AAV ColorLab 1.0 release candidate 2

I just uploaded release candidate 2, you can find it here or by using the "Downloads" link to the right.

Please: uninstall any previous version of ColorLab before running the 32-bit .msi file. It's now set up to automatically upgrade (and should do so from rc1) but better to be safe.

64-bit notes:

• Tested by me only with Vegas Pro 9 on Windows 7.
  
• The x86 and x64 versions should be able to live side-by-side on your system.

Release highlights:

• Support for 64-bit Vegas
  
• Disabled effect blending. Will be removed entirely in v1.1.
• Fixed ColorLab failing on Intel GPU
  
• Fixed System.ArgumentOutOfRangeException
  
• Fixed out of range levels slider
• Fixed shutdown and cleanup when closing Vegas.
• New installer package using WiX, hopefully better. (Improved Vista/W7 support too.)
  

I know one or two reported bugs didn't go into this one, if so, please report your problem by going here. Failing that, you can always e-mail me (see readme) or comment here on the blog.

Hope I can lock down v1.0 soon, there is so much nice stuff in v1.1 around the corner. :)

Edit: You can find the proper RC2 readme file in the Downloads section. I accidentally bundled an old PDF in the installers.

64 bit support

Posted over at the dev blg about 64-bit Vegas support, and the short version is that it seems to work. I'll release RC2 in two flavors, 32 and 64-bit, then. I'm curious if anyone uses both varieties of Vegas on the same machine, and if so, is it important that the two ColorLab flavors will coexist peacefully? (It should work, just haven't tested it.)

Cheat sheet

I made a simple cheat sheet for the basic operation of ColorLab, as some users seem confused about the user interface.

From The Aav dev blg

Click the picture, then select Download / Download photo at the top left to save a full sized version.

I will produce more documentation, but also improve the usability of the interface in upcoming versions.

Next steps revised

(Updated)
I've got a busy time ahead since my family is expanding (!) and want to get v1.0 AND v1.1 out the door as soon as possible.

Therefore my priorities are as such:

• Focus on core features.
• Trim away obscure and unnecessary functionality.
• Move towards a simpler UI with optional "expert" settings.

What's currently in the upcoming v1.1:

• New white balance algorithm with Temperature/Tint sliders, like in Ad*be Lightroom/Camera RAW.
• Protect Highlights feature for white balance.
  
• Unsharp Mask effect.
  
• Performance improvements on Shader Model 3.0 capable cards.
  
• Optional high precision internal buffers.
  
• Simplified 6-vector user interface (can still switch to old one)
  
• Switchable color space (BT.709, BT.601 with NTSC or PAL primaries)
  
• Improved documentation.
  
• REMOVED: Effect blend levels.
  
• REMOVED: Levels RGBA/RGB target dropdown. (made little sense as it was)

Will likely be cut from v1.1:

• "Matte" generator for framing the image.
• Smart Blur effect.

Comments, wishes or got stories of how you use ColorLab? Send me anything. :)

AAV ColorLab release candidate 1

Download from Mediafire

Happy belated new year. It's been a busy period for me, but I've finally decided to upload a release candidate for v1.0. If this proves stable, the next one will be the final. After that, new features.

Release highlights

• Fixed blend slider in Blur effect.
• Fixed order of operations in Adjust. Gamma was being applied after output levels.
• Fixed eyedropper cursor.
• Added experimental “chroma” option to Blur, will perform chroma blur and leave luma alone (this is done with respect to the BT.709/HD definition of Y’CbCr).
• Input levels in Adjust are now a three-arrow slider. The middle handle controls gamma, by setting the desired mid-level. Removed gamma edit box.
• Added Preset menus to Adjust, for quick setup.
• Freshened up UI and fixed various inconsistencies.

Current known issues

• May fail on integrated Intel graphics despite PS 2.0 support.
  

Please let me know of any problems or successes with this release candidate, either as a comment to this post, or by mailing me (see the documentation).

AAV ColorLab v1.0 beta 6

Download from Mediafire

(Update: The broken download link has been fixed.)

Here's beta 6, fixing the issue that plagued the last release, and an additional number of other improvements.

From ColorLab b6 screen shots

Release highlights

• Beta 4 and earlier projects should be converted properly now.
  
• New B&W user interface.
• Fixed B&W color summing algorithm and in particular, the CMY controls were wrong.
• Improved eyedroppers for black/white in Adjust/Levels. They no longer clip.
  
• Improved quality in 6-vector and B&W, protection against amplifying CCD noise in very dark areas of the image.
  
• Fixes to other reported and unreported bugs (see readme).
  

Please let me know of your experience with this beta, either as a comment to this post, or by mailing me (see the documentation).

Beta 5 issue

There is a rather disturbing issue in beta 5, in that it fails when loading .vegs made using older versions of ColorLab.

I have therefore removed the download links to beta 5, and am working on a fix for the issue.

• If you already downloaded beta 5, it should work fine for new projects.

• If you have old projects created with ColorLab beta 4 or earlier, I strongly recommend going back to beta 4 for now.
  

Update: The issue is fixed along with a few glitches reported by users, and beta 6 will be released as soon as I've done some testing.

If you are sure you won't be affected by this, here is the download link to beta 5 again.