Guide

What is log footage?

Updated November 6, 2026

Log footage is a flat camera recording curve designed to hold highlight and shadow detail. On a normal Rec.709 monitor it looks gray and low-contrast until you convert it to display-referred color. Creative LUTs (including Filmsilk) are built for that converted Rec.709 world—not for still-flat log.

Why cameras shoot log

• Highlight room: bright windows and skies keep more recoverable detail than a baked Rec.709 profile.
• Shadow room: dark interiors crush less early, so you can lift carefully in the grade.
• Flexibility: one flat master can feed several looks. The tradeoff is that the file is not delivery-ready until you convert.

When to convert before creative LUTs

• Your creative .cube expects Rec.709 / display-referred input (Filmsilk does).
• The timeline or monitor is Rec.709, and the clip still looks flat.
• You are about to export a creative LUT from Premiere or Resolve—bake the creative look after conversion, not on raw log. Export guides: Export a LUT from Premiere Pro, Export a LUT from DaVinci Resolve.
• You are not treating a creative Rec.709 cube as an HDR grade or a camera log conversion.

Practical path in editors

1. Identify the camera log (picture profile / gamma).
2. Apply the camera's technical conversion, color management, or Input LUT so the image sits in Rec.709.
3. Then apply the creative look (Lumetri Creative Look, Resolve LUT node, and so on) and pull amount back if skin or sky fights you.
4. A/B a bright exterior, a dark interior, and a face before you lock the look.

More on the color-space split: Log vs Rec.709. What a 3D creative cube is: What is a 3D LUT?.

FAQ

What is log footage?

Log footage is a flat, low-contrast recording curve used by many cameras to preserve highlight and shadow detail. It looks washed out on a normal Rec.709 monitor until you apply a technical conversion (or color management) to display-referred Rec.709.

Why does log look flat?

The camera stores a wide range of scene brightness in a compressed curve. That keeps detail, but it is not meant to be the final look. Creative LUTs and grades usually expect display-referred Rec.709 (or a converted timeline), not raw log.

Should I put a creative LUT directly on log?

Usually no. Convert log to Rec.709 first (Input LUT, camera conversion, or color management), then apply the creative look. A Rec.709 creative cube on still-flat log often looks muddy or wrong.

How do I know if my clip is log?

Check the camera picture profile / gamma (often labeled Log, C-Log, S-Log, V-Log, Log-C, and similar). If the waveform looks compressed and the image looks gray on a Rec.709 monitor, treat it as log until you convert.

Where Filmsilk fits

Every Filmsilk look is a standard 3D .cube for Rec.709. Convert log first, then try every look on your own frame before you buy. The Collection is $29 one-time; Filmsilk Complete is $39 with Studio export so you can tweak a look and save your own .cube.