all look the same. Therefore there would be no difference in the original file and rendered video. Anyways, it did not work. I wish it did, but I knew it wouldn't so my hopes were not very high from the start.

Btw, I may have misunderstood what PlaySound was saying as I don't speak that language. I had to use some translators and they didn't make too much sense, so I was guessing a lot. I also don't know if you are able to read English, so you may not be able to read this.

This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at Mar 17. 2015 21:04

ynotfish

Senior Contributor Location: N.S.W. Australia Joined: May 08, 2009 02:06 Messages: 9977 Online

Mar 18, 2015 02:30

Quote: Is it possible for someone to show how they have their pc set up?

Hi again -

I'm happy to show you anything you want to see about how my PC is set up, but I don't really know what to show you. The other variable we haven't mentioned is how a particular media player interprets colour in a video. The same video can look quite different in different players.

The PC I've been using to post the results above is an older i7-920 with a NVIDIA GTX 260. In the NVIDIA control panel, I have the video colour settings at Full (0-255) with no enhancements checked. I have K-LIte Mega codec pack installed.

I can see you're (understandably) struggling to make sense of it & you're trying to find a cause/solution. I honestly don't think it's purely the way PDR is rendering your FRAPS captures. As shown in the screenshots I posted, the same thing doesn't apply on every PC. I think you're on the right track looking at what PC settings might be affecting your renders.

Not sure if this will help, but something might: <a>http://www.codecguide.com/faq_display_issues.htm</a>

Cheers - Tony
Visit PDtoots. PowerDirector Tutorials, tips, free resources & more. Subscribe!
Full linked Tutorial Catalog PDtoots happily supports fellow PowerDirector users!

NinjaCurlyfry

Newbie Joined: Mar 14, 2015 10:11 Messages: 9 Offline

Mar 18, 2015 12:09

THANK YOU SO MUCH EVERYONE! Ynotfish, thank you for sharing your setup! PlaySound was on the right track! It was my graphics card! The only problem is that my graphics card, by default, is set to have a LOT of "enhancements"! I had uploaded a few clips to YT, and the color problem was still there! It turns out that also by default, it is set to apply those "enhancements" to internet video as well! I also have another computer, but it has an ATI AMD graphics card as well, so the all of the settings were the same! (Because those are the defaults) I assumed that since the video still looked bad on both computers even once uploaded, it must be that the rendering was the problem. Turns out is just some settings! I went in and turned off all of the enhancements, and *BAM*, it looks perfect now! No quality loss, no color change, it's perfect! So, thank you PlaySound for saying that! You had the right idea, but since there are stupid defaults with AMD cards (And probably other graphics cards), leaving the settings the same wouldn't fix anything. I had to actually remove settings.

Thank you everyone for testing and helping me! I am now a bit more educated then I used to be. Even though it wasn't neccassary for me to learn a lot of the things I learned XD Thank you ynotfish for telling me that you had all enhancements off. If you hadn't said that, I would have never thought of trying that! Thanks again everyone! ^-^

This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at Mar 18. 2015 12:11