This is another common question on many user groups. It comes up time and time again. But really there is no one clear cut answer. In a perfect world we would never need to add any noise reduction, but we don’t live and shoot in a perfect world. Often a camera might be a little noisy or you may be shooting with a lot less light than you would really like, so in camera NR might need to be considered.
You need to consider carefully whether you should use in camera NR or not. There will be some cases where you want in camera NR and other times when you don’t.
Post Production NR.
An important consideration is that adding post production NR on top of in-camera NR is never the best route to go down. NR on top of NR will often produce ugly blocky artefacts. If you ever want to add NR in post production it is almost always better not to also add in camera NR. Post production NR has many advantages as you can more precisely control the type and amount you add depending on what the shot needs. When using proper grading software such as DaVinci Resolve you can use power windows or masks to only add NR to the parts of the image that need it.
Before someone else points it out I will add here that it is almost always impossible to turn off all in camera NR. There will almost certainly be some NR added at the sensor that you can not turn off. In addition most recording codecs will apply some noise reduction to avoid wasting data recording the noise, again this can’t be turned off. Generally higher bit rate, less compressed codecs apply less NR. What I am talking about here is the additional NR that can be set to differing levels within the cameras settings that is in addition to the NR that occurs at the sensor or in the codec.
Almost every NR process, as well as reducing the visibility of noise will introduce other image artefacts. Most NR process work by taking an average value for groups of pixels or an average value for the same pixel over a number of frames. This averaging tends to not only reduce the noise but also reduce fine details and textures. Faces and skin tones may appear smoothed and unnatural if excessively noise reduced. Smooth surfaces such as walls or the sky may get broken up into subtle bands or steps. Sometimes these artefacts won’t be seen in the cameras viewfinder or on a small screen and only become apparent on a bigger TV or monitor. Often the banding artefacts seen on walls etc are a result of excessive NR rather than a poor codec etc (although the two are often related as a weak codec may have to add a lot of NR to a noisy shot keep the bit rate down).
If you are shooting log then any minor artefacts in the log footage from in camera noise reduction may be magnified when you start grading and boosting the contrast. So, generally speaking when shooting log it is always best to avoid adding in camera NR. The easiest way to avoid noise when shooting with log is to expose a bit brighter so that in the grade you are never adding gain. Take gain away in post production to compensate for a brighter exposure and you take away much of the noise – without giving up those fine textures and details that make skin tones look great. If shooting log, really the only reason an image will be noisy is because it hasn’t been exposed bright enough. Even scenes that are meant to look dark need to be exposed well. Scenes with large dark areas need good contrast between at least some brighter parts so that the dark areas appear to be very dark compared to the bright highlights. Without any highlights it’s always tempting to bring up the shadows to give some point of reference. Add a highlight such as a light fixture or a lit face or object and there is no need to then bring up the shadows, they can remain dark, contrast is king when it comes to dark and night scenes.
If, however you are shooting for “direct to air” or content that won’t be graded and needs to look as good as possible directly from the camera then a small amount of in camera NR can be beneficial. But you should test the cameras different levels to see how much difference each level makes while also observing what happens to subtle textures and fine details. There is no free lunch here. The more NR you use the more fine details and textures you will lose and generally the difference in the amount of noise that is removed between the mid and high setting is quite small. Personally I tend to avoid using high and stick to low or medium levels. As always good exposure is the best way to avoid noise. Keep your gain and ISO levels low, add light if necessary or use a faster lens, this is much more effective than cranking up the NR.
Category Archives: PXW-FX9
Will My B4 Lens Cover The FX9’s 2K S16 Scan Mode?
This has cropped up a few times in the comments and in various user groups so I thought I would go through what you need to do to use a B4 2/3″ lens with the FX9’s S16 2K scan mode.
Not all B4 2/3″ lenses will directly cover the FX9’s Super 16mm sized 2K scan mode as 2/3″ is smaller than S16. 2/3″ lenses are designed to cover 8.8 x 6.6mm and S16 is 12.5 x 7mm. Some lenses might just about cover this as is, with minor vignetting, but most won’t.
The Sony LA-EB1 includes an optical expander that compensates for this (I think it’s about a 1.35x). With the LA-EB1 all B4 2/3″ lenses should work without vignetting and in addition when an ALAC compatible lens is connected to the LA-EB1 the camera will support the ALAC function which reduces many of the aberrations typically seen with B4 lenses. The LA-EB1 needs a power feed (14.4v) to work correctly and to power the lens. It is supplied with a 4 pin hirose cable that is designed to be plugged into the 4 pin hirose power socket on the XDCA-FX9. This also provides the record trigger signal to the camera. If you don’t have an XDCA-FX9 then you will need to source a 4 pin hirose to D-Tap or similar power cable.
If you have a mount adapter that does not have any optical expansion such as the cheaper MTF B4 to E-Mount adapter (MTB4SEM approx $400), if the lens has a 2x extender you can use the lenses extender if the lens doesn’t cover without it. The more expensive MTF MTB4SEMP (approx $1,200) includes an optical expander and with this adapter all B4 lenses should cover the S16 area without needing to use the lenses extender. To get the zoom servo working you will need an adapter that can provide 12v to the lenses 12pin connector.
Whatever lens or adapter you choose, the lens needs to be an HD lens. The better the lens the better the end result, I know that may seem obvious but when you are using either an adapter with an included optical expander or having to use the lenses 2x extender to eliminate vignetting with a straight through adapter any imperfections in the lens and any softness becomes quite obvious. Get a really good lens on a good adapter and the images are perfectly respectable, but a poor lens on an adapter will probably dissapoint.
FX9 Version 3 Firmware Released.
Sony have today release the version 3 update for the FX9. This is a significant upgrade for the FX9 and I highly recommend all users update their cameras.
The update process is robust and provided you follow the instructions in the PDF guide that is included in the update download package you should not have any problems.
EDIT: I WILL SAY THIS AGAIN – YOU MUST FOLLOW THE INSTRUCTIONS INCLUDED IN THE DOWNLOAD PACKAGE. DO NOT SKIP ANY OF THE STEPS IN THE INSTRUCTIONS. I’m seeing lots of people with failed updates because they are formatting their SD cards on their computer or not turning off the cameras network functions. It’s all in the instructions, the instructions are there to help you, please follow them to the letter. The “root” of a card is the very, very bottom of the cards file structure. It is NOT a folder, anything on the “root” of a card will not be inside a folder of any sort, the root is the bit of the card where the first folders will be, in the case of an SD card formatted in the FX9 the root is where you will find the “PRIVATE” folder. The “root” is NOT the XDROOT folder. And if something does go wrong the instructions tell you how to recover.
Do be aware that when you start the update process the cameras LCD screen will go blank for around 10 minutes and the only clue that all is good will be a flashing red tally light. Just leave the camera alone, go and do something else and come back an hour later. The upgrade will also appear to stall at around the 80% mark. Again, just be patient and wait for the update complete message before turning off the camera.
There are a lot of new features in version 3 but the three that I think most are going to like the most are the Real-Time tracking AF (aka touch tracking), the Anamorphic monitoring modes and the Super 16mm 2K scan mode.
REAL TIME TRACKING AF
The Real Time tracking allows you to use the viewfinders touch screen to touch where you want the camera to focus. A white box will appear where you touch and then the camera will track the touched object while it stays with the frame. To cancel the touch tracking touch on the grey cancel box that appears in the top left of the viewfinder.
In the image above the camera is in Face/Eye priority mode. As the real time tracking AF over-rides the other AF modes, by touching on the book on the book shelf (circled in red) the AF is now focussing on the book and will track the book if the camera pans or if the book were to move through the shot. If the book were to move out of the shot the AF will revert to Face/Eye AF.
When used in conjunction with the Face/Eye AF, if you touch on a face the AF will prioritise that face and track it. If the person is facing the camera and can be identified as an individual face, the face gets saved and a “*” will appear next to the Face AF symbol top left of the VF.
If the person turns away from the camera the focus will then track the persons head, if they turn back towards the camera it tracks their face again. It is even possible to start by touching on the back of a persons head and then as they turn towards the camera the face/eye AF takes over.
The way the camera “registers” faces is changed from previous firmware versions. As above, to save a face simply touch on a face. Touch a different face to save a different face. When a face has been saved a * will appear next the the Face/Eye AF symbol.
In the image below the face has been selected by touching on it and is now saved (note the * symbol circled in red). Not also the tracking symbol indicating that BOTH Face/Eye AF and Tracking are in use.
Whenever you stop the real time tracking the saved face is removed from the camera.
If you are using Face/Eye ONLY AF then normally the camera will only focus on faces/eyes, but if you touch on an object that isn’t a face then the camera will focus on this object. If you touch on a face then the camera will only focus on that particular face and the AF will halt if the camera can’t see that particular face until you stop the real time tracking AF.
As well as the tracking stop button (top left of the VF, look like a grey box) If you have AF assist enabled, turning the focus ring on the lens will stop the tracking AF. Real-time tracking AF will also stop when a touched object that is not a face leaves the frame or when a button assigned with the Push AF/Push MF function is pressed.
Real-time tracking can also be used when the cameras AF switch is set to MF. If in the menu, under shooting settings, focus, the “Touch Function in MF” setting is set to ON, The real-time touch tracking auto focus will also work when the AF switch on the side of the camera is set to MF. This allows you to use an autofocus lens to focus manually but then instantly switch to real time tracking AF simply by touching the LCD screen. For this to work if the lens has an AF/MF switch the switch on the lens must be set to AF. If using the 28-135mm lense the focus ring must be in the forwards position.
Real time tracking works across the entire frame regardless of the chosen AF frame area. Any objects being tracked must be distinct from the background. Textured, coloured or detailed objects are tracked more easily than plain objects. When using Face/Eye AF not all faces can be saved. To successfully save a face it needs to be facing the camera directly and sufficiently distinct that the camera can identify the eyes, nose and mouth.
ANAMORPHIC MODE
The anamorphic mode is a basic anamorphic monitoring mode for the LCD viewfinder. It has no effect on the recorded files or the SDI/HDMI outputs.
It provides a 1.3x or 2x de-squeeze. The 2x desqueeze function is tailored for 2x anamorphic lenses designed to be used with 35mm film. To use these lenses the camera must be set to 6K Full Frame scan to gain the correct sensor height. This means that when you use a 2x 35mm film anamorphic lens the sensor scan is wider than it really needs to be so there will be some vignetting at the sides of the frame. The 2x de-squeeze function takes this into account and not only de-squeezes the image but also crops the sides to emulate how the footage will look after post production.
If you are using 1.3x lenses then you can use either the Full Frame 6K scan, the FF 5k crop or the S35 4K scan modes, but for 2x anamorphic lenses you will need to use FF 6K scan.
S16 2K Crop.
The S16 2K crop mode allows you to use just the center Super 16mm sized 2K scan area. This mode is actually very useful for shooting at high frame rates above 60fps because unlike the FF 2K or S35 2K scan modes, this mode is using every single pixel within the scan area. As a result there are none of the image artefacts common when shooting at high frame rates using FF 2K or S35 2K. The 2.5x crop (compared to FF) does mean that for wide shots you will need a very wide lens. But where you can use it, this mode is great for better quality slow motion.
The other use for this scan mode is with Super 16mm lenses or with B4 2/3″ ENG lenses via suitable adapters. The image quality in this mode on the FX9 is a little better than the similar mode on the FS7. But you do need to remember that this is a 2K scan, so you will have a little under HD resolution. In addition the cameras noise appears worse in this mode because you are enlarging fewer pixels to fill the screen, so the noise isn’t as fine or refined as in FF 6K or S35 4K. So where possible you want to make sure you use a nice bright exposure for the best results.
The images below were shot with the same 16x ENG zoom lens at its widest and longest focal lengths.
Here is the full list of new features:
- S700 Protocol over Ethernet
- B4 lens support
– S16 scanning mode (up to FHD 180fps)
– B4 lens control using with LA-EB1
– ALAC (Auto Lens Aberration Correction) function - Assignable Center Scan
- Anamorphic lens support
- Clip Naming (Cam ID + Reel#)
- Real-time Tracking (touch tracking auto focus)
- Additional items can be modified in the Status Screen
- SR Live for HDR metadata support
- Recording Proxy Clip Real-time Transfer
- Camcorder Network Setup using Smartphone App
- Remote control using smartphone over USB tethering
- USB tethering activated using iOS14 iPhone and iPad
*Network feature above also support C3 Portal (only available in specific countries)
You will find the version 3 download files here: https://pro.sony/en_GB/support-resources/pxw-fx9/software
New Arri-Look LUT
UPDATE – Some issues with the original version of the LUT were found by some users, so I have created a revised version and the revised version is now linked below.
Arri Look LUT’s are clearly very popular with a lot of Sony users, so I have created an Arri-Look LUT for the FX3/FX6/FX9/Venice that can be used to mimic the look from an Arri camera. It is not designed to pretend to be a real Arri camera, but to instead provide an image with the look and feel of an Arri camera but tailored to the Sony sensors.
As usual the LUT is free to download, but if you do find it useful I do ask that you buy me a coffee or other drink as a thank you. All contributions are always most welcome. Additionally do let me know what you like about this LUT or don’t like, so I can look at what LUTs may be good to create in the future.
Click Here to download my Arri-Look LUT (latest version 2C),
And here is a warmer version (may be very slightly too warm), version 2B.
Click below to buy me a thank you drink if you like it and use it.
DaVinci resolve Frame Rendering Issue and XAVC
There is a bug in some versions of DaVinci Resolve 17 that can cause frames in some XAVC files to be rendered in the wrong order. This results in renders where the resulting video appears to stutter or the motion may jump backwards for a frame or two. This has now been fixed in version 17.3.2 so all user of XAVC and DaVinci Resolve are urged to upgrade to at least version 17.3.2.
https://www.blackmagicdesign.com/uk/support/family/davinci-resolve-and-fusion
SDI Failures and what YOU can do to stop it happening to you.
Updated 22/01/2024.
Sadly this is not an uncommon problem. Suddenly and seemingly for no apparent reason the SDI (or HDMI) output on your camera stops working. And this isn’t a new problem either, SDI and HDMI ports have been failing ever since they were first introduced. This issue affects all types of SDI and HDMI ports. But it is more likely with higher speed SDI ports such as 6G or 12G as they operate at higher frequencies and as a result the components used are more easily damaged as it is harder to protect them without degrading the high frequency performance.
Probably the most common cause of an SDI/HDMI port failure is the use of the now near ubiquitous D-Tap cable to power accessories connected to the camera. The D-Tap connector is sadly shockingly crudely designed. Not only is it possible to plug in many of the cheaper ones the wrong way around but with a standard D-Tap plug there is no mechanism to ensure that the negative or “ground” connection of the D-Tap cable makes or breaks before the live connection. There is a however a special but much more expensive D-Tap connector available that includes electronic protection against this very issue (although a great product, even these cannot totally provide protection from a poor ground connection) – see: https://lentequip.com/products/safetap
Imagine for a moment you are using a monitor that’s connected to your cameras SDI or HDMI port. You are powering the monitor via the D-Tap on the cameras battery as you always do and everything is working just fine. Then the battery has to be changed. To change the battery you have to unplug the D-Tap cable and as you pull the D-Tap out, the ground connection disconnects fractionally before the live connection. During that extremely brief moment there is still positive power going to the monitor but because the ground on the D-Tap is now disconnected the only ground route back to the battery becomes via the SDI cable through the camera. For a fraction of a second the SDI/HDMI cable becomes the power cable and that power surge blows the SDI driver chip.
After you have completed the battery swap, you turn everything back on and at first all appears good, but now you can’t get the SDI output to work. There’s no smoke, no burning smells, no obvious damage as it all happened in a tiny fraction of a second. The only symptom is a dead SDI.
And it’s not only D-Tap cables that can cause problems. A lot of the cheap DC barrel connectors have a center positive terminal that can connect before the outer barrel makes a good connection. There are many connectors where the positive can make before the negative.
You can also have problems if the connection between the battery and the camera isn’t perfect. A D-Tap connected directly to the battery might represent an easier route for power to flow back to the battery if there is any corrosion on the battery terminals or a loose batter plate or adapter.
It can also happen when powering the camera and monitor (or other SDI connected devices like a video transmitter) via separate mains adapters. The power outputs of most of the small, modern, generally plastic bodied switch mode type power adapters and chargers are not connected to ground. They have a positive and negative terminal that “floats” above ground at some unknown voltage. Each power supplies negative rail may be at a completely different voltage compared to ground. So again an SDI cable connected between two devices, powered by different power supplies will act as the ground between them and power may briefly flow down the SDI cable as the SDI cables ground brings both power supply negative rails to the same common voltage. Failures this way are less common, but do still occur.
Sadly this is not an uncommon problem. Suddenly and seemingly for no apparent reason the SDI (or HDMI) output on your camera stops working. And this isn’t a new problem either, SDI and HDMI ports have been failing ever since they were first introduced. This issue affects all types of SDI and HDMI ports. But it is more likely with higher speed SDI ports such as 6G or 12G as they operate at higher frequencies and as a result the components used are more easily damaged as it is harder to protect them without degrading the high frequency performance.
Probably the most common cause of an SDI/HDMI port failure is the use of the now near ubiquitous D-Tap cable to power accessories connected to the camera. The D-Tap connector is sadly shockingly crudely designed. Not only is it possible to plug in many of the cheaper ones the wrong way around but with a standard D-Tap plug there is no mechanism to ensure that the negative or “ground” connection of the D-Tap cable makes or breaks before the live connection. There is a however a special but much more expensive D-Tap connector available that includes electronic protection against this very issue (although a great product, even these cannot totally provide protection from a poor ground connection) – see: https://lentequip.com/products/safetap
Imagine for a moment you are using a monitor that’s connected to your cameras SDI or HDMI port. You are powering the monitor via the D-Tap on the cameras battery as you always do and everything is working just fine. Then the battery has to be changed. To change the battery you have to unplug the D-Tap cable and as you pull the D-Tap out, the ground connection disconnects fractionally before the live connection. During that extremely brief moment there is still positive power going to the monitor but because the ground on the D-Tap is now disconnected the only ground route back to the battery becomes via the SDI cable through the camera. For a fraction of a second the SDI/HDMI cable becomes the power cable and that power surge blows the SDI driver chip.
After you have completed the battery swap, you turn everything back on and at first all appears good, but now you can’t get the SDI output to work. There’s no smoke, no burning smells, no obvious damage as it all happened in a tiny fraction of a second. The only symptom is a dead SDI.
And it’s not only D-Tap cables that can cause problems. A lot of the cheap DC barrel connectors have a center positive terminal that can connect before the outer barrel makes a good connection. There are many connectors where the positive can make before the negative.
You can also have problems if the connection between the battery and the camera isn’t perfect. A D-Tap connected directly to the battery might represent an easier route for power to flow back to the battery if there is any corrosion on the battery terminals or a loose batter plate or adapter.
It can also happen when powering the camera and monitor (or other SDI connected devices like a video transmitter) via separate mains adapters. The power outputs of most of the small, modern, generally plastic bodied switch mode type power adapters and chargers are not connected to ground. They have a positive and negative terminal that “floats” above ground at some unknown voltage. Each power supplies negative rail may be at a completely different voltage compared to ground. So again an SDI cable connected between two devices, powered by different power supplies will act as the ground between them and power may briefly flow down the SDI cable as the SDI cables ground brings both power supply negative rails to the same common voltage. Failures this way are less common, but do still occur.
For these reasons you should always connect all your power supplies, power cables, especially D-Tap or other DC power cables first. Avoid using adapters between the battery and the camera as each adapter plate is another possible cause of trouble.
Then while everything remains switched off the very last thing to connect should be the SDI or HDMI cables. Only when everything is connected should you turn anything on.
If unplugging or re-plugging a monitor (or anything else for that matter) turn everything off first. Do not connect or disconnect anything while any of the equipment is on. Although to be honest the greatest risk is at the time you connect or disconnect any power cables such as when swapping a battery where you are using the D-Tap to power any accessories. So if changing batteries, switch EVERYTHING off first, then disconnect your SDI or HDMI cables before disconnecting the D-Tap or other power cables next. Seriously – you need to do this, disconnect the SDI or HDMI before changing the battery if the D-Tap cable has to be unplugged from the battery. Things are a little safer if any D-Tap cables are connected directly to the camera or a power plate that remains connected to the camera. This way you ca change the battery without needing to unplug the D-Tap cables and this does reduce the risk of issues.
Also inspect your cables regularly, check for damage to the pins and the cable, if you suspect it isn’t perfect – throw it away, don’t take the risk.
(NOTE: It’s been brought to my attention that Red recommend that after connecting the power, but before connecting any SDI cables you should turn on any monitors etc. If the monitor comes on OK, this is evidence that the power is correctly connected. There is certainly some merit to this. However this only indicates that there is some power to the monitor, it does not ensure that the ground connection is 100% OK or that the ground voltages at the camera and monitor are the same. By all means power the monitor up to check it has power, then I still recommend that you turn it off again before connecting the SDI).
Then while everything remains switched off the very last thing to connect should be the SDI or HDMI cables. Only when everything is connected should you turn anything on.
If unplugging or re-plugging a monitor (or anything else for that matter) turn everything off first. Do not connect or disconnect anything while any of the equipment is on. Although to be honest the greatest risk is at the time you connect or disconnect any power cables such as when swapping a battery where you are using the D-Tap to power any accessories. So if changing batteries, switch EVERYTHING off first, then disconnect your SDI or HDMI cables before disconnecting the D-Tap or other power cables next. Seriously – you need to do this, disconnect the SDI or HDMI before changing the battery if the D-Tap cable has to be unplugged from the battery. Things are a little safer if any D-Tap cables are connected directly to the camera or a power plate that remains connected to the camera. This way you ca change the battery without needing to unplug the D-Tap cables and this does reduce the risk of issues.
Also inspect your cables regularly, check for damage to the pins and the cable, if you suspect it isn’t perfect – throw it away, don’t take the risk.
(NOTE: It’s been brought to my attention that Red recommend that after connecting the power, but before connecting any SDI cables you should turn on any monitors etc. If the monitor comes on OK, this is evidence that the power is correctly connected. There is certainly some merit to this. However this only indicates that there is some power to the monitor, it does not ensure that the ground connection is 100% OK or that the ground voltages at the camera and monitor are the same. By all means power the monitor up to check it has power, then I still recommend that you turn it off again before connecting the SDI).
The reason Arri talk about shielded power cables is because most shielded power cables use connectors such as Lemo or Hirose where the body of the connector is grounded to the cable shield. This helps ensure that when plugging the power cable in it is the ground connection that is made first and the power connection after. Then when unplugging the power breaks first and ground after. When using properly constructed shielded power cables with Lemo or Hirose connectors it is much less likely that these issues will occur (but not impossible).
Is this an SDI/HDMI fault? No, not really. The fault lies in the choice of power cables that allow the power to make before the ground or the ground to break before the power breaks and a badly designed power connector often made as cheaply as possible. Or the fault is with power supplies that have poor or no ground connection. Additionally you can put it down to user error. I know I’m guilty of rushing to change a battery and pulling a D-Tap connector without first disconnecting the SDI on many occasions, but so far I’ve mostly gotten away with it (I have blown an SDI on one of my Convergent Design Odysseys).
If you are working with an assistant or as part of a larger crew do make sure that everyone on set knows not to plug or unplug power cables or SDI cables without checking that it’s OK to do so – and always unplug the SDI/HDMI before disconnecting or removing anything else.
Is this an SDI/HDMI fault? No, not really. The fault lies in the choice of power cables that allow the power to make before the ground or the ground to break before the power breaks and a badly designed power connector often made as cheaply as possible. Or the fault is with power supplies that have poor or no ground connection. Additionally you can put it down to user error. I know I’m guilty of rushing to change a battery and pulling a D-Tap connector without first disconnecting the SDI on many occasions, but so far I’ve mostly gotten away with it (I have blown an SDI on one of my Convergent Design Odysseys).
If you are working with an assistant or as part of a larger crew do make sure that everyone on set knows not to plug or unplug power cables or SDI cables without checking that it’s OK to do so – and always unplug the SDI/HDMI before disconnecting or removing anything else.
How many of us have set up a camera, powered it up, got a picture in the viewfinder and then plugged an SDI cable between the camera and a monitor that doesn’t have a power connection yet or already on and plugged in to some other power supply? Don’t do it! Plug and unplug in the right order – ALL power cables and power supplies first, check power is going to the camera, check power is going to the monitor, then turn it all off first, finally plug in the SDI.
New LUTs from Sony
I was asked by Sony to produce a couple of new LUT’s for them. These LUT’s were inspired by many recent blockbuster movies and have been named “Space Adventure” and “Super Hero”.
Both LUT’s are available for free and there is a link on the page linked below that will allow you to obtain them.
Rather than explain the two different looks here go to this page on the Sony website https://pro.sony/en_GB/filmmaking/filmmaking-solutions/full-frame-cinematic-look
Scroll down to where it says “Stunning Cinematic Colour” and there you will find a video called “Orlaith” that shows both LUT’s applied to the same footage.
Orlaith is a gaelic name and it is pronounced “orla”. It is the name of a mythical golden princess. The short film was shot on a teeny-tiny budget in a single evening with an FX3 and FX6 using S-Log3 and SGamut3.cine. Then the LUTs were applied directly to the footage with no further grading.
PXW-FX9 Version 3 Firmware Update Latest News
No, it hasn’t been released yet. And it’s now not expected to arrive before the end of November. But it will be worth the wait.
We already knew about some of the new features but there is much more to this release than first announced. Let’s take a look:
Touch to focus, focus tracking: Yes, you heard it right. You will be able to use the touch sensitive LCD to touch on an object in the shot and then the camera will track that object as it moves around the shot. A box will appear around the touched object and you will be able to monitor what the AF is focussing on by looking at what the tracking box is over. This is a feature available on the A7S3 and FX3 that is VERY useful.
Anamorphic De-Squeeze. It will become much easier to shoot anamorphic with the FX9. When shooting Anamorphic the image produced by the lens is squeezed horizontally, and that’s what you record. But to monitor it correctly you then need to de-squeeze it by squashing it vertically by the correct amount. The V3 firmware update will allow the image to be squashed vertically (de-squeezed) for the LCD viewfinder so you can view with the included VF in the correct widescreen aspect ratio. Do note however that the SDI and HDMI outputs will NOT be de-squeezed, so to monitor externally you will need a monitor with de-squeeze, but most of them have this these days.
Super 16 Scan Modes: The camera will gain a 2K center scan mode that can be used to shoot at up to 180fps in full HD. Using the center scan mode for slow motion above 60fps will eliminate the aliasing issues currently seen when using the 2K FF or 2K S35 scan modes. Additionally you will be able to use Sony’s 2/3″ B4 lens adapter. When using the B4 adapter the camera will support ALAC which corrects for chromatic aberrations in lenses that support this feature.
Switch Scan Modes via Assignable Button: This has been something on everyone’s wish lists for years. Now at last you will be able to set up an assignable button to switch scan modes.
Add Camera ID and Reel Numbers to Clip Names: You will be able to use clip names that are prefixed by a camera ID number and a reel number similar to the clip naming system on the FS7.
Modify the Status Page List: This function allows you to remove pages from the status page menu. So you will be able to remove the pages you rarely use.
DC IN Alarm: Don’t get too excited just yet, but in V3 you will be able to set a low voltage alarm for the cameras DC input as well as the extension units DC input. This does NOT mean that there will be a low voltage warning with the current 3rd party V-Lock battery adapters as these convert the battery voltage to a fixed 19.5v supply that never changes. But it does mean that a clever manufacturer could now design a V-Lock adapter that could reduce it’s output voltage when the voltage of the V-Lock battery gets low allowing you to have an alarm in the camera before the battery cuts off.
Proxy Upload while recording: Currently you cannot upload proxies while recording. This will be improved in V3 and the camera will be able to upload proxies in the background while you are recording.
Zero Focus Distance function: When working with a lens that shows the focus distance on the LCD screen you will be able to focus on an object and then “zero” the focus distance. Then as you change the focus distance the the screen will display a +/- value that is how far from zero the focus is. You will be able to use this for a pull focus. Focus on the end object and set the focus distance to zero. Now focus on the start object. To pull focus turn the focus ring so you are back at zero again. Not actually sure how useful this will be, but hey – it isn’t costing us anything.
Change Network Settings via Mobile Phone App: You will be able to use a mobile phone to change the cameras network settings making it easier to enter addresses and passwords of FTP servers etc.
USB Phone tethering: you will be able to connect a couple of mobile phones to the camera via USB to use it them as modems for internet streaming (I believe this is via the USB ports on the top of the XDCA-FX9).
LCD Gamma Adjustments for SR Live: SR live is a type of HDR workflow developed for live productions that will be broadcast in both standard dynamic range and high dynamic range. This setting allows you to change the gamma of the LCD screen between SDR and HDR range when shooting using HLG in the HDR mode. This allows you to preview either what a viewer will see watching in SDR or a good approximation of what a viewer viewing in HDR will see.
S700 Remote Control: The camera will be able to be controlled remotely using s700 protocols (via ethernet).
Chroma Key and S-Cinetone
A question poped up today asking about how to expose S-Cinetone when shooting green screen.
The answer is really quite simple – no differently to how you would expose S-Cinetone anywhere else. But, having said that it is important to understand that S-Cinetone is a bit different to normal Rec-709 and this needs to be considered when shooting for chroma key or green screen.
S-Cinetone’s highlight roll off and shoulder starts much lower than most “normal” rec-709 curves. From around 73% the gamma curve changes and starts to compress the levels and reduce contrast. In the shdows there is a variable toe that increases contrast at lower brightness levels. The nominal “normal” brightness levels are also lower, all part of the contemporary film like look S-Cinetone is designed to give. A 90% reflectivity reference white card would be exposed at approx 83% instead of the more normal 90% (if you were using a light meter you should end up with a 90% white card at 83IRE). A white piece of paper will be a bit brighter than this as printer and copier paper etc is designed to look as bright as possible, typically printer paper comes out around 3 to 5% brighter than a proper white card.
The lower start to the highlight roll-off means that if you place skintones around 70% the brighter parts of a face will be affected by the rolloff and this will make them flatter. Expose skin tones at 60% and the face will be more contrasty and in my opinion look better. Although darker this would still be well with the “normal” exposure range for S-Cinetone so you will not have excessive noise and it will still key well.
S-Cinetone would be considered correctly exposed when a 90% white card is exposed between 78% and 88%. This is quite a wide window and is due to the way S-Cinetone is designed to give differening contrast levels simply by exposing a touch brighter or darker. The variable toe and shoulder mean that exposing brighter will make the image flatter and exposing darker more contrasty. Exposing as you would with normal Rec-709 levels with a white card at 90% will place skintones rather higher than “normal” and they will appear very flat. So either expose so a white card falls in the 78-88% window or use a calibrated monitor to observe how the skin tone look and be careful not to overexpose them.
Your greenscreen should be between 40IRE and 60IRE for a good clean key, I normally aim for 50IRE with S-Cinetone, but provided you don’t go below 40IRE or above 60IRE you should be good.
Understanding Sony’s Viewfinder Display Gamma assist.
Most of sony’s cameras that support S-Log3 or Hybrid Log Gamma also have a function called Viewfinder Display Gamma Assist.
Viewfinder Display Gamma Assist allows you to monitor with the cameras built in LCD screen or viewfinder with the correct brightness and contrast range when using gamma curves that are not directly compatible with these Rec-709 screens.
Whenever you try to view a gamma curve that is not normal Rec-709 on a Rec-709 screen the brightness and contrast that you will see will be incorrect. The most common scenario is perhaps viewing S-Log3 without any form of LUT. In this case the images will look less bright and have less contrast than they should and this makes judging exposure difficult as well making it less easy to see focus errors.
With a camera like the FX6 or FX9 most people will use the cameras CineEI mode and add a LUT to the viewfinder image to convert the S-Log3 to something that looks more contrasty and on the FX6 and FX9 the default LUT is “s709”. However s709 is not the same thing as Rec-709 (Note that with the FX6, because LUTs are always available in the CineEI mode, viewfinder display gamma assist is not available in the CineEI mode of the FX6, you should instead use a LUT).
I think a lot of people think that the default s709 LUT is the same as Rec-709, it’s not, it is very different. They look very different and result in quite different brightness levels when exposed correctly. s709 when exposed correctly will put skin tones somewhere around 50-60% and white at 78%. If you expose s709 using normal Rec-709 brightness levels (70% skintones, 90% white) this is actually over exposed by just over 1 stop. As a result if you expose the s709 LUT, using Rec-709 levels, and then turn off the LUT and instead use Viewfinder Gamma Assist, the gamma assist will look wrong, it will be too bright and may look washed out and this is simply because the exposure IS wrong.
Almost always, if the viewfinder display gamma assist looks wrong, the exposure is wrong. When it looks right, the likelihood is the exposure is right.
A few things to understand:
- The viewfinder is a Rec-709 range display device only capable of showing Rec-709 range and colour.
- Feed true Rec-709 to a Rec-709 device and you will have a correct looking image with “normal” brightness, contrast and colour.
- Feed S-Log3 to a Rec-709 device and you will have an incorrect dull, flat looking image due to the gamma miss-match between the capture gamma and display gamma.
- Feed S-Log3 to a device with S-Log3 gamma and you will once again have the correct brightness and contrast as there is no longer a gamma miss-match (S-Log3 only appears to be flat due to the gamma missmatch between S-Log3 and Rec-709, use the right gamma and you will see that it is not actually flat).
Viewfinder Display Gamma Assist works by changing the gamma curve used in the Viewfinder to a gamma curve similar to S-Log3. When you view S-Log3 with a monitor with S-Log3 gamma you will have the correct contrast and brightness, so correct exposure will look correct.
But because the cameras LCD display screen can only show 6 to 7 stops you don’t get the full S-Log3 viewing range, just the central mid range part that is the direct equivalent of Rec-709. This very closely matches what you see if you use the Sony 709(800) LUT to convert the S-log3 to 709. The 709(800) LUT converts S-Log2 or S-Log3 to vanilla Rec-709 (70% skintones/90% white) with a knee that provides a slightly extended highlight range. It is broadly comparable to how most conventional Rec-709 cameras will look. So as a result viewfinder display gamma assist and Sony’s 709(800) LUT’s will look almost identical, while the s709 LUT will (and should by design) look different.
Viewfinder Display Gamma Assist is extremely useful for scenarios where you do not have a LUT option such as when shooting in CineEI in HD with the FX9. It can help you make good exposure assessments. It can make it easier to see when you are in focus. But it isn’t a LUT, so can’t be applied to the cameras outputs, only the built in viewfinder. Additionally if you use zebras, the waveform or histogram, gamma assist has no effect on these so you must remember that you are still measuring the levels of the actual recording gamma, not Rec-709 levels.
Viewfinder Gamma Assist is useful not only for shooting with S-Log but also when shooting using HLG (Hybrid Log Gamma). HLG is an HDR gamma curve and because the LCD viewfinder isn’t HDR you can’t correctly monitor HLG directly. Viewfinder Gamma Assist allows you to monitor with the correct brightness and contrast when shooting HLG making it easier to confidently get the correct exposure levels, as much like S-log3 the levels required for the correct exposure of HLG are quite different to Rec-709.
One last thing: NEVER use Viewfinder Gamma Assist with a LUT at the same time, this will result in a completely incorrect looking image and could result in very bad exposure as a result.