Cineon Log Node

The Cineon Log node is used to convert several different log camera formats to linear gamma and back again. Although the name implies that it should be used with Cineon files, it handles “log” gamma from many different digital cinema sources such as Blackmagic Design, Arri, and Red cameras.

Cineon Log Node Input

There are two Inputs on the Cineon Log node: one for the log image and one for the effects mask.

• Input: The orange input is used for the primary 2D image that gets the highlight applied.
• Effect Mask: The blue input is for a mask shape created by polylines, basic primitive shapes, paint strokes, or bitmaps from other tools. Connecting a mask to this input restricts the log conversion to be within the pixels of the mask. An effects mask is applied to the tool after the tool is processed.

Cineon Log Node Setup

The Cineon Log node is placed directly after a MediaIn node in DaVinci Resolve or a Loader node in Fusion Studio. It is also commonly placed before a MediaOut or Saver node to convert back to a Logencoded image.

Cineon Log Node Controls Tab

The Controls tab includes settings for converting from log gamma to linear or from linear to log. You first select the Mode and then the Log Type. For instance, choose Log to Lin from the Mode menu, and then select BMD Film if you are compositing with a RAW clip from a Blackmagic Design camera. Those settings output a linear image ready for compositing

• Depth
  The Depth menu is used to select the color depth used to process the input image. The default option is Auto. Auto determines the color depth based on the file format loaded. For example, JPEG files automatically process at 8 bit because the JPEG file format does not store color depths greater than 8. Blackmagic RAW files load at Float, etc. If the color depth of the format is undetermined, the default depth defined in the Frame Format preferences is used.
• Mode
  The Mode menu offers two options: one for converting log images to linear and one for converting linear images to logarithmic.
• Log Type
  The Log Type menu allows you to select the source of the file. Typically, you select the camera used to create the image, although the Josh Pines option is specific to film scan workflows. This menu contains the following camera log types:
  — Cineon — Arri Log C — BMD Film — Canon Log — Nikon N Log — Panalog — Panasonic V-Log — Red Log Film — Sony S-Log — Viper Film Stream — ACESlog
• Lock RGB
  When enabled, the settings in this tab affect all color channels equally.
  Disable this control to convert the red, green, and blue channels of the image using separate settings for each channel.
• Level
  Use this range control to set the black level and white level in the log image before converting. The left handle adjusts the black level, while the right handle adjusts the white level. Pixels with values in log space below the black level become out-of-range values below 0.0. Pixels with values above the white level become out-of-range values above 1.0 after conversion.
  When processing in floating-point color space, both negative and high out-of-range values are preserved. When using 16-bit or 8-bit mode, the out-of-range values are clipped.
• Soft Clip (Knee)
  The Soft Clip control is used to draw values that are out of range back into the image. This is done by smoothing the conversion curve at the top and bottom of the curve, allowing more values to be represented.
  Applying a soft clip of any value other than 1 causes the node to process at 16-bit integer, eliminating all out-of-range values that do not fit within the soft clip.
• Film Stock Gamma, Conversion Gamma, and Conversion Table
  These controls are used to set the response curves of the logarithmic data during conversion. In addition to the settings above, a custom ASCII file Lookup Table (LUT) can be created with specific conversion values. The ASCII LUT file can be loaded using the Browse button.

Cineon Log Node Settings Tab

The Settings tab controls are common to all Film nodes. These common controls are described in detail HERE.

About the Author

Justin Robinson is a Certified DaVinci Resolve, Fusion & Fairlight instructor who is known for simplifying concepts and techniques for anyone looking to learn any aspect of the video post-production workflow. Justin is the founder of JayAreTV, a training and premade asset website offering affordable and accessible video post-production education. You can follow Justin on Twitter at @JayAreTV YouTube at JayAreTV or Facebook at MrJayAreTV