When and what with slog

[abwaterbury]

With the Sony a6300 offering consumer (high) pricing and now bringing slog to the general market, what do we do with it? Cyberlink ColorDirector does support LUTs (lookup tables) and GroundControl seems to have a nice package for slog, but do we need them? Is slog always better than a standard picture profiles? When is it needed? Can PRE or PowerDirector handle the footage and make it look normal? ColorDirector? How about just loading it into Adobe Camera Raw and playing with the sliders for those who have some version of CC? Help! Can someone come to the rescue? We need a whole article or YouTube video explaining this whole world to us!

[Steve Grisetti]

According to the specs on this page, the camcorder shoots in AVCHD (1920x1080) at 60i, 30p and 60p and it shoots 4K (3840x2160) XAVC-S at 30p and 24p, which are formats supported by pretty much any video editor that supports 4K. That would include current versions of Premiere Elements, PowerDirector and Sony Movie Studio Platinum.
http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/sony-a6300/2

However, the cam also shoots at more advanced frame rates (like 120p) that will probably not edit well in these programs.

But for basic 4K and AVCHD, you should have no problems.

That's based on the posted specs anyway. You'll have to wait until someone can actually get their hands on some sample footage to know what happens in the real world.

[sidd finch]

From Newsshooter:

S-log does add increased noise to the image so you have to be careful when using it. It is used when you have to shoot scenes that has a high level of contrast. It also works well in low light. S-log allows you to do without filters in some cases because it handles the highlights so much better. S-log does have to be color corrected in post though. A non color corrected S-log image looks washed out, lacks color and contrast.

Sidd

[momoffduty]

Camera Labs has an indepth review of the Sony A6300. This camera shoots S-Log 2 and S-Log 3. If you use the XAVC format then you will need a fast card, an SDXC. I have bridge CS6 and would not download. I use the Sony Play Memories to transfer from card to computer.

In my opinion, the S-Log 2 & 3 are for film makers who want to match the footage to other cameras and color grade. I've seen short films on Vimeo that have the low contrast matte look. They wanted a specific LUT for their films.

Review and info for the Sony A6300

http://www.cameralabs.com/reviews/Sony_Alpha_A6300/

[Bob]

With the Sony a6300 offering consumer (high) pricing and now bringing slog to the general market, what do we do with it? Cyberlink ColorDirector does support LUTs (lookup tables) and GroundControl seems to have a nice package for slog, but do we need them?

I agree, s-log is normally used by film makers who want to match the footage to other cameras or do extensive color grading. It's also used by cinematographers who are shooting digital for eventual transfer to film stock for theatrical release. While it's not really a raw format that captures all the sensor data, it does generally have a higher bit depth which allows for a greater dynamic range and better post processing characteristics.

Is slog always better than a standard picture profiles? When is it needed?

No. Many shooting situations are perfectly fine with a standard video capture mode -- many types of lighting and scenes can be used as is with minimal fuss. s-log always requires post processing to make the image appear normal and acceptable. And, because s-log modes generally lock into a higher base iso, noise can be noticeably worse than standard modes. S-log can be advantageous where the scene is contrasty with highly saturated colors as you can record a slightly large dynamic range and the larger bit depth can allow for better handling of adjustments and grading.

Can PRE or PowerDirector handle the footage and make it look normal? ColorDirector? How about just loading it into Adobe Camera Raw and playing with the sliders for those who have some version of CC?

S-log does need to be post processed in order to look normal. Without post processing, the image will be flat, dull, and undersaturated. It's not going to look good. But, that doesn't mean that you have to have a program that supports applying LUTS. Applying a LUT is a quick way and easy way to make the necessary basic corrections. But, you can make a pretty good correction by simply adjusting the black and white points, gamma, and saturation. If your editor has basic color correction effects that can make those adjustments, you can do it manually.

Adobe Camera Raw is designed for still images not video. However, Lightroom uses the same adjustment engine and can handle some video formats, but not all. If you can import the video into Lightroom, I would expect that you could use Lightroom to make the necessary adjustments. You'll need to export the video from Lightroom in order to use the corrected video in your video editor.