More In-Depth Look at the Recently Added C-Log Gamma Profile on the Canon 5D Mark IV

After a long and tiresome wait, Canon has finally answered the prayers of the full-frame camera fan club with the addition of their signature C-Log color profile to the Canon 5D Mark IV, the fourth iteration of the company’s flagship DSLR.
With a 30.4 Megapixel Full-Frame CMOS sensor, DIGIC 6+ processor, and Dual-Pixel Autofocus, Canon is hoping to reinvigorate the DSLR filmmaking community with a camera by adding more filmmaker-focused features including 4K DCI video recording and of course the highly anticipated C-Log Color profile.

Unfortunately, things haven’t changed much since April when Canon spilled the beans and officially announced the long-awaited firmware upgrade which means that nearly three months later it’s still being offered as a paid service, so you have to send your camera in order to get it installed and ready to use on your beloved Canon 5D Mark IV.

That said, let’s jump straight to the LensProToGo video below that covers in detail everything you need to know about the latest firmware upgrade on the Canon’s flagship DSLR and what exactly you’ll get for the price.

For those unfamiliar with C-Log, it is Canon’s custom color profile that was first introduced in the Cinema Series of cameras (such as the Canon C300). While the profile produces a picture that is much flatter and less contrasty than a typical color profile, the preservation of color details in the image allow for a more flexible color grading experience in post-production, thus giving you more options to obtain the precise look that suits your project.

In the case of the 5D Mark IV, C-Log will give you an image with up to 12 stops of dynamic range at 400 ISO or higher, better-preserving details in the shadows and highlights compared to a standard color profile. Through the new Canon Log Settings Menu, you will be able to adjust the hue, saturation, sharpness, and strength of the profile in order to properly control the look you want for your image.

Another helpful feature of the C-Log integration in the 5D Mark IV is the option for View Assist. When enabled, the camera will allow users to view their shots using a pre-made LUT which makes the image temporarily seem to have a more standard color profile. Although, the final recording will still be using the C-Log profile.

While the images from Canon’s color profile has been widely praised for its ease-of-use and its ability to produce stunning results, there are a few things to note about using C-Log on the 5D Mark IV. Canon has stated that there are some horizontal noise patterns (banding) present using the color profile, the amount of which will depend on your shot’s lighting environment and movement.

To reduce the banding in the shot, Canon recommends shooting at a lower ISO, adding more light to the scene, shooting at a higher exposure, disabling peripheral illumination correction, and doing some post-production color correction.

Just as a quick reminder, the upgrade is now available and will set you back roughly $99 depending on your country of residence as well as you’ll need to ship your camera to your nearest authorized service center to get the feature enabled on board. Optionally, you could buy the camera body with Canon Log pre-installed by using the link below.

[source: LensProToGo]

B&H Order Link:

Canon EOS 5D Mark IV DSLR Camera with Canon Log (Body Only)

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