When exporting a video for YouTube upload, should you select the Scale from Legal to Full Range button in the Color Space section?

When exporting a video for YouTube upload, should you select the Scale from Legal to Full Range button in the Color Space section?

• A. True
• B. False
• C. Not Applicable
• D. Only for HDR

Answer: (B)

Color range handling matters here. The Scale from Legal to Full Range control converts video data from legal range (the narrower 16–235 luma, 16–240 chroma) to full range (0–255). For YouTube uploads, you generally want to deliver in the standard range your pipeline is already using and let the platform re-encode it. Forcing a scale from legal to full can push values out of range or clip details in shadows and highlights after YouTube’s processing, so there’s little benefit to using it in this case. This option isn’t specifically for HDR, and it isn’t unnecessary in every context, but it isn’t needed for YouTube uploads.

Color range handling matters here. The Scale from Legal to Full Range control converts video data from legal range (the narrower 16–235 luma, 16–240 chroma) to full range (0–255). For YouTube uploads, you generally want to deliver in the standard range your pipeline is already using and let the platform re-encode it. Forcing a scale from legal to full can push values out of range or clip details in shadows and highlights after YouTube’s processing, so there’s little benefit to using it in this case. This option isn’t specifically for HDR, and it isn’t unnecessary in every context, but it isn’t needed for YouTube uploads.