---
title: "How to add a sepia with Claude (tested prompt and ffmpeg command)"
description: "The purple bottle and holographic backdrop turn into warm browns and creams with a fine grain, like the shot was printed decades ago. Install one skill and ask Claude Code, or run the ffmpeg command we tested yourself."
url: https://www.recharm.com/effects/sepia
---

# How to add a sepia with Claude

The purple bottle and holographic backdrop turn into warm browns and creams with a fine grain, like the shot was printed decades ago.

Made by the command on this page, from our own test clip.

## Get this effect

1. ### Switch to Code in your [Claude Desktop App](https://claude.com/download)

2. ### Install the skill (once)

   ```
   Install the Recharm video effects skill: download https://recharm-growth-staging.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/website/downloads/recharm-video-effects.zip and unzip it into ~/.claude/skills
   ```

3. ### Ask for the effect

   ```
   Add a sepia to input.mp4
   1 keeps the original contrast; higher gives darker browns and brighter creams: 1.2
   Film grain strength: 6
   ```

## Several videos, several effects, one ask

Put your clips in the folder, mention them with @, and ask for everything at once. Claude runs one tested script after another on each clip, then joins them.

Add a sepia to **@clip1.mp4**, put a sale badge on **@clip2.mp4**, give **@clip3.mp4** a VHS look, then join all three with crossfades.

## Settings you can change

Ask Claude to change any of these, or edit them at the top of the command.

| Setting    | Default | What it does                                                                   |
| ---------- | ------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| `CONTRAST` | `1.2`   | 1 keeps the original contrast; higher gives darker browns and brighter creams. |
| `GRAIN`    | `6`     | Film grain strength. 0 turns it off; 15 looks like an old print.               |

## Without the skill

Don’t want to install the skill? Paste this prompt into Claude Code and Claude writes the command itself.

```
Give all of input.mp4 a sepia tone from the first frame to the last. Use ffmpeg's colorchannelmixer so every output channel is the same gray mix (0.30 R + 0.57 G + 0.13 B) scaled to a brown tint: red at 100%, green at 85% and blue at 62% (rr=.30:rg=.57:rb=.13, gr=.255:gg=.485:gb=.11, br=.186:bg=.353:bb=.081). Then raise the contrast to 1.2 (eq=contrast=1.2) and add light moving film grain (noise=alls=6:allf=t). Keep the size, frame rate, length and audio the same. Save it as output.mp4.
```

## Run it without Claude

This is the exact command we tested. Save it as `sepia.sh` and run:

```
sh sepia.sh input.mp4 output.mp4
```

```
#!/bin/sh
# Sepia: turn the clip into warm brown monochrome like an aged photograph, with deeper shadows and light film grain.
# Usage: sh sepia.sh input.mp4 output.mp4
set -e
IN="$1"; OUT="$2"
CONTRAST=1.2   # 1 keeps the original contrast; higher gives darker browns and brighter creams
GRAIN=6        # film grain strength; 0 turns it off, 15 looks like an old print

# Each output channel is the same gray mix (0.3 R + 0.57 G + 0.13 B) scaled to a brown tint:
# red at full strength, green at 85%, blue at 62%.
ffmpeg -y -i "$IN" -vf "colorchannelmixer=.30:.57:.13:0:.255:.485:.11:0:.186:.353:.081,eq=contrast=$CONTRAST,noise=alls=$GRAIN:allf=t" \
  -c:v libx264 -crf 18 -pix_fmt yuv420p -c:a copy "$OUT"
```

## More color looks

- [Apply a LUT **Apply a LUT**](https://www.recharm.com/effects/apply-a-lut)
- [Black and white **Black and white**](https://www.recharm.com/effects/black-and-white)
- [Bleach bypass **Bleach bypass**](https://www.recharm.com/effects/bleach-bypass)
- [Cinematic color grade **Cinematic color grade**](https://www.recharm.com/effects/cinematic-color-grade)
- [Color match **Color match**](https://www.recharm.com/effects/color-match)

## Find 3x _winning ads_

Recharm cuts your ad footage into tagged, searchable clips: hooks, testimonials, product shots. Find the shots that win, add the effect with Claude, and ship 3x more ad edits.

[Start 14-day free trial](https://www.recharm.com/get-started)