Which is better to start with in Color?

[Todd Gill]

When grading RED footage, I usually flatten my image out using REDLog. I was wondering what was the difference between REDLog, PDLog 685 and PDLog 985. Are the PD Logs any better to start off with? or is it just a preference?

Thanks in advance for the help.

 

[Ben Brainerd]

REDLog seems the least wonky, at least from my perspective. You might want to try the new plugin and check out REDGamma, which is pretty awesome in my opinion. It's *WAY* flatter than REDSpace, but doesn't require nearly as much work to 'normalize' as a LOG image.

Kind of a side question: Does anyone know what the results of using the RED tab to change to LOG and grading from that are? I've never been able to get a definitive answer, but it seems to me that you could be losing some information in the highlights/shadows doing it that way. I was under the impression that LOG was really only for running through a LUT vs. grading from directly.

 

[Todd Gill]

Ben,

I have got the 4.0 Beta Plugin and am using the RedLog, just was wondering the difference.
Here are some examples of the different Log versions

 

[Ben Brainerd]

I haven't done much work with LOG, so I can't give a definitive answer as to which is better. But from a quick test using some of my footage, my personal opinion would be REDLog. I did some pixel peeping on still frames, and the PDLogs looked a bit... Crunchy, I guess would be the word. Seemed noisier.

 

[Gunleik Groven]

Redlog has been/is a very good startingpoint. But for a lot of work I guess the new redgamma setting will be even better

 

[Todd Gill]

In which way is the REDGamma Better? It does not appear more flat than the REDLog.

 

[Ben Brainerd]

Personally, I like REDGamma specifically *because* it's not as flat. There's not nearly as much baked-in contrast as REDSpace, but there's enough that I don't have to spend as much time putting contrast back in as I would with LOG.

It's purely a taste issue, in my case. It really depends on what you're going for in the final image. I wouldn't say REDGamma is better all-around. Just that in my case, it's pretty close to a perfect median between flatness and a reasonable amount of baked-in goodness. Ultimately, whatever works for you works for you.

 

[Jeff Kilgroe]

I'm really liking REDcolor and REDgamma as a starting point in Color. REDlog is OK too, but the new color spaces just seem to be really good right off the bat. Either way, you can get to the same end within the primary in room starting with either, if you're using the R3D's.

Lately, with the superior debayer available through the RED Rocket™ and its speed, I'm finding that we pretty much just convert everything to 4K ProRes 4444 using REDcolor, REDgamma and a best-light pass in REDCINE-X or ROCKETCINE. Then the rest of the post process is super simple the rest of the way through and no conforming or backtracking in the workflow. For now, the only time I would not use that approach is if I was going for a film-out. For that I would probably render to 2K ProRes4444 and cut with that as a proxy format and then take the final to a larger house for finishing on SCRATCH or Pablo4K.