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How to use MJPEG in Premiere without banding (Mainly Windows Users)


Snowbro
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Andrew Reid made a detailed blog post, on the banding induced by trying to use the MJPEG codec in Premiere Pro, 3 years ago (still not fixed). He suggested to convert to ProRes, but I prefer Windows and I was unable to find much on making it work flawlessly. Andrew's 2015 post https://www.eoshd.com/2015/01/is-adobe-premiere-to-blame-for-banding-in-8bit-dslr-footage-canon-1d-c/. I actually had tested a conversion to ProRes in Davinci Resolve 15 & Final Cut Pro X, from my MacBook and I noticed more IQ loss on every codec of ProRes I tried vs Avid (shrug). 

Here are the differences I found: 

Non-Converted 

 NonConvertedMJPEG.thumb.jpg.37dca1f09e605c7cbe60b0e0cbb8f6a7.jpg

Converted 

AvidConverted.thumb.jpg.322ab8f3e43b588a06e95782e838fba6.jpg

You can see a major difference in the sky when desaturated with a curve adjustment. The images were compressed within the forum, so it might be somewhat harder to see, but the original files are quite dramatic. 

Quick Steps:

  1. Use Davinci Resolve 15: I used the free version which only allows an export at 3,840 x 2,160, but you can use a wide aspect timeline or use the paid version. 
  2. Install Avid Codecs: http://avid.force.com/pkb/articles/en_US/download/Avid-QuickTime-Codecs-LE
  3. Export Settings: I noticed much more banding in anything lower than DNxHR HQX 10-bit. Also do not have data levels at "Full" this will ruin your gama. IMG_20180427_043116_554.thumb.jpg.d0ffed8c33c91766cb0da39631483e37.jpg

You should retain nearly all of the quality from the original video files, by using these settings. Let me know if you have any other questions. 

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