How to Fix RGB Gamut Excursions with Software (mostly)

Part 2: Rethinking Saturation in DaVinci Resolve

How would you like to spend a week color correcting a show that’s been in production and post-production for 8 months—only to have it rejected by a broadcast, cable or internet network?

Just when your client thinks they’ve made it to the finish line, the line judge throws a Red Card and puts their show on the bench… and it’s your fault! If you’ve been running DaVinci Resolve with ‘Broadcast Safe’ enabled, and you’ve been managing your overall saturation levels—then the likely culprit for your rejection? RGB Gamut excursions.

Dealing with RGB Gamut errors can be a nightmare.

RGB Gamut errors are difficult to identify and very hard for post-production software to manage. Here on Mixing Light, we’ve talked about this problem many times:

• RGB Gamut Errors: Robbie talks about the overall problem and a few strategies for dealing with these errors
• Legalizing Video Parts 1-6: Robbie and I tackle how to legalize in Speedgrade, PremierePro, DaVinci Resolve and using Hardware Legalizers. The link I’ve provided takes you to the part of the series where I talk about DIY Legalization. Once there, just above the headline of that Insight are the links to the rest of that Series—including, how to legalize with the Harris DL-860 that I talk about in this Insight
• From the Mailbag—Legalizing without a Legalizer: Robbie, Dan and I chat about our legalization strategies in this roundtable discussion.

In this Insight, I rethink some of the tools we can use for legalization in Resolve.

I’ll also echo some key points in our earlier legalization videos, including how you can guess if you’ll have an RGB Gamut error by using the Parade Scopes in DaVinci Resolve.

For me, the key is to use two scopes provided by Divergent Media’s Scopebox. If you want to learn how I’ve set up my scopes, here’s my Scopebox overview video. I’ve since made a few modifications, but my basic setup is still the same.

Enjoy!

-pi