topic Re: 6D low light video in EOS DSLR & Mirrorless Cameras

6D low light video

StreetFighter — Wed, 17 Dec 2014 21:36:38 GMT

Hello,

I'm trying to shoot video in low light and I'm getting some extra hue and contrast. When I shoot stills, what I see on the screen is what I see on my computer. When I flip over to video (with out changing ISO or WB settings) the images are darker and have a green hue.

I need what I'm seeing on the screen of the camera to be what I see on my computer monitor after I download of the card.

Any ideas?

Current setting: Exp 1/30, ISO 8000, WB 3200, f-stop 2.8

What I've tried: IPB and All-I compression, different SD cards rated for different speeds, formatting the card with the camera, and shrinking still images to 1920X1280 - Same results ever case

Re: 6D low light video

Skirball — Wed, 17 Dec 2014 22:01:19 GMT

I don't do video, so I can't help much. But a few things come to mind:

I don't know about you, but my stills (RAW) are always darker than they are on my camera (6D); which is a jpg and might be part of the source. It wasn't near as noticable on my 450D. I just learned to adapt my eye and I check my histogram anyway. But I'd say the actual image looks about a 1/2 stop darker on my computer than the camera. I don't think it's abnormal to have small differences between the camera screen and computer. THere are too many variables to deal with to be consistent.

3200K is fairly cool, I'd usually only be that low if shooting under tungsten. The green makes me think there is some fluorescent lighting? IF so I'd eliminate that first.

I don't think it's a card issue or storage. I doubt it's even compression, but you never know. I'd think it lies in your settings and lighting. Shooting in low light is always difficult. Usually, to do it well, you shoot in more light than you'd think, and tone it down in post if needed. Are you going for a dark look, or just forced to shoot in a dark setting? Can you use lights? Do you have lights?

Re: 6D low light video

StreetFighter — Wed, 17 Dec 2014 22:41:41 GMT

Thanks for the reply!

I need to shoot video in natural light just before dawn. I'm calibrating my settings by shooting in a store room with the only light coming through a mostly closed door. And yes, that light is floressent. I have lights, but I almost always have to shoot under natural light (in other words I'm required to try and capture what the eye would see), so I'm not used to using them. I'm going to take some shots and video after the sun goes down here and see what results I get.

Thanks again!

Re: 6D low light video

Skirball — Thu, 18 Dec 2014 15:41:01 GMT

So, are you saying there is natural light, and fluorescent? IF that's the case, that is the cause of the green tint.

Fluorescent is very difficult to work with. It's a sickly green color and can vary widely with different lamps. Most photographers tend to eliminate it, if possible. Can you maybe get your own light and put it in the room where the fluorescent is coming from, and turn that one off?

Re: 6D low light video

StreetFighter — Thu, 18 Dec 2014 15:59:38 GMT

So here's the problem I'm having at this point. Below is the test I ran last night. On the right is the still photo and on the left is video. All the settings listed in my first post were used in both cases. You can see how much darker the video is. Also, when I'm shooting video, what I see on the LED screen on the camera is more like the picture on the right.

I can't use any other lights, my job requires that I shoot with what is there.

Let me know if you have any suggestions.

Re: 6D low light video

TCampbell — Thu, 18 Dec 2014 16:48:30 GMT

You would not realistically be able to light that scene with your own lights anyway.

Can you post the exposure settings (ISO, shutter speed, and aperture) for the still shot and also tell us what settings you are using for video?

EDIT: Ok, I did see you have your still image exposure settings listed at the bottom of your first post.

What video speed are you using? 24, 30, 60?

As for colors... I see the sodium lights on the fight, but from the color cast on the left I can infer you've got a mercury light just out of frame. Mercury will give a green cast. Sodium will give a yellow/orange cast. Neither of them are realistic lighting. If you white balance for the mercury then the sodium will become a more intense orange. If you white balance for the sodium then the mercury will become a much stronger green. You can only split the difference by using a manual white balance here (it is what it is... it's physics. You wont be able to white balance for both at the same time.

As Robert points out... the LCD screen is not a color-calibrated display (this is true of every digital camera.) It's just an approximation. Color proofing and adjustment have to be done in post processing.

Re: 6D low light video

RobertTheFat — Thu, 18 Dec 2014 16:39:34 GMT

@Skirball wrote:
I don't know about you, but my stills (RAW) are always darker than they are on my camera (6D); which is a jpg and might be part of the source. It wasn't near as noticable on my 450D. I just learned to adapt my eye and I check my histogram anyway. But I'd say the actual image looks about a 1/2 stop darker on my computer than the camera. I don't think it's abnormal to have small differences between the camera screen and computer. THere are too many variables to deal with to be consistent.

The most obvious explanation for that phenomenon (which means that you've probably already considered it and ruled it out) is that you've turned up the brightness of the camera's display screen. That setting is independent of all else, and it's easy to turn it up when the ambient light is high and then later forget that you did it. And maybe you didn't have the screen turned up as high on your 450D.

Also, of course, even a RAW image gets darker if subjected to any white balance correction (because that correction can only subtract, not add, light). I'd expect the screen to display the corrected image, but conceivably it doesn't.

Re: 6D low light video

Mykolas — Thu, 18 Dec 2014 16:56:51 GMT

StreetFighter,

If set, the brightness of an image or video may be corrected automatically by a feature called the Auto Lighting Optimizer. In some instances it can be or is disabled. Maybe it is set for still images, but it is off on your camera for video. Press the "Q" button in both still and video shooting modes and make sure the Auto Lighting Optimizer matches. If it is turned off for video, turn it off for stills, then take another set of samples and compare them.

If this is a time sensitive-matter, additional support options are available at Contact Us.

Re: 6D low light video

Skirball — Thu, 18 Dec 2014 17:13:38 GMT

@RobertTheFat wrote:
@Skirball wrote:
I don't know about you, but my stills (RAW) are always darker than they are on my camera (6D); which is a jpg and might be part of the source. It wasn't near as noticable on my 450D. I just learned to adapt my eye and I check my histogram anyway. But I'd say the actual image looks about a 1/2 stop darker on my computer than the camera. I don't think it's abnormal to have small differences between the camera screen and computer. THere are too many variables to deal with to be consistent.
The most obvious explanation for that phenomenon (which means that you've probably already considered it and ruled it out) is that you've turned up the brightness of the camera's display screen. That setting is independent of all else, and it's easy to turn it up when the ambient light is high and then later forget that you did it. And maybe you didn't have the screen turned up as high on your 450D.

Also, of course, even a RAW image gets darker if subjected to any white balance correction (because that correction can only subtract, not add, light). I'd expect the screen to display the corrected image, but conceivably it doesn't.

Yes, that was the first thing that crossed my mind, but not just that the setting was turned up, but that the display is simply brighter. Although my old 450D seemed to be closer to the actual exposure it was terrible in the shadows. Things would look black on the camera but I'd still have detail on the actual photo.

I didn't bother looking for a brightness setting on my 6D for several reasons. 1) the brightness is really nice when you're out in bright sunlight; 2) I recognize there are far too many variables to expect any consistency between a small jpg with settings applied on a 3" backlit LCD to a full sized RAW file on a calibrated IPS monitor in a dim room; 3) I check my historgram constantly, I never trust what I see on the image, it's just a preview to get you in the ballpark; and 4) the IQ and recovery on the 6D is so good that I know if the image looks decent on the camera then I'll be able to make it work in post.

Re: 6D low light video

StreetFighter — Thu, 18 Dec 2014 18:06:00 GMT

Using 30 right now, my boss doesn't want me to change that, but I would like to get your imput on it.

Thanks for the input on the lightining effects, this helps

Re: 6D low light video

StreetFighter — Thu, 18 Dec 2014 18:09:09 GMT

I thought you might have nailed it, then I checked the settings and the Auto Lighting Optimizer was off for both video and stills.

My solution in the mean time is to use an external monitor. I'm currently working on adjusting the setting of the moniter such that it will look as close as possible to what I see on the computer post shoot.

Thanks for the input

Re: 6D low light video

TCampbell — Thu, 18 Dec 2014 19:19:40 GMT

Ultimately what you see on the camera's LCD screen doesn't really matter -- especially when it comes to color.

The camera records "data"... the monitor presents the data as colors, but all that can be adjusted. Your video software will handle that.

You would want to use a calibrated monitor (use a calibration tool to make sure your monitor is accurately displaying colors). Otherwise everything you do to make it look right to you all goes out the window as soon as it's displayed on someone else's monitor.