Scene File or settings optimized for harsh daylight shooting?

A

Adamsenoj

Well-known member
Are there any Scene Files or settings floating around optimized for shooting under harsh daylight with tree shadows etc?
So far all my tests indicate that the AF100 is not a very good choice for daylight shooting unless you like underexposed stuff. I'm starting to understand why all outdoor shots in this video have murky skin tones and the inside shot with the girl has nicer skin tones:

They probably had to badly underexpose to avoid the nasty yellow skin clipping in the outdoor shots.

All scene files in the scene file thread seem to be designed for controlled lighting conditions. Marvel's and Abel's Range seem to be the only ones that are not.

Any daylight scene files you know of?

Thanks.
 
Thanks lpowell. I actually tested your scene file. While I like it a lot, specially to match the GH2, where I think it's the best scene file for that application out there, it's a little too contrasty for my needs. I like shooting flat and grading in post.
 
Adamsenoj said:
I like shooting flat and grading in post.
Click to expand...
The AF100 doesn't have any flat gamma curves, they're all high-contrast. The Cine-like D gamma curve I used in my scene file is the flatest it offers. The AF100 is an 8-bit camera and it's best to use its full dynamic range rather than underexpose it too much.
 
I know it doesn't have any flat curves. But I think the master pedestal at -9 to match the GH2 contrasty look makes the footage too crunchy . You seem to lose a lot of info in the shadows.
 
Yeah, that's pretty much inevitable. If the GH2 had a pedestal control, I'd raise it rather than lowering the AF100's. My conclusion is that with these cameras, you have to choose whether you want highlight or shadow detail and recognize that it's an either/or situation.
 
Shot the whole day today with a flat scene file. my opinion so far is that it's the best way of getting nice footage out of the AF100.

lpowell said:
The AF100 is an 8-bit camera and it's best to use its full dynamic range rather than underexpose it too much.
Click to expand...

Honestly I don't think you have another option but slightly underexposing and if you are crushing the blacks then I don't see how you are using more dynamic range since you will totally loose shadow info. While if you shoot flat and expose to highlights you can get info in the shadows and keep highlights in check.
 
What do you mean by a "flat scene file"? The Cine-like D scene file has the mildest slope, but it's far from what I'd call "flat". If you lift the dark end of the camera's exposure range to capture more shadow detail, you'll have less headroom for highlights. The resulting image will have its dynamic range biased to favor shadow detail at the expense of the highlights. That's fine in studio situations where you can control the illumination, but for sunlit shots it will likely blow the highlights, unless you underexpose enough to turn the shadows black anyway.
 
Well, I don't know if it fits your or the usual definition of flat. But when you expose to the highlights, your shadows will most likely be underexposed, so you either need fill light or lift the blacks some other way, flattening or reducing the contrast.

What is your definition of flat scene file?
 
Adamsenoj said:
...when you expose to the highlights, your shadows will most likely be underexposed, so you either need fill light or lift the blacks some other way, flattening or reducing the contrast.

What is your definition of flat scene file?
Click to expand...
In my view, there aren't really any "flat" scene files on the AF100, all of the gamma curves are quite contrasty. As you point out, using fill lights to lift the shadows is the best way to reduce contrast. If you raise the AF100's Pedestal control to lift the blacks, it'll clip the highlights even worse than before.
 
If you want flat on the AF100, use cine-D, turn the color down to -7, and set the master pedestal at around 0 or maybe -1.

If you want to press it even further, you can use DRS 1. That will yank the highlights down even further without adding much in the way of shadow noise.
 
Most cameras look like crap mid-day. But if you play around with a different gamma, so that you can adjust the knee then you can make the highlights roll a bit nicer. I've shot midday and usually I'll go to HD Norm I believe and then go with a low or medium knee. You can always mess with like a DRS 1 as well and things will get a touch noisy, but usually my highlights look better and when I tweak in post things don't look overly harsh.

You should just go out and mess with the various settings. Also even just a simple bounce can make the world of difference in controlling the crunchy nature of the camera.
 
Barry_Green said:
If you want flat on the AF100, use cine-D, turn the color down to -7, and set the master pedestal at around 0 or maybe -1.

If you want to press it even further, you can use DRS 1. That will yank the highlights down even further without adding much in the way of shadow noise.
Click to expand...



Beat me to it in regards to DRS 1
 
The flat scene file is only going to get you so far...proper exposure is going to be the key. The scene files suggested above is the best ideal setup given your question. Otherwise as you said you'll need to set exposure for highlights and fill on-set as needed. There are no other answers...
 
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