HDR10+
Welcome to this blog post, where I examine the HDR10 files captured by the Samsung Galaxy S10. This is an ongoing post, where I shall be updating my findings as I go on.
Video on consumer devices are usually 8-bit videos.
An 8-bit file works with RGB using 256 levels per channel. An 8-bit photo can only display 16.7 million colours.
While 10-bit jumps up to 1,024 levels per channel. This means a 10-bit image can display up to 1.07 billion colors.
When it comes to colour standards, HD TVs offer an 8-bit video specification known as Rec. 709, or BT.709. HDR steps up to 10- or 12-bit Rec. 2020, or BT.2020, which represents
60 times more colour combinations with smoother shade gradations.
Therefore, a HDR10+ recording has more colour values and a larger brightness range than normal 8-bit video.
HDR10+ is also a dynamic format, meaning it masters the video for every frame, adjusting brightness values for every pixel to appear the best.
I captured some videos on the Samsung Galaxy S10,
using the h.265 HEVC HDR10+ mode.
There are some caveats to doing so though.
The HDR10+ mode can only be activated only upto 30FPS, and can be natively played only in the Video Player app.
Trying to play the files anywhere else will result in a very flat and desaturated image.
The HDR10+ mode also only records to h.265 or HEVC codec, which is a highly compressed codec, meaning, trying to edit said files will be extremely CPU intensive.
I tried to import the HEVC files into Premiere, but Premiere did not recognise the HDR metadata. It resulted in a highly contrasty image, with blownout highlights and crushed blacks. I had to lower the exposure by 3.8 stops to gain the highlights back.
After hours of scouring through the settings and the internet, I gave up on Premiere as it did not seem to want to recognise my HDR10+ files.
The only way to get Premiere to display the 10-bit files correctly is to either capture it in a codec that Premiere can identify or to apply Conversion LUTS to bring the REC2020(BT.2020) colour space back to REC709(BT.709).
Feeling low, I opened up Davinci Resolve.
Upon importing the files into Davinci Resolve, they were very flat and desaturated.
I applied some basic color-space transforms to transform this REC2020 image into a REC709 image:
Not feeling good about it, I reset the CST(Colour Space Transform) and started to tweak the contrast curve and the saturation to a point where i felt it looked good.
Upon doing this, I proceeded to open the file inside VLC to be presented with this:
VLC's metadata viewer showed that the file was encoded in the REC2020(ST2084) color space, but Resolve's built in Color Space Transform tool absolutely destroyed the images when transforming from the correct colour space.
Taking the VLC Auto-Transformed file to be the correct version, I realised that my manual adjustments were closer. So, I then set up a controlled environment, where I could test the 10-bit and the 8-bit files side by side, to check if the hassle of capturing in HDR10+ was worth it compared to the 8-bit files.
(TEST RESUTS TO BE UPDATED)
Reading your breakdown of HDR10+ sparked a memory of the first time I upgraded my living‑room TV to a model that actually supported dynamic metadata. I still recall the excitement of watching a nature documentary where the sunrise over the savanna seemed to spill color right onto the couch, each frame adjusting its brightness and contrast on the fly. The difference from the static HDR10 I’d used before was night‑and‑day; shadows retained detail without looking crushed, and the highlights never felt blown out https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Play71 It reminded me of the time I tried to calibrate a standard HDR TV manually and ended up with a washed‑out picture that ruined the mood. Since then, I’ve been a bit of a tech‑enthusiast, always…
Reading about HDR10+ took me straight back to the first time I upgraded my living‑room TV to a 4K model with dynamic metadata. I remember sitting on the couch, remote in hand, and being blown away as the colors seemed to shift subtly from scene to scene—deep shadows in a night‑time chase, then bright, almost tangible sunlight on a beach. It felt like the picture was breathing, adjusting itself to the director’s intent rather than staying flat and static https://aana.com.au/self-regulation/codes-guidelines/wagering-code/ That night I watched an old sci‑fi film I’d seen a dozen times, and suddenly the alien landscapes looked richer, the explosions more punchy, the starfields glimmering with a depth I hadn’t noticed before. It made me realize how much…
Reading about HDR10+ took me straight back to the first time I set up a 4K TV in my living room a few years ago. I remember the excitement of unboxing the new panel, plugging in the HDMI, and then scrolling through the picture settings, trying to get the colors just right. When I finally enabled HDR10+, the difference was startling—dark scenes revealed details I’d never seen before, and bright highlights felt truly punch‑bright without washing out https://www.monash.edu/ It reminded me of that one movie night where the opening sequence of a sci‑fi film seemed to leap off the screen, each explosion shimmering with a depth I hadn’t experienced on older sets. Since then I’ve been a bit of a…