Viewport Override for Color Management or a node-based Color Management option
I usually render my images out with Filmic color management applied to preserve the highlights and take care of the look in post-processing later.
However, while working on my scenes, the Filmic look isn't nice to look at, as it's pale and washed out. For that reason I work in sRGB mode. The problem is that I always have to switch back to Filmic management before I render the scenes. And as it happens, I sometimes forget to do so. In that case I always have to cancel my renderings or re-render them.
So I'd appreciate an override option for color management that applies to the Viewport modes - especially Material Preview Mode. Not sure if Rendered Preview should be included, but I for myself would not mind. Maybe make this one and additional option.
*** As @thinsoldier suggested, maybe a node-based override could be an option as well. ***
Maybe there are other users who might like that as well.
7 Comments
I dont see the point to working with sRGB then rendering with filmic.... and the reason "it isnt nice to look at" is not really valid.
I dont want to be rude or anything, but the whole point of the filmic LUT is to display too high values that your screen wouldnt normaly support so... working with sRGB (clamped values) then rendering with filmic (crushed values in order to be correctly display) dosent make any sense since all the lighting you would have done in your scene would no longer be correct.
Usually, you choose one LUT at the very beginning of your project and you stick with it until the very end.
* @Shimoon *
It's actually a principle that makes a lot of sense and is used in other areas as well.
As I also have a photography background, I am used to a similar situation on my digital camera. The pictures that I shoot are captured in RAW format, which is something similar to the "Filmic" process. RAW images look flat, contrast-less and boring. That's why in the viewfinder of the camera, you look at a processed image that is closer to what a finished image would look like in terms of colors, saturation and contrast. It might not be the processing you will eventually go for, but it looks closer to "reality" than the washed out RAW image, which you would not want to look at in the viewfinder. The same goes for movie cameras. When they use a sLog color space, they would not want to look at it on the view-finder and rather use an adjusted output to better see the final result. Yet the the data is saved out in a color space that is tough to look at, but gives you all the opportunities later in the processing pipeline.
So while I set my scene up in the viewport, I don't care if the highlights don't contain all the details. It's more important that I see a result that is somewhat close to what it should look like in the end so I can adjust my colors and values accordingly. The Filmic output will look different, yet I can pull all the information from it, when I need them.
Hope this makes sense.
* @Andreas * Have you tried the Look: High Contrast options?
* @thinsoldier * I did and it looks OK. But it doesn't change the principle. I don't want to "burn" any processing into my exported images so I have full control over them in post-processing. Filmic is great for that. I just need a good visual presentation which sRGB as well as some of the contrasty looks deliver. Yet they are not what I want exported. As I said. I already use that workflow and it's fine. It's just that I always have to make sure that I set the Color Management back to Filmic each time before I render. And that is a bit annoying and sometimes I even forget to do so. I just don't want to have to think about it all the time.
* @Andreas * In addition to your request it might be good to have a color management node in the compositor as well.
You can change the color management after you render and before you save.
If filmic is active and you want to save standard you can just un-check the "save as render" option in the file saving window. Unfortunately it doesn't work the opposite way which would be compatible with your desired workflow.
* @thinsoldier * That might be an option as well. Overall it should not be too confusing though and make sense to everybody, including new users.
I would go one step further and implement a viewport menu item for specifying the viewport colorspace transform. Nuke and Maya have this. Very useful.