Tone mapping

Tone mapping in a TV is the process of converting the brightness and color information of HDR (High Dynamic Range) content so that it fits within the TV's actual display capabilities.

Why is it needed?

HDR movies and games may contain highlights mastered at 1,000, 4,000, or even 10,000 nits, but your TV might only be able to produce, for example, 600 nits. Without adjustment, very bright areas would simply clip and lose detail.

Tone mapping compresses that brightness range so that:

• Bright highlights remain visible.
• Dark details are preserved.
• The overall image still looks natural.

Example

Suppose an HDR scene contains:

Original brightnessTV capabilityAfter tone mapping

 

100 nits	✓	100 nits
500 nits	✓	500 nits
2,000 nits	✗ (TV max = 800 nits)	~750–800 nits
4,000 nits	✗	~800 nits with preserved detail

Instead of turning everything above 800 nits into pure white, the TV gradually compresses those values.

Types of tone mapping

1. Static tone mapping

• Uses one brightness curve for the entire movie or program.
• Common with HDR10.

2. Dynamic tone mapping

• Adjusts scene by scene or frame by frame.
• Can make images appear brighter and preserve more detail.
• Used by formats such as HDR10+ and Dolby Vision, and some TVs (LG, Sony, etc.) offer their own dynamic tone mapping even with regular HDR10.