How to Convert Log Footage to Rec 709 in Final Cut Pro

Quick answer: To convert log footage to Rec. 709 in Final Cut Pro, select the clips, open the Info inspector (Command-4, then Info), choose General, Extended or Settings from the Metadata View pop-up menu, and pick your camera's log profile from the Camera LUT pop-up menu (Apple Log, Apple Log 2, Sony S-Log3, Panasonic V-Log, Canon Log, DJI D-Log and more). Final Cut Pro often does this automatically on import. Then correct and grade on top, and export a project set to Standard - Rec. 709.

Who needs this, and why log looks so flat

If you shoot in a log profile, this guide is for you. That includes iPhone users recording Apple Log or Apple Log 2, Sony (S-Log3), Panasonic (V-Log), Canon (Canon Log, Log 2, Log 3), DJI drones and cameras (D-Log), Fujifilm (F-Log, F-Log2), Nikon (N-Log), ARRI and Blackmagic. If your clips look washed out, gray and low in contrast in the viewer, and you're delivering a normal video for YouTube, Instagram, TikTok or a client, you need to convert them to Rec. 709, the standard color space for HD and SDR video.

Why cameras shoot log

A normal (Rec. 709) profile bakes contrast into the file, so bright skies and deep shadows get clipped and that detail is gone for good. A log curve compresses the highlights and shadows instead, fitting more stops of dynamic range into the same file. Apple calls it "more f-stops of exposure latitude." (Apple: Apply LUTs)

• Better to grade: you have far more room to fix exposure and white balance and to push a look before the image breaks down.
• Highlight and shadow detail: windows, skies and dark corners keep the detail a standard profile would throw away.
• Consistency: each camera's log converts to the same Rec. 709 standard, so footage from different cameras is easier to match.
• The tradeoff: log looks flat and washed out until it's converted, and it needs good exposure. Shoot a 10-bit codec when you can (such as ProRes or 10-bit H.265), because 8-bit log can band when you stretch it.

Before you start: check your library and project settings

Two settings decide how Final Cut Pro handles log. (Apple: Use wide-gamut HDR color processing)

• Library color processing: select the library, choose File > Library Properties (Control-Command-J) and click Modify. Standard works in Rec. 709. Wide Gamut HDR works in Rec. 2020, and Apple notes that in this mode camera LUTs "preserve the full dynamic range" of log media. In a Standard library, log is tone mapped down to SDR when it's converted.
• Project color space: choose Window > Project Properties (Command-J), click Modify and set Color Space to Standard - Rec. 709. This works inside a Wide Gamut HDR library too.

Which should you pick? If you only ever deliver SDR, a Standard library is simple and predictable. If you want to keep the full range of the footage (or deliver HDR too), use a Wide Gamut HDR library with a Standard - Rec. 709 project. Apple also recommends a separate library for each project or deliverable, so color settings don't cross over.

Step 1: Convert with the built-in Camera LUT

When you import log media, Final Cut Pro looks for metadata that identifies the log format and applies the matching camera LUT automatically. If your clips already look normal after import, it's done. If they still look flat (some cameras don't embed the metadata, and transcoding can strip it), set it by hand:

1. Select one or more log clips in the browser or timeline.
2. Open the inspector (Command-4) and click the Info button.
3. Click the Metadata View pop-up menu in the bottom-left corner and choose General, Extended or Settings.
4. Click the Camera LUT pop-up menu and choose your camera's profile.

The change applies to every instance of the clip in the library, and it's applied before any clip effects, so everything you add later works on a normal-looking image. Choosing None turns log processing off. (Apple: Apply LUTs)

You shot	Choose in Camera LUT
iPhone, Apple Log	Apple Log
iPhone, Apple Log 2	Apple Log 2 (added in Final Cut Pro 11.2)
Sony S-Log3	Sony S-Log3/S-Gamut3 or S-Log3/S-Gamut3.Cine (match your camera setting)
Panasonic V-Log	Panasonic V-Log
Canon Log / Log 2 / Log 3	Canon Log, Canon Log 2/Cinema Gamut, or Canon Log 3/Cinema Gamut
DJI D-Log	DJI D-Log
Fujifilm, Nikon, ARRI, Blackmagic	F-Log / F-Log2, N-Log, ARRI Log C / LogC4, Blackmagic Design Film
A profile that isn't listed (e.g. DJI D-Log M)	Add Custom Camera LUT (the manufacturer's .cube file), or a Custom LUT effect

Got a manufacturer LUT? In the same Camera LUT pop-up menu, choose Add Custom Camera LUT, select the .cube or .mga file, set the Output Color Space (usually in the file name) and click Open. It then appears in the Custom Camera section of the menu and works just like a built-in one.

Step 2 (only if needed): use a Custom LUT effect instead

A camera LUT works at the media level. A Custom LUT effect is a normal clip effect you can place anywhere in the effect order. Use it when your profile isn't built in, or for a creative look after the conversion. (Apple: Apply LUTs)

1. Select the clip in the timeline. In the Effects browser, choose the Color category and double-click Custom LUT.
2. In the Video inspector, click the LUT pop-up menu and choose Choose Custom LUT, then pick your .cube or .mga file.
3. Set the Input and Output color spaces the LUT was made for, and use Mix to blend it with the original if you like.

If you use a Custom LUT to convert log, set the clip's Camera LUT to None first, or you'll convert twice.

Step 3: Fix missing color metadata (Color Space Override)

Footage that went through third-party software sometimes has missing or wrong color space tags, so it looks off even after you convert it. Check it in the Info inspector with Metadata View set to Extended: the Color Profile field should read 1-1-1 for Rec. 709. If it's empty or wrong, switch Metadata View to Settings and pick the correct original color space from the Color Space Override pop-up menu. Apple recommends doing this before any color correction. (Apple: Override a clip's metadata)

Step 4: Correct, then grade

A converted image is a neutral starting point, not a finished one. Set exposure and white balance first: the Color Adjustments effect (Option-Command-O) and Modify > Balance Color are the quickest built-in tools,, checked on the video scopes (Command-7). Then build your look. Our step-by-step color grading guide for Final Cut Pro 12 covers this part in detail.

Step 5: Export a Rec. 709 file

1. Make sure the project's Color Space is Standard - Rec. 709 (Window > Project Properties > Modify).
2. Choose File > Share > Export File (Command-E).
3. Click Settings, choose your format and codec, and check the Color space line in the Settings pane before you click Next.

Everything in the timeline, log or not, is conformed to the project's color space on export. (Apple: Export final mastering files)

What about HDR Tools and Color Conform?

You don't need either for a normal log-to-709 job; the camera LUT does it. Every clip also gets a built-in Color Conform effect, set to Automatic, which converts clips whose color space differs from the project's (for example, HDR iPhone clips in a Rec. 709 project). HDR Tools (Effects browser > Color) is a legacy effect for manual conversions, such as HLG to Rec. 709 SDR or PQ to Rec. 709 SDR, when you need to control where the conversion happens in the effect order. Apple warns that the two are additive, so use one or the other on a clip, not both. (Apple: Automatic color management and Color Conform)

Troubleshooting and tips

Problem	Fix
Crushed, overly contrasty, oversaturated image	Double conversion. A camera LUT is set and a log-to-709 Custom LUT (or another conversion) is on top. Keep one.
Still flat after import	The metadata is missing. Set the Camera LUT by hand (Step 1).
Highlights clip right after conversion	Work in a Wide Gamut HDR library so the camera LUT keeps the full range, then bring highlights down in your correction.
Colors look slightly off or washed out	Check the Color Profile field and fix it with Color Space Override (Step 3). Make sure you picked the right gamut variant (e.g. S-Gamut3 vs. S-Gamut3.Cine).
Export looks different from the viewer	Check that the project is Standard - Rec. 709 and confirm the Color space line in the Share window.

• Exposure starts on set. Log gives you room in post, but noisy, underexposed log stays noisy. Expose properly, then fine-tune exposure after the conversion, not before it.
• Keep the order: convert, correct, grade, finish. A look applied to unconverted log is almost impossible to control.

Finish the job: Quick Color and Finishing Plugin 2

Once your log clips are converted and corrected, the creative part is where time goes. These two FCPeffects plugins are built to go right after the conversion.

Quick Color: grade the converted image fast

Quick Color gives you ready-made, fully customizable looks with on-screen color wheels for shadows, midtones and highlights right in the viewer, plus soft "milky" shadow looks Final Cut Pro doesn't have built in. Select several clips and double-click a preset to apply it to all of them. Put it on your clips after the camera LUT has done its job.

Finishing Plugin 2: the final polish

Finishing Plugin 2 puts levels, vibrancy, detail, softening, saturation, hue and color balance in one effect, each for the whole image or just the shadows, midtones or highlights. Start from a look preset (or Default, which changes nothing until you adjust it), and use its reframing controls and framing guides to get the final crop right.

Each plugin is $20 and works with Final Cut Pro 12 on Intel and Apple silicon Macs. Both are also in the MEGA BUNDLE: all of our plugins (over 80) for $80.

FAQ

Does Final Cut Pro convert log automatically?

Usually, yes. If the file carries log metadata, Final Cut Pro applies the matching built-in camera LUT on import. If it doesn't, set the Camera LUT in the Info inspector.

Should I use the Camera LUT or a Custom LUT?

Use the Camera LUT whenever your profile is listed: it's applied before effects and across the whole library. Use a Custom LUT effect for unlisted profiles or creative looks, with the Camera LUT set to None if it's doing the conversion.

Can I edit Apple Log 2 in Final Cut Pro?

Yes. Final Cut Pro 11.2 added the Apple Log 2 LUT, which converts Apple Log 2 to Rec. 709. Choose Apple Log 2 from the Camera LUT pop-up menu.

Do I need a Wide Gamut HDR library to deliver Rec. 709?

No. A Standard library exports Rec. 709 fine. A Wide Gamut HDR library with a Standard - Rec. 709 project keeps the full range of your log footage while you work, which gives you more room in the highlights.

Keep learning

Next, nail the correction step with how to white balance in Final Cut Pro, then build your look with our Final Cut Pro 12 color grading guide.

See Quick Color