HDR is available to all Frame.io customers in the Frame.io iOS app. All subscriptions support 8-bit proxies, while Enterprise subscriptions can play 10-bit HDR proxies. Playback on the web for Enterprise and non-Enterprise accounts also supports 8-bit proxies.

10-bit playback means assets will have higher color precision and more color detail. This allows for more accurate and more robust reviews. Compared to the 8-bit video, 10-bit video has the capability to show many more colors. This means that a 10-bit video can show much more detail when transitioning from one color to another than 8-bit. 8-bit can sometimes struggle with subtle gradients of color and can result in “banding,” where the image displays hard boundaries between colors instead of soft gradients.

The image below is from a 10-bit source. As you can see, the ramps transition cleanly from one end to the other.

The following image is the same set of ramps but in 8-bit. Since 8-bit doesn’t have the same precision that 10-bit does, the ramps exhibit hard “stepping” as the color transitions from one end to another. This is called “banding.”

Source files with higher bit depths than 10 are still readable within Frame.io but will only be presented in 10-bits. Localized downloading of original 12-bit or 16-bit files is available from the web app.

HDR assets uploaded on Enterprise accounts will generate a 10-bit proxy (H.265) alongside traditional 8-bit proxies (H.264). The 8-bit proxies are designed for wide use available on the web, while the 10-bit proxies are available only in the iOS app, where a 10-bit precision screen is natively available.

10-bit HDR assets are also only available to active, logged-in users on Enterprise accounts. Recipients of Review Links, for example, that are not members of the Enterprise account or are not logged in, will be shown the 8-bit proxies.

If the account permissions allow, the 10-bit proxy can be saved to the camera roll and viewed in 10-bit locally.

Click here to learn more about viewing HDR files on Frame.io.

HDR assets can be uploaded using the usual avenues for uploading to Frame.io. Files can be uploaded through the web app, through a Frame.io NLE integration, or through the Frame.io Transfer App.

For best results, the file you upload should be 10-bit or higher. Click here to learn more about creating HDR files.

For more information on HDR and Frame.io, please visit frame.io/hdr.