American Cinematographer - January 2012 - 84

◗
•|•

Go with the Flow

what was there in the original image. It’s the ultimate way to future-proof your ast year the FX series the IDT for film negative ‘digital negative.’” Justified became the that the Academy has To understand how IIF-ACES first episodic TV show to provided to bring that works, it’s necessary to distinguish test the Academy’s IIFmaterial into ACES,” says between linear and log encoding. Linear ACES workflow, which it Bajpai. “It’s amazing how encoding is often confused with video did using Sony cameras, well a 10-bit DPX scan gamma, which is sometimes called and since then post facility falls into place with it. linear video. The linear encoding we are Encore has begun using [Once in ACES space,] we discussing is scene linear, which reprethe process on shows that can color correct it using sents images that have a linear relationuse different capture the same RRTs and ODTs ship between the captured RGB values media, among them as we would on a digitally and the physical light luminosities of Pankaj Bajpai 35mm film, the Arri Alexa captured show. the original scene. Logarithmic encodand the Red Epic. “In the past,” he continues, “TV ing, on the other hand, encodes images Encore senior colorist Pankaj shows would do a telecine transfer from with a non-linear relationship to the Bajpai reports that IIF-ACES is being film to some form of video, such as scene’s physical light intensities, used to color correct/finish Hung and DigiBeta, D1 or HDCam, but you mapping the scene’s dynamic-range Enlightened, which are shot on 35mm; could never really record the full range information within a smaller number of Chicago Code and How to Make it in of what was on the negative. Even in bits. Its values, therefore, do not increase America, which are shot with the Alexa HD, you were limited by the Rec 709 in tandem with the physical light levels (using SxS cards to record to the ProRes gamut. There were ways you could try to present in the taking scene. It is impor4:4:4 codec); and the new season of flatten the image and retain more detail, tant to realize that although film densiJustified, which is shot on Red’s Epic. but there wasn’t anything like 10-bit ties have a logarithmic relationship to “The image characteristics yielded by all DPX uncompressed data. the scene, not all logarithmic encodings these different digital sensors are unique “ACES really captures all of the encode the images as film would have. to each camera, just as the image charcharacteristic curves and the way that Many of today’s popular digitalacteristics of the various film negatives film behaves, with very meaty midcinema cameras utilize log encoding as are unique, but once you have the proper tones, gorgeous blacks that don’t have part of their recording schemes. Arri’s input-device transform for each camera, the sort of blue noise you sometimes get Alexa can incorporate Log C encoding the reference-rendering transforms and with film scans, and creamy, subtle with its ProRes recording option, and output-device transforms remain the highlights. On Hung, even with areas of Sony’s F35 and SRW9000PL employ same within the IIF system, regardless underexposure in dark scenes, we can the company’s S-Log format. On the of the camera used,” explains Bajpai. maintain detail while making the blacks linear side of the coin, several camera “Is there a difference between the rich.” systems offer raw linear data capture, look of Epic images and Sony F35 The new season of Justified, shot including Red’s One, Scarlet and Epic, images? Absolutely, ” he continues. “Is by Francis Kenny, ASC,is being the Alexa (when using third-party one better than the other? That’s an captured with Red’s Epic, which offers onboard recorders to capture ArriRaw aesthetic question. However, in terms of 5K Bayer-sensor resolution and framedata) and Sony’s F65. In order to supporting the full range of what each rate versatility. (It allows up to 96 fps in capture the full capabilities of these sensor or film stock can capture, IIFfull-frame 5K.) For that show, says cameras, the IIF uses custom inputACES has proven to be very simple to Bajpai, “we’re working from the raw device transforms, or IDTs, to ingest the work with. It brings all of that informa- .r3d files and have an IDT that’s maximum information from the origition into a common workspace. With designed to maintain the integrity of the nal data into the ACES color space. the color correction, our job is to respect native full dynamic range of those files. “Most of the IDTs are created by the uniqueness of these cameras and the Of course, at some point the .r3d files looking at the spectral sensitivities of the cinematographers’ intentions for shoot- have to be deBayered, and we are sensor on a given camera,” Clark ing with them.” deBayering them in such a way that our explains. “The Academy has analyzed For the HBO series Hung, shot color-science maps out. The ACES that data and very carefully devised a by Uta Briesewitz, Encore scans 3-perf workflow is working very well. We’re matrix for each camera — assuming, of Super 35mmnegative on a 4K Spirit getting very good blacks, lots of detail in course, that the camera manufacturer and saves the data as 1920x1080 10-bit the highlights, and really meaty midallowed them to go that deep into their uncompressed DPX files. “We then use tones.” specs. If not, then the onus is on the — Christopher Probst manufacturer to provide the matrix that
January 2012 American Cinematographer

New IIF-ACES Workflow in Action

•|•

Photo courtesy of Encore.

American Cinematographer - January 2012

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Cinematographer - January 2012