Old school, new school, ACES, LUTS, CSTs, log, LGG. . .

[David Brown]

It seems there is an old school where the DP uses an ARRI to emulate film, makes artistic decisions as if shooting on film, shoots well-balanced footage, and then the colorist grades into the ARRI LUT using offset and contrast, staying true to what the DP shot and  keeping an ARRI look.

Then there is a newer school where after balancing, the DP adds a creative look that might be at odds with what the DP intended (and might be more interesting).

Then there is ACES, which wipes out the unique ARRI look and seems to me to be leading to a world where the DP could just frame wide and shoot 8k raw and then hand it over to a post production team that adds most of the framing, pan, zoom, and any look they want. In a few years, the debate will be whether to light flat on set and shoot raw so the post team has max discretion.

Also there is the Davinci team, always developing easier ways to grade quickly and get a good look.

The advice I read seems to come from all of these different perspectives, and it confuses me. I have a ton of ARRI Log C footage with one Red Raven 4.5k raw pickup shot. I cannot decide between:

1.  Project-level color space transform to a Rec. 709 timeline, LGG grade in Rec. 709, output to Rec. 709.
2.  Project-level color space transform to ACES timeline, grade in ACES, output to Rec. 709.
3.  Grade the log footage using offset and contrast, with the final node a LUT to transform to Rec. 709. Don't worry so much about the one pickup shot.
4.  Grade the log footage using offset and contrast, with the final node a Color Space Transform from ARRi Log C to Rec. 709. Don't worry so much about the one pickup shot.

I'm using trail-and-error to compare, but my experience is mostly LGG in Rec. 709, so that seems more familiar. On the other hand, more sophisticated colorists prefer to grade into a LUTs using offsets.Then again, Davinci seems to want to make it easiest to use a Color Space Transform (is that better than a LUT or just a seatbelt?) and grade in Rec. 709. Then again, ACES is the future.

What to do? I know I can get a good result using any of the above. Any advice? 

Thanks in advance.

[Nicolas Hanson]

You should choose a working space based on the majority of your shots. ARRI Log C in your case. Then, for the one RED shot, use a CST/DCTL to get that one into the same space. Treat all shots equal. Run your corrections through a Log2Rec709 LUT at the end of the node tree if that is what the DOP used or a custom curve / contrast adjustment if you have the experience.

Or work scene referred. 

Watch the color workflow course on this site carefully and you will be able to take qualified decisions wether to do it one way or the other. 

[David Brown]

Thanks, Nicholas.