What is Chromatic Aberration? (And why?)

[@bird2002]

This was an excellent explanation. The graphics really helped me understand.

[@PixelProphecy]

Glad it helped! Thanks for watching and commenting 😊

[@Vrglab]

Beautifully created,great research, good editing and informative you made us proud again phil 😀

[@PixelProphecy]

Doing my best 😅👍

[@dexter1981]

bloom, film grain, motion blur, chromatic aberration, developers put them into their games, and players disabling all of them

[@tootsmonkey]

I like it when it's used to give a sureal effect, like a "something is wrong" feeling like in dreams or hallucinations or others It is heavily (and cleanly I would say) used in Little Misfortune, it fits the artstyle and the feel of the game quite well

[@aaronspeedy3087]

I just found out why there are sometimes blue and orange lasers on the edges of my glasses

[@Xenobicus]

Fantastic video! Very informative/educational. Everything was very easy to understand with your approach and animations; excellent visual explanations!

[@PixelProphecy]

Thank you so much, then I achieved all of my goals! 🥳😊

[@mrewan6221]

This was important to know about when we still used photography to create maps. The camera lens at Cartography School was 150mm, and was considered small. So the usable part of the image was only in the middle part of the lens, to remove chromatic abberation (and spherical abberation). Now the printing is all done electronically.

[@rickguzman9463]

Bravo. I was just watching Digital Foundry's analysis of the ResE4 remake "chainsaw demo". When they started talking about the CA implementation, I asked myself "when and why did CA become a thing in games?" Your video does a great job of speaking to this. I really appreciate your recap of ALL the things game devs have done to recreate optical artifacts (including the abuse of bloom once upon a time). Great, concise video. Thank you.

[@PixelProphecy]

Thank you so much, Rick! Really appreciate your nice comment! 😊

[@2moges]

Watching this now trying to understand the cyberpunk settings 😅great video!

[@PixelProphecy]

Hope it helped. Thanks for enjoying my braindance, samurai :)

[@SchradeDemise]

Lmao same, i turned off all settings under graphics on ps4. It looks much better than default

[@sajidhasan8385]

Lol me too

[@shoelacedonkey]

Awesome, thanks for taking the time to explain this in a very understandable way yet not dumbing it down. Video is not too short, not too long... perfect. (now I know what to turn off in Valheim) :D

[@PixelProphecy]

Glad it helped, thanks for watching! :)

[@ijuver]

Awesome video! Really well explained! Perfect examples, footage, and everything!

[@PixelProphecy]

Much appreciated! Thanks for the comment!

[@antdx316]

The explanation was far beyond anything I could have imagined prior.

[@PixelProphecy]

I hope in a good way ;) Thank you for watching and the comment!

[@danielma1359]

My God, the quality of this video is insane. What a great channel. I mean like the details and effects, like the chromatic aberration on the writting going through when you say the word and shit. Anyways, great explanation and video effects.

[@Shamnolya]

Your video is very understandable. I wasn't able to tell the difference when chrom aber is on or off, but know it will be off all the time !

[@jimblesbeta6221]

incredible work! I came here while studying for my optics exam, you explain this concept better than my professor! Thanks!

[@PixelProphecy]

You're very welcome! Glad to hear :)

[@SaberRexZealot]

This is a really good video. The pursuit of realism is a double edged sword. Like why on earth would they add lens flares on an FPS game? Does the main character have a camera for a head?

[@LoyalToMyHate8]

Thanks for the explanation my dude, best video of its kind!

[@PixelProphecy]

Glad you liked it! 😊

[@mad00insane]

I just saw chromatic aberration in cyberpunk 2077 and searched about it . Thanks man .

[@PixelProphecy]

You're welcome, choom :)

[@MisterK-YT]

Same

[@MisterK-YT]

@@PixelProphecy ahhh.... ein deutscher Edgerunner? (Note: everything I know about Deutsche is from Rammstein. If it’s not a Rammstein lyric, I probably can’t say/understand it. Except for “der junge esse kartoffel.” Idk why I know that.)

[@PixelProphecy]

Kartoffel ist wunderbar! 😆

[@nihalanand2690]

I gotta say, I'm a fan of these more technical videos. Keep up the good work!

[@PixelProphecy]

Thanks, will do! (Time permitted) :)

[@nihalanand2690]

@@PixelProphecy Haha, of course :)

[@monochromemiku7983]

I'm surprised by all the Chromatic Aberration hate in the comments. I think it looks awesome when it's used well in art and other media. Awesome video though, glad I finally understand where it comes from.

[@TheDood71]

Name an art piece where this was well used. I am not asking to be an ass...I really want to know.

[@thelegendaryklobb2879]

"Rainbow smudge" does sound like an cool name for a band

[@PixelProphecy]

I know, right? 😅

[@daviddamasceno6063]

Amazing explanation. It's such a simple concept but for some reason most people can't really explain what it is. Thank you so much, sir!

[@PixelProphecy]

You're very welcome, gald you found it helpful, David! 😊

[@uriallon]

Grate animations and sound work on this video!

[@raffvianna3234]

I love this effect in horror games, for example in Resident Evil 7 fits perfectly in the atmosphere

[@spacekrak3n293]

Was checking cyberpunk settings, game looked so blurry, turned off film grain and motion but wondered what chromatic aberration was, thx

[@jonathancarter9123]

Literally why I’m here too lol

[@ikagura]

To be honest I dislike Bloom and motion blur a lot in my games... I can appreciate the nostalgic value of lens flare (if moderately used). I want to keep my vision clear and as clean as possible in my 3D games

[@mxntzx7580]

This channel is underrated! You deserve a lot more subs than 9.8k

[@PixelProphecy]

Thank you so much for watching! My subs are growing slowly but steadily so I am not complaining. 😊

[@prajeethk4348]

I am not sure I like Chromatic Aberration or not. But, what I really know is that your video is helpful, informative and 100% entertaining. If I were at your place, I'd have come down and have a shake hand with you for such a wonderful graphics on the aberretion.

[@PixelProphecy]

That's so nice of you, thank you very much, Prajeeth! Glad that all my efforts paid off in the end 🥰

[@hazarrust4511]

Thank you! Very well explained, but maybe some of your audience are players who are wondering exactly what it is as a setting (myself included) and might also want to know how it affects performance on the CPU/GPU/RAM, just a recommendation for more info to cover. Great job, even though this is a bit older, I hope you still read this and get some good feedback! Good Luck!

[@PixelProphecy]

I'm very late to reply but that's a good suggestion you bring up, thanks! 😊

[@vinylwalk3r]

Superb video! I finally understand what Chromatic Abberation is, Thank you!

[@PixelProphecy]

You're welcome!

[@tjstevens1958]

Come to think of it, I've never really saw much abberation in my games until you posted this.

[@PixelProphecy]

I'm so sorry because now you can't un-see it 😅

[@sebastianpena5809]

Great video mate! Very clear explanation of what chromatic aberration is, and with excelent examples. Very recommended to anyone who look what to do with this setting! Thank you.

[@PixelProphecy]

Thank you, Sebastian! :)

[@CriticalThought004]

came here after watching the DF Cyberpunk 2077 new footage discussion

[@kos-mos4249]

Haha you too! The gameplay gave me a headache, I swear

[@CriticalThought004]

@@kos-mos4249 i kinda like chromatic aberration Hope there's an option to tone it down a bit

[@RegahP]

i am guilty of using this too much, when i was developing my first game i found the post processing stack in unity and i was like "what does this do? *click* amazing. leave it on" and the game was scene-wise super simple, a flat ground, a player cube and cube obstacles, but it had chromatic aberration, motion blur, vignette, lens dirt, bloom, ambient occlusion, everything, lmao.

[@PixelProphecy]

Haha I guess we've all been there. When everything else is so minimal, post effects seem like they help a lot with the visuals at first 😅

[@Eccex]

the problem that people have with CA is that a lot of games just do chromatic aberration as a circular effect distorting/bluring the edges of the screen or even worse apply it to every surface. that's just a stupid and unnecessary effect. when done right chromatic abberation takes depth information into account and distorts only based on that (think a slight color distortion of the light shimmering though the leafs on a tree or the color distorion sunlight would cause on the edges of far away things such as buildings). another good way to use CA in games is when it's simply tied to a light source (think the color halo around really bright white light for example) or the resulting bouncing of that light source on different surfaces (think light reflecting on water, glass or really bright surfaces and the slight color distortion that produces on the fringes of the reflected light). modern games definetly use these things and they can look realistic and good when done right. but again, simply slaping on a circular filter that blurs and distorts the egdes of your screen is as much needed and therefore disliked as motion blur

[@PixelProphecy]

Thanks for watching! Yeah, most of the times it feels like CA got slapped on there with the rest (film grain, lens-distortion, vignetting, etc.) without much rhyme or reason.

[@bloomfieldplymouth8159]

Pixel Prophecy brought me here lol. I truly enjoyed this video. While playing Jedi Fallen Order I toggled multiple video settings. I truly see the developer Respawn is trying to create a movie like experience for the player. Sometimes I prefer these options to be disabled because it seems to present a sharper and clearer looking game. Then there are times I like the options turned on during an action sequence because I feel more immersed in the scene. Thank you again for the educational videos.

[@PixelProphecy]

In the end it's about personal preference. Sounds like you found a good way of tailoring it for your experience 😊

[@Obeu]

Awesome video as always! Stay safe out there! 🙂

[@PixelProphecy]

Thanks! You too! :)

[@shinratenten5686]

That game reference made it easier to understand

[@glitcHmania]

this channel deserves much more

[@PixelProphecy]

I hope you don't mean quality because that's all I got! 😅

[@glitcHmania]

@@PixelProphecy No, I think I misrepresented it. I mean your channel deserves more subscribers and views. I really appreciate the effort in this video. :)

[@PixelProphecy]

Haha thank you! I was fishing for compliments after all ;)

[@TravisLee33]

Very informative video. Thank you for uploading

[@mash2481]

Never really noticed it. Just always wanted to know. Thanks for the knowledge!

[@tzeffsmainchannel]

Thanks! I've searched for "chromatic aberration" because it's in F1 24 and in all my 100+ pc games this is the first time I see this graphic setting

[@PixelProphecy]

You're welcome, glad the video helped

[@karencoffelt7682]

Excellent video on chromatic aberration! I don't play video games, but I can see why they would want to add some to make it more realistic. I do a lot of photography and hate it when I get it in my photographs.

[@PixelProphecy]

Thanks for watching and commenting! Yeah it's funny how people on one end of the spectrum (pun intended!) try to get rid of it while others try to recreate it digitally 😅

[@gamesshuffler-v8n]

Wow!!! Fantastic animation with explanantion1! Praised it a lot

[@PixelProphecy]

Thanks a lot 😊 Glad it helped and thank you for commenting!

[@mrgoodsir378]

Awesome video. Very easy to understand and informative.

[@PixelProphecy]

Glad it was helpful!

[@theandroids]

I just wish they used a slider instead of just off or on for the effect.

[@TorutheRedFox]

NFS Most Wanted and Undercover weren't going for photorealism they were going for near-photorealism, but with movie-like processing specifically, they were trying to do a toned down bleach bypass effect, the whole art direction for the NFS games of the time was directly influenced by film techniques

[@gnrslashsp6501]

Very very well explained man, you did it! Thanks for you hard work here to show us not only what is this but where it is in game!

[@PixelProphecy]

Glad you liked it! Thanks for watching and commenting! ☺️

[@NILsandMAN00]

Good explanation. For me, chromatic aberration has always communicated mysterious, retro, or 70's vibes. I think it can definitely add to games going for any of those themes

[@PixelProphecy]

Thanks for sharing!

[@ViceXXII]

Really nice video, was a joy to watch

[@PixelProphecy]

That makes me happy! Thank you!

[@Stormtroopaahh]

Anyone else come back to this video every time you get a new game cause you forgot what it means or just me lmao

[@Suunake]

I’ve never heard about that, but I love the idea of express something using this

[@rolliegulles7991]

What a brief explanation, wow! 🔥

[@PixelProphecy]

I thought it helps everyone to get to the point quickly for anyone who doesn’t want a long explanation 😅

[@deviscristiano8858]

Wow this was a perfect explanation, very clear and precise! Definitely subscribed!

[@PixelProphecy]

Awesome, thank you!

[@IanRei]

So this man, A gamer, a photographer, a bassist, and wear DedSec shirt. Awesome!

[@PixelProphecy]

You know it! 😊

[@IanRei]

@@PixelProphecy Oh yeah! 😎🤘

[@purplecrystal1813]

Finally an explanation that makes sense thank you for making this. Also, I think you should make more videos of you making games (other than Ludum Dare) in your free time. I think you can make many games that are worthy for steam :)

[@PixelProphecy]

Thanks for watching. I wish I could devote more time to game making, right now I do my best to be making videos :)

[@motionblurofhappy7804]

Only 47k? Idk why but I felt like at 15 seconds in this videos good enough quality for at least 1.7million. I didn’t even look first I just clicked it from bing (gamepass shit don’t worry about it) and opened to KZbin for comments. Watched for a sec and thought “this is tight, I’m easy, bet this is where everyone goes. Either everyone already knew what chromatic aberration was or they went somewhere else because I’m honestly surprised.

[@PixelProphecy]

Aw thank you so much for your comment! 🥰 Yeah, I guess this topic is a bit too niche for huge number of views but I am grateful for every single one!

[@taylorsaunders5312]

Thank you for this video it was very helpful I was very confused on why I was seeing the setting in my game of chromatic distortion and did not understand it at all or could not tell the difference so your video was very helpful

[@PixelProphecy]

Glad it helped, you're very welcome! Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment, Taylor!

[@patrakotoson]

Super well explained video ! If only every technical videos would be like this ! 😁

[@PixelProphecy]

Glad you liked it! Thank you for watching and commenting! 😊

[@rapizer3427]

The unicorn to my right is soooo cute

[@PixelProphecy]

It wanted to be on camera but it's also very shy ;)

[@Classymarc]

Very informative, thank you for your explanation!

[@PixelProphecy]

Thanks you! And thanks also for taking the time to post a comment!

[@masterfoben13]

Perfect explanation, very concise, understandable, and also entertaining! Vielen Dank dafür, immediate like ;)

[@PixelProphecy]

Awesome, thank you! 😊

[@JstaChillGuy]

All I wanted was a simple explanation, but then the scientific part of this fucked my brain at 2 AM. Anyway, I got my answer/explanation. Thanks dude.

[@PixelProphecy]

You're welcome! I hope your brain is feeling better :)

[@mgiebus1869]

Thanks man. I'm replaying Dying Light for Halloween and chromatic aberration was a visual option

[@alfierodriguez2473]

Great video! Thank you for the work and in helping us understand this better🤙🏼

[@PixelProphecy]

Happy to help! Glad you found the video 😊👍

[@christopherjones2179]

Thanks for explaining it man. Love ya.

[@PixelProphecy]

Anytime Happy to help!

[@juanblanco7898]

Amazing video, mate. Comprehensive, in depth, 👌

[@PixelProphecy]

Thank you, Juan! Much appreciated!

[@YellowBoltGaming]

Great explanation and very helpful video! Thanks!

[@Mandorlor]

Thanks for this informative Video. Keep it up!

[@PixelProphecy]

Thanks, will do! 😊

[@VarienceGaming]

Thanks for the video. Nice editing and feel fully informed on what it is :)

[@PixelProphecy]

Glad you liked it!

[@ponytailjones]

I like when it is applied subtly to areas involving direct sunlight, I find it makes it feel more like real light is bouncing around. Chromatic aberration DOES appear in our day to day life, it is just very subtle unless you go looking for it. Look closely at objects in direct sunlight on a very hot sunny day, and you will notice many things that at a glance appear to be a single color, are in fact, prismatic.

[@UnstoppableForces]

If you wear glasses, it’s very easy to find, if you turn your head while looking at an object, so that object is just barely in your glasses, you’ll see the chromatic aberration very easily.

[@MWTGoldenGun]

Thank you for this awesome and easy to understand video with great examples.

[@PixelProphecy]

Yay, thank you; you're welcome, Steven! 😊

[@lukassinger8273]

Great Video! Very clear explanation and good examples. A Huge Bonus Plus for Pink Floyd reference :-)

[@PixelProphecy]

Glad you liked it! :)

[@annslow41]

Very informative video! Exactly what I was looking for. All these different post processing effects drive me nuts. I'd prefer to see my games clearly

[@XacurRPG]

Thanks for uploading a video before the Ludum Dare, I always forget!

[@PixelProphecy]

Happy to help! ;)

[@Danatoth18]

Finally someone who exlpains this, thanks ! :3

[@PixelProphecy]

Glad I could help, thanks for the comment! :)

[@kjyu]

2:30 The depicted schematic shows that actually the red wavelength (longer than blue) got bent more, contrary to what was stated!

[@PixelProphecy]

Yes, you're correct! I got it wrong in the motion graphics. Good catch!

[@NishanSaliya]

Great explanation about the topic. The visual aids are super cool!

[@chrisp.5272]

Came here for BF5, and CyberPunk 2077.

[@SpookyShivers]

I Came From Cyberpunk 2077. I Couldn’t Even Notice It While Switching Off & On. Sat There For Like 3 Minutes Before Searching On KZbin. 😂

[@youth3873]

Lmao same

[@YouTubeCensors]

@@SpookyShivers same Bro in 2022... Though my vision Is getting worse with age so I got an excuse

[@benji4997]

F1 24 for me

[@promnightdumsterbaby222]

This was great and informative, thank you!

[@PixelProphecy]

You are so welcome!

[@BaitedTG]

Now I understand what it is, I'll be disalbing it in the future.

[@PixelProphecy]

Glad you found the video useful, thanks for watching! 😊

[@Jim-q4s]

Fantastic video and animation! really good

[@PixelProphecy]

Thanks a lot for watching and commenting! ♥

[@mash2481]

“As demonstrated here by Pink Floyd”, earned my sub right there, my guy!

[@boalollal242]

I feel like these type of effects are best left to the single-player experiences.

[@spiddyman0079]

It's the entire into the spidervers3 movie. I honestly thought that I was watching a 3d movie when I first saw it in theaters with the amount of blur it had

[@PixelProphecy]

😂

[@thorvalld]

hello! are you in for this LDJ ? and should we expect a post-mortem?

[@PixelProphecy]

Yes and yes 👍

[@James-wd9ib]

Now I understand all those CRAP settings that are strangling the CRAP out of my CRAPPY GPU

[@motionblurofhappy7804]

Some stuff in video games I never even knew I hated until I built a PC and realized system management for shit like that and the fact PC gamers can turn it off. Chromatic aberration, film grain, motion blur, and lens flare unless it’s a game with an atmosphere I think does well with it like metro exodus because of the gas mask. Plus it’s pretty sometimes. Plus I like a super shallow FOV. Enough to not feel like quake or like I’m on a curved TVs that’s 50 feet long. High FOV feels like you’re on lsd and trying to put your keys in your door.

[@samuelgamiop]

Pal, you may not explained it all, but u absolutely helped me a lot, thanks!!!!!!!

[@PixelProphecy]

Glad it helped!

[@fubarfubar579]

Great video bro, keep it up

[@PixelProphecy]

Thanks, will do!

[@IlicSorrentino]

Great video, very clear and simple. Thanks!

[@PixelProphecy]

You're welcome! Thank you so much! :)

[@JunshiTV]

Wow, great explanation. Thank you

[@PixelProphecy]

Glad it was helpful!

[@MarcoundMarco]

Thanks, I finally understand it but i always turn it off in video if i can.

[@MrPhange]

-Download game- -Immediately go to options and turn off Chromatic Aberration and Film Grain-

[@ikagura]

I do the same every time

[@pauljackson112]

New subscriber. What an amazing find this channel was! I wish you every success with it, good sir - thank you for elucidating this topic so brilliantly.

[@PixelProphecy]

Thanks and welcome! Your comment made my day! 😊

[@musashi66973]

Came here for AC Mirage

[@jimmygunnz5651]

Same

[@musashi66973]

@@jimmygunnz5651 its fixed now

[@MahdiMahdi-hm1md]

me too

[@brickhd6163]

Who came from wondering what it is from dying light

[@Bucket422]

Me

[@jamesgrimwood1285]

These effects are sort of ok, but they all try to recreate camera artefacts. If I'm playing on FPS, I'm not a robot with camera eyes that sees chromatic aberration or lense flares. I'm a person, my vision works differently. Same with crap hitting the screen. That's like having stuff hit your actual eyeballs.

[@maaax1173]

Happens with the eyes too. Put something close to one eye and look at an object fruther away right over the edge of the object close to your eye

[@jonathanyun7817]

I've actually noticed a similar effect with my glasses years ago, but never really looked into it. I'm glad it finally makes sense now!

[@OnePieceAndPokemon]

@@jonathanyun7817 different lens materials make a difference, you may want to check what plastic/glass your glasses are made with to minimize it, I get it bad so I have to specify what lenses I want when I get glasses

[@emmy4mattie]

I first encountered the setting in A Plague Tale innocence. After looking up what it was and really noticing it, I decided I hated it and immediately started turning it off in every game I could. Glad it's there for the people who like it, but I want the option to turn it off

[@NeovanGoth]

The chromatic aberration in Plague Tale was exceptionally bad. Good CA can be used to hide the lack of detail of objects very near the camera (which in 3rd person games usually happens at the screen edges), but in Plague Tale it was just too much bd didn't resemble any somewhat acceptable real lens, so even people who generally like the effect (like me) had to turn it off. It was literally nauseating. Same issue with motion blur: Good motion blur is almost invisible and actually helps to hide an issue inherent to rendered graphics (movement on the screen not being continuous), but bad motion blur (particularly camera motion blur not adapted to the frame rate / virtual exposure time) is extremely distracting.

[@playingamesforfun3423]

thank you so much for this! SUBSCRIBED! Taking ss for sharing!

[@PixelProphecy]

I'm 5 months late with my reply, nonetheless: Thanks for subbing! ♥