Review color, HDR and editor exports
Check the actual export when colors shift or a browser shows a washed-out image.
3 min read · Updated November 3, 2026For HDR footage, editor color changes or inconsistent player appearance.
Describe what changed before choosing a fix
Soft edges, muted contrast, clipped highlights and a color cast are different symptoms. Compare the same moment in the source and export. A larger resolution does not fix incorrect color interpretation, and a bitrate increase does not perform tone mapping.
Record which player, display and file produced the observation. An editor preview and a browser can interpret or display a file differently. A screenshot of an HDR scene is not automatically a faithful reference for another display.
Separate dimensions from color metadata
Resolution is the pixel grid. Color metadata can describe primaries, transfer characteristics, range and matrix interpretation. HDR labels depend on relevant evidence rather than the number of pixels. A 4K SDR file and a 1080p HDR file are not contradictions.
Metadata supports interpreting encoded values; it is not a grading recipe. Blindly removing fields can change how a player interprets the samples without correcting the samples themselves. Fulres’s preservation checks and a visual color evaluation answer different questions.
| Property | Question it helps answer | Insufficient evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Dimensions | How large is the pixel grid? | A 4K filename does not establish HDR. |
| Transfer / primaries / range | How are image values described? | A vivid thumbnail is not a color-metadata reading. |
| Display and player | Can this setup show this format correctly? | A difference between players does not isolate the export. |
| Tone mapping / grading | How was the appearance converted or adjusted? | Container preparation does not perform either operation. |
Compare the source and export systematically
- Locate a scene with both bright highlights and midtones.
- Check the intended project and export color format in the editor. Do not infer it from the filename.
- Play the source and export in a setup that supports their formats. Compare the same scene.
- If only one player looks wrong, investigate compatibility before repeatedly re-exporting.
- If an SDR destination is needed, create a separate intentional SDR export and inspect it. Keep the original HDR file.
Use file inspection as supporting evidence
FFprobe can show color-related stream fields when they exist. This read-only example selects the first video stream and prints a compact JSON description. Empty or unknown fields remain unknown; they do not establish SDR by default.
These fields are clues for interpretation, not proof that every display will render identical highlights or that a platform retained a source’s HDR behavior.
ffprobe -v error -select_streams v:0 -show_entries stream=codec_name,width,height,color_range,color_space,color_transfer,color_primaries -of json "video.mp4"Understand what Fulres preserves
Fulres prepares supported container metadata and checks encoded media and relevant properties. It does not run a color-grading pass or synthesize an HDR conversion. If the source already has clipped highlights or an unintended grade, preparation is not a repair tool.
If HDR or Dolby Vision footage is incompatible with the chosen player, keep the original and test a separate reviewed SDR export. Do not claim the conversion worked merely because its extension changed or its metadata no longer says HDR.
Check color after publication without overclaiming
Read the color evidence for the identified stream in Check video. Browser, Embed and Mobile web can expose different files. A valid reading on one cannot fill a missing reading on another.
If no verified color metadata was returned, leave HDR/SDR unavailable. Then use a separate visual comparison for appearance. This avoids presenting a colorful frame as a measurement or treating a missing field as a platform verdict.
- Source and export color intentions recorded.
- Comparable scene and supported playback setup used.
- Original HDR file retained when making SDR delivery media.
- Published-stream identity kept with any color reading.