Do the shadows seem too dark?

[Paul Iddon]

I noticed a while back that the overall video seemed to be darker than it once was - and I'm thinking there may be a bit of an issue.

Currently running the latest stable firmware - but I think the shadow areas seem too dark - I don't think it's the camera angle sky/road ratio.

I have added 2 clips, heading in the opposite direction in the second from the first

What do you think? Is it me being overly critical?

If I adjust the EV it will affect the (brighter) sky too much...

Opinions on anything you may think relevant guys?

Paul.

 

[dala]

Only return to version 2.4
version 2.7 and higher have a problem with dark recording

 

[Dashmellow]

I think the shadow areas seem too dark - I don't think it's the camera angle sky/road ratio.

It does seem as if the default contrast is set a bit too high in the firmware. The saturation seems slightly high in the first clip too, although reducing the contrast might fix that.

A couple of my earliest dash cams from 10-12 years ago had a contrast setting in the menu. We don't really see that any more.

One of my favorite things about the Mobius platform is the amazing level of control the user has over the imaging parameters in the Advanced Image Settings GUI window. It would be great to see @viofo explore the possibility of introducing more user level imaging controls into their cameras. It may depend on the chip-set whether it could be done but contrast, sharpness and saturation controls would be great options to have in the menu!

 

[Nigel]

What do you think? Is it me being overly critical?

I think the shadows are a little darker than normal, but it is partly the midsummer lighting.
There is detail in the shadows, so as long as you watch it on a bright monitor, away from the sunlight, then it is OK.
If you reduce the contrast so that the shadows are more visible then you will lose detail in the mid-range.

I think some of the other dashcams have the shadows too bright these days. Partly because people then say, ooh, look how bright that camera is in the dark, it must have great night vision, but it should look dark at night, because nights are dark, and if you turn up the exposure to make it look like daylight at night, then you get more motion blur and more overexposure on bright objects.

You should check it using more normal British weather before complaining... If the bicycles become invisible in the shadows, even when you watch the video at night, then the shadows are indeed too dark.

 

[Paul Iddon]

Just compared screengrabs from FW2.7 and then rolled back to FW2.4 - drove the same route a few minutes apart to try and keep lighting reasonably consistent:

FW2.7:

FW2.4:

Oddly though, after putting the 2.4 back on, the cam restarted after about 90 seconds and both front and rear files were corrupted. Need to see if this repeats on subsequent journeys.


Next option is 2.5 (2x version (806 and 907)?


Paul.

 

[Nigel]

Just compared screengrabs from FW2.7 and then rolled back to FW2.4 - drove the same route a few minutes apart to try and keep lighting reasonably consistent:

So which is the better image?

I suspect most people would choose the brighter image?

The darker image has more information, there is less overexposed sky, and it achieves that without losing detail in the dark areas. OK, there is a slight loss of dark detail, there is one level of dark lost and the next is a bit blocky, but most of the difference is a downwards gamma adjustment that just compresses the brightness levels freeing up some space to store highlight detail in the clouds and otherwise overexposed number plates. It probably also has less motion blur.

If people find it too dark, maybe they need brighter monitors!

 

[dala]

If anyone has a polarizing filter on their camera with version 2.7
a front calibration setting of EV +0.6 and above is required

 

[Dashmellow]

If people find it too dark, maybe they need brighter monitors!

The problem with this thinking is that it ignores the fact that sooner or later one may have to hand off unaltered dash cam video clips to a third party such as law enforcement, an insurance company or an attorney.

We need our dash cam videos to look as good as possible on a wide range of unknown monitors belonging to whomever in the chain of custody may need to view them.

Again, this is why I advocate for better user imaging settings which would allow for tweaking the results that come directly from the camera.

 

[dala]

The big problem is that Viofo takes a long time to respond to negative user feedback. Version 2.8 - locked files + dark video

 

[Paul Iddon]

I found 2.4 shut down down the cam and restarted 3 more times in the last two journeys, each time leaving the files corrupted and unreadable.

I have now put 2.5 (20210806) on to try.

Paul.

 

[dala]

If you use a CPL filter - you can throw it away
the update does not count on its use
very dark videos
necessary setting +1.6 to +2

 

[Paul Iddon]

This is FW 2.5 (20210806).

Seems OK to me, think I'm happy with that.

 

[Nigel]

Seems OK to me, think I'm happy with that.

Now the clouds are more overexposed, which means that some plates will be also, at least more will than before.
But as long as you can adjust it to preference using the EV setting, then it doesn't matter... except the EV setting probably doesn't give quite the same adjustment...

 

[Paul Iddon]

Sun will be gone in 4 days lol

 

[Paul Iddon]

This is FW 2.9 - no adjustments, just a random pick on todays journey around 12.30pm (1 minutes worth).

 

[hopasuss]

buddy , from where did you get FW 2.9? may i have the link to download it ?

 

[RJ1002]

buddy , from where did you get FW 2.9? may i have the link to download it ?

you can get 2.9 from there official website: https://viofo.com/content/36-viofo-a129-pro-duo-dash-cam-support/
i wonder if this fix the darkness issue.

 

[dala]

dark video solution :
1/ Downgrade to version 2.5
2/ do not buy a CPL filter from Viofo