Yes Hugh, your lightbulb moment is basically it. Use a monitoring LUT, apply a LUT via adjustment layer or copy paste in Premiere. Done. Easy. Boom.
Obviously there's always a little more to it... and others have pointed out some things that I recommend pausing your brain on, and just going and do ^^ that first.
My 2 cents don't worry about Resolve yet IMO because it's just one more thing to learn. Lots of people like it. It's a great tool. It's nothing scary. But in no way is it needed or required, its just one more thing to learn. Pause here.
It won't burn it in if its a monitoring LUT. They call it that because you're monitoring. Yes, some pieces of gear have options to burn in the LUT. It's an option. Don't use it
As far as Bassman / WWJDs comments, I'd push forward on LOG. There's a reason so many pros use it, and use it only. Really, it's easy. And it's worth it. No, you won't always get an obvious 2 stop advantage. That's not how DR works. You're displaying your footage on limited DR monitors. Most TVs and monitors do about 8 stops. Most cinema cameras do about 14 stops. It's all about mapping the DR after you shoot. You can use a Lumetri color mask with feathering to pull out more range on a clip. But that's the next step. Pause here. It's super cool. Don't worry about it yet.
Even if you do none of this, and just use the monitoring LUT and premiere LUT, you're still better off in captured range and post grading options. You can save a shot better if you need to. You have an infinite pallete post shoot to redo all colors and everything without any look baked in. Even in shots without more DR immediately noticeable, the gradations between brightness can look smoother. IMO, it's so easy to do, it would be foolish in 2019 to being baking in a look that you can't change later, when all you have to do is use a LUT in post and monitoring LUT and work basically as always, but get better iQ and a robust "insurance policy" on all your shots.
The other thing I'll add is, I'm glad for your excitement. It also reveals you're talking about how hard it is without having done any reading or tutorialsI'm not criticizing that, you are just asking questions, rather I am encouraging you. Everything seems hard when no one has explained it to you. Of course you feel overwhelmed! Why don't you read something from Barry Green on working with LOG footage, read the manual on the GHx vlog, watch a youtube video on it. Be careful on Youtube, lots of misinformation.
And then most importantly, just take a few hours to go PLAY and experiment. Be excited about it. Don't treat it as a to do list. Treat it as a free, massive camera upgrade and all you have to do is pay with a couple of fun hours of playing with stuff.
Honestly, it's really easy. And the benefits are there even if you only use it to 10% of it's potential.
Ok Hugh, now is the point in the thread where you say "I am going to go check all of this stuff out...". Seriously, if you have the camera try and try again and see what works best for YOU. Asking if the natural profile works is not going to yield anything compared to picking up your camera and putting it in natural mode and shooting. First hand knowledge is the most important thing.
Thank you, Jim. I watched the videos and, yes, what you suggested makes sense. For now, I will noodle with all settings and work with what I've got (I will try Leeming as well) and check results. I thank you all for your patience and tutelage.