---
title: "Log Footage Color Management: Convert First, Then Add a Look"
description: "Why order matters with log footage: a creative look on raw S-Log3 stays flat, then setting the Footage input transform converts the clip to Rec.709 underneath…"
url: https://colorgrade.video/videos/log-footage-color-management-before-a-look
---

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3. Log Footage Color Management: Convert First, Then Add a Look

# Log Footage Color Management: Convert First, Then Add a Look

* Duration:  0:39
* Published: November 5, 2026
* English captions

Your browser can't play this video. [Download the MP4](https://colorgrade.video/media/videos/log-footage-color-management-before-a-look/video.mp4); the full transcript is below.

Why order matters with log footage: a creative look on raw S-Log3 stays flat, then setting the Footage input transform converts the clip to Rec.709 underneath the look. Log exposure trims it in stops, and the grade leaves as a 33-point .cube LUT.

[ Color grading tutorial · chapter 8 Log Footage, Color Spaces and LUTs Explained What a log curve and a wide gamut do, how colour management turns them into normal video, and what a 3D LUT can and cannot carry.  Read the chapter ](https://colorgrade.video/color-grading-tutorial/log-footage-and-luts) 

## Key moments

1. [ Log as recorded , starts at  0:00 ](#t=0)
2. [ The input transform , starts at  0:13 ](#t=13)
3. [ Export as a LUT , starts at  0:30 ](#t=30)
4. [ Try it yourself , starts at  0:36 ](#t=36)

## Transcript

### Log as recorded  0:00

1. [ 0:02 Raw S-Log3: the waveform sits in a narrow band and the vectorscope trace is small, because nothing is encoded for display yet. ](#t=2)
2. [ 0:05 A creative look applied to log still looks muddy: the look expects Rec.709 input. ](#t=5)

### The input transform  0:13

1. [ 0:13 Setting Footage to S-Log3 / S-Gamut3.Cine converts the input first; the look now sits on normal contrast and colour. ](#t=13)
2. [ 0:18 Log exposure trims the clip in stops before the conversion, and the whole waveform moves together. ](#t=18)
3. [ 0:24 Split compare against the original log shows the conversion and the look together. ](#t=24)

### Export as a LUT  0:30

1. [ 0:30 The grade can leave as a .cube; 33 points per axis suits most looks. ](#t=30)

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