Mark Romero 2

Q: "What is the medium format look?"
A: an empty wallet...

Thank you for the input.
I can understand your findings. I guess the sadness for me is that the highlight rolloff of Cine4 is... how should we say it... pretty bad... So having the hghlights clip is pretty upsetting to me.
Your testing seems to confirm my (rather haphazard) comparisons between Cine4 and Slog 2. There is not a whole lot more DR in a SLOG2 shot that has been overexposed by two stops. It seems that the main benefit in this case is that SLOG2 gives a less harsh rolloff though.
All other things being equal, in regards to skin tones, would you say that Cine4 at 0 EV gives better skin tones than SLOG2 at around +2 after grading? Or are they about equal? You said with regular grading they both look about equal, so i am assuming that also refers to skin tones being on par with each other when exposed optimally. (I haven't been able to test on skin tones really.)
Yes, that is definitely a concern. Cine4 is much easier to use in the field (on an a6500) but the rolloff is nasty. Even using in-camera LUT (I don't know what sony calls it exactly... gamma assist???) when shooting SLOG2 the issue is that they recommend switching OUT of SLOG when doing your white balance, which is really difficult on a gimbal with the tiny buttons on an a6500.
 
Thanks for your input.
I think the "real question" for me, though, is maybe more along the lines of, "is it worth it to step up from a budget 8-bit camera if I want to shoot log / get more dynamic range"?
Admittedly, I did only allude to prosumer cameras. Hopefully that won't dissuade people from sharing findings about some of the more affordable cine cameras though.
Yes, wave forms or false color would make it a lot easier, I believe, as would just having a larger, brighter, more detailed screen. (The screen on the a6500 is pretty useless).

Thanks for sharing your experience!!!

Beautiful work!

Thank you for the input. Have you had a chance to try the HLG profiles?

Log on the C100 requires it too

The reason I stopped shooting Slog was the fact that by overexposing by two stops the skin tones get really pasty and thin most of the times. I much rather have good skintones than some extra dynamic range, however I agree with you on the fact that the Cine curves have terrible highlight roll off.

I filmed this over 5 weeks in Colombia on a personal trip. I brought along minimal gear... well as minimal as I could  Let me know if you have any questions and if you are thinking about visiting Colombia I would highly recommend it!
 

With +2 stop overexposure, you still have around 12 EV dynamic range, and each stop represented about the same amount of luminance levels.
If you are shooting regular gamma, not each stop has the same amount of luma data which can cause limitation in colorgraing.
I tested extensively Cine4 (0EV) against SLOG2 +2EV which represents the same amount of dynamic range, but the low end of the Cine4 is heavily compressed compared to SLOG2. If you lift your shadows Cine4 falls in to pieces. Of course with regular grading both looks good and very close to each other.
My conclusion after tons of testing: expose for the highlights in wide DR scene, using SLOG2 for best looking image, and always expose for the skintones when using Cine4, and let the highlights clip, if necessary to get out of camera nice results.

This is something I've always wondered about, but to me it seems like manufacturers pretty much lie with ISO ratings. If you have to "overexpose" by two stops, doesn't that mean the ISO rating is off by two stops?

I believe so because with shooting log you are try to protect the shadows.
Exactly why log is almost never recommended for low light situations.
In regards to your a6500, shooting log is a LOT easier with an external monitor because you get access to a waveform monitor.

Thanks for posting your video. To me, the IQ looks something like that of an 80D. However, I can see why you love the voitlander 40mm lens now.
Do  you think you will keep your a7 II??? Or do you think you will sell it?
If you think you will keep it, may I make a suggestion? I would suggest trying out SLOG and seeing if you are ok with the workflow required for using SLOG. I say this because in the few shots in your video where it is bright and sunny, the highlight rolloff is pretty bad. Most sony picture profiles have nasty highlight rolloff (IMHO).
SLOG will give you a bit more dynamic range and the rolloff is less nasty than the other profiles. But the workflow is harder.
Of course, if you are going to sell this camera than that is irrelevant.
Anyway, please keep us updated on whatever you end up deciding to do.

exactly and this lens is just 120% pure joy in use!
Interestingly, I found out that a two pass encoding from FCPX to compressor yields better quality than rendering ProRes directly from FCPX. So in the end, the result is better than expected, yet shows that the A7ii is quite limited:
 

Are you in the market for a new camera and confused or overwhelmed by the choices available and can't decide which features you need and which you can live without?
Or, are you looking for a camera that gives 4k60 10-bit with IBIS, flippy screen, and internal NDs that fits into your budget and into your pocket?
Are you thinking about 8K?
If this is you then look no further!
The best new camera purchase in 2018 is... Don't!
With Don't you get to keep your existing camera, but that's not all, it comes with features no other new camera can offer!
It is completely free!
It has already shipped!
It comes with no learning curve, no menus from another planet, and no colour science that looks like it's from another planet! 
But wait! There's more!
It even comes with more than three lenses!
....
*ahem*
But seriously folks...
If you aren't sure which one to buy then I'd say to wait until you understand what your requirements are (especially which features you can live without) and have seen the reviews of the cameras on offer so that you don't get any nasty surprises.
We're all familiar with the manufacturers vague and deliberately misleading claims, like when Canon said the M50 had 4K and DPAF which is technically correct but they didn't mention they're not both available at the same time. This is just an example and all the manufacturers do this.
This is the reason for full and impartial reviews.
Personally, I'm waiting, and if nothing absolutely hits the bullseye for me then I'll wait a generation or two until something does.
<END OF PSA> ???

Some frames from a shoot I did this week. All shot on various Pro Color profiles (with some of my own tweaks here and there)
below are frames from two a7iii’s using a customized version of EOSHD ProColor V4 PP1. 
 


And below is a6300 on the tight shot and a7sii on the wide. Both using EOSHD ProColor 3.0

 
All of these frames were color corrected to match, and I was extremely pleased with how easy they were to match one another. The client was very happy with the results. 

Thanks! Can you recommend some LUT pack for rec709?
Today I made a quick test for a shooting next week. I want to use ProColor with my A7III and I'm very happy with the results. Here is a screenshot of one of the takes, straight from camera without any correction. A7III + Tamron 28-75, Procolor and natural light. 4K24p
 
 

Top work, as always.... The lighting is stunning. I'd love to see you make a post with some behind the scenes chat about your lighting ideas and setup.

Brilliant work!!! It's a really captivating show reel.

Hey Everyone, 
Here’s a bunch of stuff I’ve shot, graded and edited for music videos between 2012-2018. 
The shots in the reel not done by me are the drone shots. 
 
For you camera nerds, I used......
Sony FS700, FS5, FS7, F55, A7SII, A6500.
Panasonic GH3, GH5. 
DJI X3, X5R. 
 

Wouldn't be very good in low light so I doubt this will happen. I am betting they'll use a similar sensor to the Fuji XT3. Probably with more features and such, maybe bigger batteries. Something to give it an edge over Fuji. Though the color will be Sony color so I am not waiting or buying it. 

It's not a bug... it's a high-tech hand warmer...

It's not a bug... it's a high-tech hand warmer...

It's not a bug... it's a high-tech hand warmer...

It's not a bug... it's a high-tech hand warmer...

Fantastic!