Scratch 8.6 version beta

Assimilate has released the beta versions of its Scratch and Scratch VR Suite 8.6 products, in which we will find new features aimed at HDR, color management, VR, a lot of improvements in working with codecs and some interface changes.

Perhaps the highlight of version 8.6 is the HDR integration, as PQ and HLG support has been added to color management and scopes will automatically change to show levels on a nits scale. Mastering metadata is defined at the project level and included in the HDMI interface for display when using AJA, Blackmagic Design and BlueFish IO hardware. In addition, it can be published directly to YouTube with HDR metadata intact.

For the 360-degree world, the new stitching feature supports Kodak AutoPano projects, as well as Hugin and PTstitch sripts. The Scratch VR update also features ambisonic sound, direct publishing to YouTube 360 and interface improvements for positioning 2D elements in 360-degree scenes.

If we move on to codec enhancements we will see the following:

• Output of H.264, .mp4 and .mov 10 bit files with color space information and transfer function.

• H.264 output upscaled to 8192 x 6144.

• Improved DNx MXF encoder/decoder.

• Improved playback of QuickTime and XAVC MXF files.

• New raw DNG reader for VariCam LT DNG files.

• Added support for Kinefinity and cameras from Canon, Nikon, Kodak, Hasselblad, Pentax and Leica.

Finally, for ITL work, a report is now generated with a list of all clips in a timeline, project or shot selection with associated metadata following user presets or templates.

The beta version 8.6 of Scratch and Scratch VR Suite can be downloaded through this link.