REAL-WORLDRAW
LEFT Compared to the standard ProRes 422 footage, the ProRes Raw has so much more dynamic
ProResRaw
range. Check out the difference in the sky
RIGHT On the Sony FS5 there is only one Raw to Log conversion setting and that’s S-Log 3. It’s in the General tab in FCPX
“One of the biggest issues with Raw is the amount of data it uses”
amount of memory space, and is way too much for most users. So we opted for the more efficient ProRes Raw formats, Apple ProRes Raw and the higher-quality ProRes Raw HQ. All ProRes Raw is designed to maintain constant quality, so images with greater detail or sensor noise are encoded at higher data rates and therefore produce larger file sizes. So it’s hard to give exact sizes for ProRes Raw files, but they generally fall between ProRes 422 and ProRes 422 HQ, while ProRes Raw HQ generally fall between those of Apple ProRes 422 HQ and Apple ProRes 4444. So essentially, if you use regular ProRes files, the difference to ProRes Raw isn’t that big in terms of file space. The reality is that, shooting normal ProRes Raw, we filled 31GB with a clip of just 2 minutes 40 seconds. We filled 350GB with 28 minutes 37 seconds of 4K/60p footage plus 61 seconds of 2K footage at 240fps. So that would fill 500GB SSD in around 43 minutes. Shooting Raw on the Sony, you have to record in 4K, unless you are going for super-slowmotion, high frame rates when you record in 2K. There is unlimited 240fps recording in 2K, while in 4K you can get 120fps, but this is in eight-second bursts only. But that’s still pretty special considering the price and age of the camera. You have to set the camera and
likely you will need to totally change your workflow. Perhaps the most widespread option is now Apple’s ProRes Raw, which only works if you record to an Atomos monitor. It is an attempt at a new standard in much the same way ProRes is used by lots of filmmakers, but the files are much smaller than CinemaDNG. ProRes Raw can work on a range of cameras like Sony FS700, FS5 and FS7, Canon C500 and C300 Mark II, Panasonic EVA-1 and Varicams, plus Panasonic’s S1H and Nikon Z series of mirrorless cameras. The number is growing all the time. But of course it’s an Apple format, so that’s OK if you edit in Final Cut Pro X. It’s not quite as easy if you use other NLEs. While there have been plenty of scientific tests of Raw formats, it’s actually out in the field that any new technology is really put to the test. So we decided to do a couple of real-world shoots using a Sony FS5 with Sony’s Raw firmware upgrade. It can be set to anything from an 8-bit internal codec to full Raw, as well as ProRes Raw and the usual ProRes codecs via an Atomos Shogun Inferno, which takes large SSD media. That’s crucial, as one of the biggest issues with Raw is the amounts of data it uses. Shooting pure CinemaDNG Raw from the Sony FS5 filled a 500GB hard drive in around 15 minutes. That’s a ludicrous
Atomos to S-Log2, although it’s actually getting Raw data. The files were edited on a 5K Retina iMac with a 4GHz Quad-Core Intel Core i7 with 16GB memory running MacOS Catalina in FCPX, and it struggled – as it does with many 4K files anyway. Frames were regularly dropped in playback as it struggled to keep up. Time to upgrade to a new Mac Pro if you plan to shot Raw a lot. The edit process is as simple as using normal files. You import clips, go to the Info Inspector and change the view from Basic to General, which then reveals the ProRes Raw controls. There is no S-Log2 option – you can either choose S-Gamut3 or S-Gamut3.cine. But you can play around with various LUTs to find a look that works for you, or create a custom one. Working with these Raw files really opens your eyes to the amount of detail there is. You can easily recover highlight details and get some details into shadows. Noise is well controlled, but definitely there, as there is no in-camera noise suppression, so you will need to add de-noising with a plug-in. The benefits of shooting Raw were apparent when we used it to film a motocross rider on a dull and cold winter’s day with a flat, white, featureless sky. The Raw shooting added some detail into the sky, and helped the colours of the bike and riding gear pop, while maintaining good skin tones. But the biggest advantage
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SPRING 2020 PRO MOVIEMAKER
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