Log footage, LUTs and Rec.709 conversion

Log footage looks flat and grey. Camera makers record it that way on purpose, so that a colourist can shape it later. Eddie converts five common log curves to standard colour (Rec.709) for you. Eddie does not support LUT files.

Which log curves Eddie converts

• Sony S-Log3
• Canon Log 3
• Panasonic V-Log
• DJI D-Log
• Apple Log

You do not have to say that a clip is log. Eddie checks each video file itself.

Where the conversion applies

• Cloud MP4 renders. The finished video comes out in standard colour.
• The player in your edit. You see the same picture that the MP4 shows.
• The frames Eddie looks at. Eddie judges the converted picture, not the flat one.

A grade that you ask for is applied after the conversion. See Color grading.

How Eddie finds log footage

1. The file's own metadata. Some files name their curve. If the name is one of the five curves above, Eddie converts the clip.
2. A measurement of the picture. Many files say nothing. Eddie then measures a few frames. A picture with no true black, held-down highlights and weak colour counts as log.

For a measured picture, Eddie converts on its own only when it knows the camera maker and the file is 10-bit. In two cases Eddie names the clip as log but does not convert it:

• The file is 8-bit.
• Eddie cannot tell the camera maker.

A file with an HDR curve (PQ or HLG) is not log. Eddie does not treat it as log.

Log curves Eddie does not convert

Eddie does not convert S-Log2, F-Log, N-Log, ARRI LogC, RED Log, Canon Log, Canon Log 2 or DJI D-Log M. When the file's metadata names one of these curves, Eddie says so and leaves the clip flat.

If a file does not name its curve, Eddie takes the curve from the camera maker. Check the result in the player. If it looks wrong, tell Eddie which curve to use, or to leave the clip flat.

Tell Eddie what to do with a clip

You can set the choice for each source by asking Eddie in the chat:

• "Treat the A camera clips as S-Log3." The choices are S-Log3, Canon Log 3, V-Log, D-Log and Apple Log.
• "Leave this clip flat." Eddie does not convert the clip.
• "Go back to automatic." Eddie decides again by itself.

Name a curve only when it matches the camera. A wrong curve gives a wrong picture.

The first export of a new file

Eddie measures a file once. If the first MP4 export comes out flat and grey, the measurement was not ready. Export again after a few minutes.

Timeline exports are not converted

Exports to Premiere, Final Cut, Resolve and the other timeline formats link your camera's own media. In your editor, log clips look flat, as the camera recorded them. The export notes name each log clip and its curve. Apply your own conversion in your editor, for example a LUT or a colour space transform. See Export to Premiere, Final Cut, Resolve, Avid & OTIO.

LUTs

Eddie has no LUT upload and does not apply LUT files. To get a normal picture, use the conversion above. To use your own LUT, apply it in your editor.

Grade by description

Eddie grades by prompt. For example:

• "Warm it up and boost contrast."
• "Give it a filmic look."
• "Match the color across the two cameras."

The player shows the grade, and an MP4 render bakes it in. A grade does not reach every timeline export:

• Some edits only: Final Cut Pro (FCPXML) and Premiere XML. The grade is an editable correction. The export notes say when it is left out.
• Never: the Premiere project (.prproj), the Premiere Production delivery, the Resolve project (.drp), the Resolve FCPXML, the Blackmagic Cloud delivery and OTIO. Grade in your editor, for example on the Resolve Color page or in Lumetri Color.

Film grain, haze and split tone show in the player and in MP4 renders only. See Download a Premiere project or Resolve project.

Camera files

Eddie imports MXF files from Canon (XF-AVC) and Sony (XAVC). Eddie does not decode Canon Cinema RAW Light or Sony RAW (X-OCN) directly. Transcode those files to ProRes or H.264 first, and import the result. See RAW footage and codecs.

Tip

Grade after you lock the cut and the camera angles. Then you colour the final set of shots.