DIT Triage - Display Problems
Symptom: The external monitor / video village display is not working correctly.
1. No signal at all on the external display?
Monitor shows “No Signal” or is black/blank.
Yes — Quick checks before escalating:
- Is the monitor powered on and set to the correct input?
- Is the HDMI/DisplayPort cable seated at both ends?
- Is the USB-C to HDMI adapter connected to the laptop?
If all physical connections are good → EC - HDMI Failure Modes (covers adapter issues, cable length, handshake failures)
No (there IS a signal) → Next.
2. Signal present but wrong resolution or scaling?
Image is cropped, stretched, too small, or has black bars.
Yes — System Settings > Displays. Select the external display. Adjust resolution to match the monitor’s native resolution. If the resolution you need isn’t listed, hold Option and click “Scaled” to see all available resolutions. If the adapter doesn’t support the monitor’s native resolution (e.g., HDMI 1.4 adapter on a 4K60 monitor), you need a higher-bandwidth adapter.
No → Next.
3. Display drops signal intermittently or after sleep/wake?
The display works but occasionally goes black for a few seconds, or loses signal when the laptop sleeps and doesn’t recover on wake.
Intermittent drops (every few minutes) — The HDMI cable may be marginal. Try a shorter cable. If using a USB-C to HDMI adapter, the adapter may be overheating — feel it. If it’s hot, let it cool and consider a higher-quality adapter. Also check if the drops correlate with USB activity (bandwidth contention on the same bus).
Lost after sleep/wake — This is an HDMI handshake failure. Unplug the HDMI cable from the adapter, wait 5 seconds, replug. If this doesn’t work, unplug the adapter from the laptop, wait 5 seconds, replug. If the display comes back, continue. To prevent: disable laptop sleep (System Settings > Battery > Turn display off after > Never, or use caffeinate -d in Terminal). See also EC - Sleep Wake Recovery.
No → Next.
4. Monitor glare making the display unreadable (outdoor shoot)?
Direct sunlight or bright ambient light washing out the monitor.
Yes — Fix options in order of effectiveness:
- Reposition the monitor with its back to the sun
- Use a monitor hood/shade (collapsible hoods available from SmallHD, FSI, etc.)
- Increase monitor brightness to maximum
- If using a laptop screen as the client display, use the laptop’s anti-glare setting or a matte screen protector
- Move the video village to shade or use a production flag/scrim for shade
No glare issue → Next.
5. Overlay not showing on the external display?
The overlay (composition guide, logo placement) appears in the Capture One workspace but not on the external display or Client Viewer.
Using standard Viewer (Pro or Wired Only): The overlay must be enabled in the Viewer that is on the external display, not just in the primary workspace. Click the Viewer on the external display > enable the overlay tool in that Viewer.
Using Client Viewer (Studio): Client Viewer overlay is controlled separately. In the Client Viewer window: click the three dots menu (…) > Settings > Appearance > enable “Show Overlay.” The overlay file must be assigned in the Client Viewer’s overlay settings, not just in the main workspace.
Overlay shows but wrong size/position: The overlay image dimensions should match the camera’s output resolution. If the overlay was designed for a 3:2 crop but the camera is shooting 4:5, the overlay will be misaligned. Re-export the overlay at the correct aspect ratio.
6. Nuclear: Display unsalvageable
If the external display is completely non-functional after all steps above:
- Use the laptop screen as the client display. Reposition the laptop so the client can see it. Increase font size and preview size in Capture One for visibility.
- If the laptop is in clamshell mode — open the lid. You now have the built-in display as your client review surface.
- Request a replacement monitor from production if available. Swap during a lighting change or between setups.
- Continue shooting regardless. The DIT can still tether, capture, and rate on the laptop screen. The external display is a convenience, not a requirement.
Tell the client: “The external monitor is down. I’ll show you images on this screen instead — everything is still capturing normally.”