Get free VFX image viewer and playback tool DJV 2
DJV Imaging – aka former Lucasfilm and Oculus software engineer Darby Johnston – has released DJV 2, the latest major version of the free image viewer and playback software for VFX and animation, in beta.
The 2.0.x release cycle revamps DJV’s user interface, speeds up file import and export, makes it possible to play back audio in clips, and adds new colour-space management features.
Beta 2.0.0 actually came out in July, but beta 2.0.4, which adds a new colour management interface and a new colour picker, has just shipped, so now seemed to be a good time to look at the updates.
A free image sequence viewer and video player for VFX and feature animation work
DJV is a free alternative to commercial tools like RV, making it possible to play back high-resolution, high-bit-depth image sequences and videos when reviewing shots in VFX or feature animation work.
The product website features testimonials from artists at visual effects houses including Zoic Studios, Reel FX and Unexpected, which now sponsors the software.
New in the DJV 2.0 release cycle: new UI, multi-threaded file I/O, audio playback
The 2.0.x release cycle revamps DJV with a “clean and modern” new user interface, and mouse-button support when panning the view or scrubbing through frames.
Import and export is now multi-threaded, which should speed up file import on modern multi-core CPUs.
Other changes include new colour-space management features, and audio support when playing back movies. You can find a more detailed discussion in the beta thread on the product forum.
DJV 2.0.4: new colour management interface and colour picker
To that, DJV 2.0.4, the almost-latest beta (there has since been a smaller bugfix update), adds a new colour management interface, shown in the video above.
The system is based on the OpenColorIO (OCIO) standard, making it possible to switch between preset colour configurations, including those for ACES.
Users can select different colour spaces for different file types, including DPX, Cineon, OpenEXR and IFF.
Other changes in the update include a new colour picker and further improvements to multi-threading.
Availability and system requirements
DJV is available under a custom “BSD-style open-source licence“. Compiled binaries of both the latest 2.0.x beta and the stable release, DJV 1.3.0, are available for Windows, Linux and macOS.
Read more about the new features in DJV 2.0 on the product website