iPod H.264 encoding in ffmpegX is darker than in QT Pro

[lkearl]

I've been encoding some .dv files for my iPod using both the Export to iPod setting in QTPro (7.0.4) and the iPod h.264 preset in ffmpegX. I'm seeing that the file produced by ffmpegX is darker than the one produced by QTPro, with the QTPro version most closely matching the original .dv file.

Is there any settings I should be using within ffmpegX to make the resulting file lighter, or anything I can do using QTPro afterwards? I'd prefer to use ffmpegX instead of QTPro for the h.264 encoding because it's faster and because it produces a file of the same quality (I set the bitrate to 500 and the Q settings on the options tab to 5 and 35) that is smaller. Thanks.

[major]

Try with and without "Decode with Quicktime" option enabled.

[lkearl]

The "decode with QuickTime" turned on or off did not make a difference. Thanks.

[rumplestiltskin]

Workaround (maybe?): Alter the .dv file in iMovie with a filter to lower the contrast. Based upon what I'm seeing in my web browser (of what you posted), it appears that the compression of H264 is changing the gamma.

[lkearl]

Using the .MOV mpeg-4 preset results in a movie that matches the original movie very well...much better than the iPod h.264 preset. The downside with the .MOV mpeg-4 method is that I have to save my file out of Final Cut Express as a .dv or else it can't be encoded (some problem with .dv in a QuickTime movie that is in a file format other than .dv).

Not a big deal, I suppose, but a nuisance if I happen to export out of FCE as a FCE format movie rather than a .dv format using the QuickTime export function.