Color Processing With Active Metadata^™ … Without Rendering

First Light is an application CineForm includes with Neo3D / 4K / HD for "developing" CineForm media including

• Primary color correction;
• 3D stereo adjustments; and
• Text and graphic overlays.

Image adjustments made in First Light are always non-destructive because they are never flattened into your media. Plus image manipulations are always performed in real time during playback — including primary color correction, 3D LUTs, 3D stereo adjustments, text/graphic overlays, and much more — using CineForm's Active Metadata processor that is part of the CineForm decoder.

So How Does It Work? Active Metadata, which accompanies your CineForm media, can be thought of as a separate "layer" from the underlying video information, and is stored in a database separate from your CineForm media. This technique means Active Metadata is never "flattened" into your media which can cause loss of headroom and even clipping. When manipulating images using First Light, changes are immediately written to the Active Metadata database (not into the file itself) and changes are immediately visible in the playback window of any calling application. But remember, those changes are always non-destructive, and they are compatible with any application that calls a CineForm file.

Compatible Everywhere - An Active Metadata workflow is extremely flexible — all CineForm files with Active Metadata are completely cross-platform and cross-applications compatible. Compatibility is assured because Active Metadata processing is performed after the base image is decoded (beneath the DirectShow or QuickTime layer), but before handing off the image(s) to the calling application such as Premiere Pro, After Effects, Final Cut Pro, Media Composer (v5), and more.

What is the Workflow? You will normally launch First Light to run in parallel with an NLE or Effects application. When First Light is in the foreground you can adjust parameters on CineForm files. When you bring the NLE or Effects application into the foreground and hit "Play" the adjustment will immediately appear in real time with no rendering required.

Tangent Wave 3-ball control panel - First Light directly supports the Tangent Wave panel to improve workflow efficiency. When using the Wave panel there is no need to bring First Light into the foreground to make adjustments. Adjustments made on the panel communicate with First Light running in the background, all while keeping your NLE or Effects software running in the foreground.

First Light Features vary slightly depending on which Neo Family product member with which it is included, so check for details within each Neo Family member.

Active Metadata Features

• Non-destructive and keyframeable primary color correction as Active Metadata for CineForm media
  • - White Balance — auto-select or manually adjust
  • - Exposure
  • - Contrast
  • - Saturation
  • - Lift / Gamma / Gain
  • - 64x64x64 3D LUTs (Look-Up Tables) for color mapping
• Keyframeable crop plus pan-and-scan
• Define DeBayer algorithm used when decoding CineForm RAW media
• Selectable decoder curve
• 3D stereo adjustments including:
  • - Convergence adjustments (horizontal, vertical, rotation (skew))
  • - Disparity Zoom to adjust for focal length mismatch
• Additional 3D stereo adjustments (Neo3D only):
  • - Keyframeability for all convergence adjustments
  • - Independent Left / Right eye adjustments (color / image flip, etc)
  • - Keystoning to adjust for toe-in/out problems
  • - Floating windows to manage edge violations
  • - Ghost busting to fix ghosting visible on some passive displays
  • - Depth tilt to adjust relative depth of primary objects in a scene
  • - Dual-link stereo playout to drive RealD, Dolby, or XpanD 3D projectors

Passive Metadata Features

• Overlay engine for text and graphics
  • - text overlay plus choice of font, size, color, stroke, opacity, in/out, fade; independent parallax adjustment
  • - graphics (PNG) overlay with scale, opacity, in/out, fade; independent parallax adjustment
  • - tools overlay including histogram, waveform, and scopes
  • - metadata overlay for timecode, file name, and other passive metadata
  • - grid overlay for object placement or 3D adjustments
  • - free-form placement of objects
• View all passive metadata fields within a file
• Add passive metadata fields (future)

Playback Controls

• Global Metadata Playback controls: Select ON or OFF for each Active Metadata field
• Loop control
• Timecode
• Select full or partial resolution decoding
• Choice of stereo playback mode:
  • - 2D: Left eye or right eye
  • - Anaglyph: Red-Cyan,Amber-Blue, Amber-Magenta
  • - Passive Polarized: side-by-side, over-under, interlace (fields)
  • - sequential frame (active shutter) - Windows only for now
  • - Free View - for external 3D viewer
  • - Adjustment Mode: Onion Skin, Difference
• Additional choices of stereo playback mode (Neo3D only):
  • - dual-link stereo playout to drive RealD, Dolby, or XpanD 3D projectors
  • - Split Mode - helpful for independent eye color correction

Project Features

• Support for Tangent Wave 3-ball control panel
• Export 64x64x64 3D LUTs for use with other media
• Define "projects": each project can be multiple clips — for instance, a scene or other collection of clips
• Copy Active Metadata from one clip and Paste to one or more clips in a project
• Save/Load "Snapshot": a Snapshot is a set of Active Metadata parameters
• Define multiple color databases. Select active database from list.
• Export color database and associated Active Metadata for moving to a different machine
• "Find Clip" instructs First Light to find the clip and frame that was last decoded in another application (FCP, Premiere Pro, etc)