D-cinelike or not ?? H265 4K 50 fps

[jagged]

Hey. I use my mavic air 2 to shoot wildlife in the ocean, marine mammals and such. I shoot 4k to be able to crop, and 50 fps to be able to slow. I want the best possible raw material, and for that reason i have been shooting in D-cinelike. BUT i am actually uncertain if it brings me anything. Seems that the files and difficult to process, and I do find that there is not much latitude in them anyway. So the question remains, is D-cinelike worth it ??? What do you think, do you shoot D-cinelike ???

 

[brett8883]

Hey. I use my mavic air 2 to shoot wildlife in the ocean, marine mammals and such. I shoot 4k to be able to crop, and 50 fps to be able to slow. I want the best possible raw material, and for that reason i have been shooting in D-cinelike. BUT i am actually uncertain if it brings me anything. Seems that the files and difficult to process, and I do find that there is not much latitude in them anyway. So the question remains, is D-cinelike worth it ??? What do you think, do you shoot D-cinelike ???

It’s just a matter of what colors you like better. D-Cinelike is slightly flatter but as you said there is limited latitude anyway so just go with the colors you like.

 

[volition]

If you Color grade I think there Is value. The dynamic range It’s not like log but definitely wider. for those that do not grade don’t bother.

I have a standard lut I just apply if I want a quick grade. It’s a great Color lut applying good range and great Color. I can’t remember which one atm I am away from home (I tested like 10-15 of the available ones). I’ll have a look tonight which one I recommend.

Else if I want a particular look I’ll make it from scratch

 

[Dave Maine]

The image quality is determined by the image sensor. All the various choices are modifying slightly the interpretation of the raw sensor data. They do not affect the overall quality. Whether or not you decide to have DJI’s adjustments or yours in post processing is simply a preference. Your skill-levels for getting good results in post processing will determine what is easier.

 

[Karlewski]

I think you get better dynamic range with Cinelike and a bit more latitude with color adjustment to go along with that BUT, the smaller the sensor the less push and pull you can do in grading. The best reason to use it is if you want to match the grade with other cameras. If I was shooting, say seals, along a shadowed sea cliff with bright sun and dark shadows I'd be using cinelike for the dynamic range. . . .

 

[Dave Maine]

The sensor itself is what determines the dynamic range. D-Cinelike makes it easier to handle the failures of the other DJI settings in high dynamic range situations in post. The histogram is an easy way to ***** the problem. If neither the brightest part pf the image nor the darkest part of the image are being pushed against their respective limits, it is not a problem. If they are, you can see how much improvement you get by using d-cinelike (or RAW for stills).

 

[brett8883]

The sensor itself is what determines the dynamic range. D-Cinelike makes it easier to handle the failures of the other DJI settings in high dynamic range situations in post. The histogram is an easy way to ***** the problem. If neither the brightest part pf the image nor the darkest part of the image are being pushed against their respective limits, it is not a problem. If they are, you can see how much improvement you get by using d-cinelike (or RAW for stills).

Well the colorspace, gamma, and bit depth has an affect on how much of the dynamic range captured by the sensor will be encoded into the video and how. The codec also will affect the amount of latitude.

Since the MA2 only encodes video in 8 bit and there’s no log gamma recording option the dynamic range of the video recorded is less than if there was a 10 bit log profile with the same sensor.

 

[Dave Maine]

The sensor captures all of the image. The other characteristics you mention simply modify the sensor raw data after the fact, and record an image with those adjustments to a file.

 

[brett8883]

The sensor captures all of the image. The other characteristics you mention simply modify the sensor raw data after the fact, and record an image with those adjustments to a file.

Yes but we only care about the recorded image. It really doesn’t matter what the sensor can capture if it can’t be recorded.

 

[Dave Maine]

True enough.

You can save yourself some work though by reducing the amount of time spend post processing if you don’t have dynamic range problems which require it.

 

[brett8883]

True enough.

You can save yourself some work though by reducing the amount of time spend post processing if you don’t have dynamic range problems which require it.

Certainly correct exposure helps position the dynamic range where you want it but in a high dynamic range scene you may be forced to choose between blown highlights and crushed blacks. If the camera was able to record more dynamic range you might not need to make that choice.

 

[bigtobz]

I have a couple of tools for Davinci Resolve in my little color science webstore. also transforms to correctly transform d-cinelike to any other known colorspace, so that grading tools feel comfortable or look-luts work as expected, although not specially made for d-cinelike. www.salamifish.com/shop

 

[dthreee]

Well the colorspace, gamma, and bit depth has an affect on how much of the dynamic range captured by the sensor will be encoded into the video and how. The codec also will affect the amount of latitude.

Since the MA2 only encodes video in 8 bit and there’s no log gamma recording option the dynamic range of the video recorded is less than if there was a 10 bit log profile with the same sensor.

10 bit doesn't offer more dynamic range, it just gives you more data to work with when you are color correcting. This made log on some DSLR/mirrorless cameras pretty useless if they didn't have 10 bit. An 8 bit log image will start to fall apart when pushed too far in cc, creating lots of banding artifacts. This can also happen with d-cinelike but is less likely since it's not as "flat" as log.

 

[brett8883]

10 bit doesn't offer more dynamic range, it just gives you more data to work with when you are color correcting. This made log on some DSLR/mirrorless cameras pretty useless if they didn't have 10 bit. An 8 bit log image will start to fall apart when pushed too far in cc, creating lots of banding artifacts. This can also happen with d-cinelike but is less likely since it's not as "flat" as log.

I said 10 bit log could record more dynamic range. That’s the point.

8 bit log can’t even carry the original signal in most cases, never mind being pushed so that’s why I don’t simply say log and specify 10 bit

 

[eipbroc]

Seems that the files and difficult to process

That isn't D-Cinelike, its HEVC coming into play.

Edit: also make and use proxies

 

[JL_Ware]

If you Color grade I think there Is value. The dynamic range It’s not like log but definitely wider. for those that do not grade don’t bother.

I have a standard lut I just apply if I want a quick grade. It’s a great Color lut applying good range and great Color. I can’t remember which one atm I am away from home (I tested like 10-15 of the available ones). I’ll have a look tonight which one I recommend.

Else if I want a particular look I’ll make it from scratch

I'm just learning to color grade using Final Cut Pro X, I'd be interested in the Standard LUT that you're using

 

[volition]

I'm just learning to color grade using Final Cut Pro X, I'd be interested in the Standard LUT that you're using

Im away from home till the weekend. I’ll have a look and give you the lowdown.

 

[nedcook]

These are specifically for the Mavic Air 2 and D-Cinelike:

Mavic Air 2 - SkyGrades Collection - Film Poets

A discounted bundle of SkyGrades products for the DJI Mavic Air 2, including Natural and Cinema presets.

www.thefilmpoets.com

(I have no affiliation with these people; they just have really nice LUTS. I like the SkyGrades Cinema Pop.)

 

[dap455]

I've gotten very good results using the D-Cinelike profile with my Mavic Air 2. You can get much better results all the way around using the D-Cinelike profile over the normal profile. I think it's much easier to get just the look you what with much more latitude to work with over an already in camera processed video. I use Davinci Resolve and am very happy with the results after processing D-Cinelike video.