Gopro Log Is Too Dark, Here's How To Fix It

[@MarkusFinholt]

Firmware release now allows users to choose their own exposure. gopro.com/en/us/update/hero12-black

[@kaen2099]

Doesn't this mean that GP-Log is now basically the same thing as Logb=400 with the exception that ISO is still capped at 400?

[@MarkusFinholt]

@@kaen2099 yep

[@KaenSG]

@@MarkusFinholt Found out that the new update also increased the ISO cap to 1600. GoPro Labs firmware has also been updated so you can have the best of both worlds!

So 0 ev should be OK now? Or setting to +2?

[@MarkusFinholt]

@ 0 ev is good as long as you're on the newest firmware 😁👍

[@snokefilmlabs]

Fantastic informative video. It was interesting to learn that GP-Log was simply LOGB=400 + EV Comp = -2. My take: Setting a lower EV Comp can be an okay-ish compromise if you 1) want to preserve highlights (even though it won't look totally fabulous as you point out), or 2) you want to prioritize faster shutter speed for better stabilization (especially in low-contrast low-light environments, like riding singletrack trails in dense forests). But! The key to making that work is to decrease/disable the built-in noise reduction with NR01 and increase the bitrate with BITR. Without those two extra steps, you will just end up with mush, like demonstrated brutally in this video. On a sidenote -- the most recent official Labs release for GP11 (2.12.70/1.10.70) messed up the NR01 setting somewhat, so GoPro has just released some test builds (2.12.71/1.10.71) that seems to have new/different behaviour when using NR01. I might have to get another GP11 or GP12 to make a proper comparison between the old and new modes :)

[@Romeo-4]

I cant seem to find (2.12.71/1.10.71), where do you get it?

[@BCpov]

At least we can thank them for gopro labs. I haven't played with the noise reduction setting, but I defnitely will now! No wonder gopro footage always looks so soft.

[@MarkusFinholt]

Yep, labs is a godsend. I found NR01=50 was the perfect middleground where I didn't have to do any noise reduction in post.

[@childhood.dreams]

This video shows that I have absolutely no idea what I'm actually filming with 🤣

[@vlightphotography]

Coming from a GoPro 11 and having used the GoPro Labs LOGB setting i was shocked at how bad the GoPro 12 LOG profile looked like... Thank you for this excellent comparison and explanation✌

[@Lightwings_Production]

Man, can't thank you enough ... I thought I had a buggy GoPro 12 because of how disgusting those shadows were in the Log profile. Got it exchanged by GoPro and still the same issue. Turns out it's just how bad the log file is, I wished I saw your video before. Thanks for talking about this !

[@peruemprende10]

Bro you came out of nowhere this is what i was looking for thanks !

[@MarkusFinholt]

I'm getting a lot of questions that I could answer, but decide not to. They are not stupid questions, but they are simple to answer if you just do some simple tests yourself. Compared to the rest of the pipeline of working with log, if you can't test your way the answer, or cannot find the answers to it online (the answers are really easy to find) then using log is not something you should bother with. Going from a log image to an image that is better than what the tone mapping of gopros provide takes a ton of knowledge, and skill, and quite frankly, I've seen very few people manage to achieve a better image than Gopro provides.

[@KZ-yu4jz]

Amazing video! subscribed! Thanks for taking the time to put it together. I was wondering if I should get the GoPro 12 based on the GPlog, but it looks like I would be better off just getting the 11 and downloading GoPro labs. Any tips on getting the best out of the image with Davinci Resolve Studio? In the past I have used Protune, flat, low sharp and then add some contract, color, sharpening in Davinci.

[@MarkusFinholt]

Find a good LUT that gives you nice results. That's the easiest way to get good results. Learning color grading can take tens of thousands of hours to learn, and IMO it's not worth it if you're just looking for good quality videos for youtube.

[@MarkusFinholt]

Another reason to download labs is that you might be able to use the Max Lens Mod 2.0 with LOGB=400

[@twistedtrails]

I'm trying to use Max Lens Mod 2.0 with log, but I don't see the option to do so even with labs. Are you expecting they'll add that feature?

[@twistedtrails]

Update, I installed MLM 2.0 and did LOGB=400 command, but am getting very grainy results so something is off, I guess MLM and Log just aren't compatible (yet)

[@MarkusFinholt]

@@twistedtrails Sounds like user error to me. Make sure you're not underexposing, or shooting above ISO 200.

[@twistedtrails]

@@MarkusFinholt not sure, something weird happens when attaching MLM. First, color profile settings in the cam dissapear (standard, flat, log), so not sure if cam stays in Log, it does look like it, because colors come out exaclty the same as with standard lens and Log. And another thing, I shot two almost identical vids, and on the one with MLM, there was more noise and bitrate was much higher (same ISO). Super weird, need to do more tests. I didn't touch any other settings in labs

[@MarkusFinholt]

@@twistedtrails Sounds weird, maybe it doesn't work. They did imply that it would work at labs forums.

[@halimrahman]

I found this one after looking for GoPro 11 settings used for the movie Twisters.

[@RGMGFitness]

*Yes, GP-LOG does SUCK!* I just color graded some FPV footage (shot in GP-LOG on the GoPro12 yesterday) and used GoPro's LUTs there providing as well (thought it might help)...but NOPE! I'll be honest, I also shot HDR video as well and that looks better (can actually see the clouds in the sky using the HDR setting). GoPro really messed up the GP-LOG and it's going to leave a bad taste in a lot of folks mouths. Perhaps they'll change this down the road. Yes, I had to at least try GP-LOG for myself to know for sure. But, at this point it looks like I'll be downloading the LABS software. Thanks for the detailed explanation....think you may be the 1st to explain this! Thanks!

[@Brock_Rogers]

Just learning of those depth of color grading/noise reduction info. I greatly appreciate these tip videos as /I stumbled across your mountain biking vids and was like damn these videos are CRISPY lol. They have lut options for FCPX?

[@MarkusFinholt]

Almost all video editors have the option to apply LUTs.

[@ripvanmarlowe]

Yup, just started testing the 12 and GP-LOG is so bad. I hope they'll release a firmware update that gives you more control but for now, we'll be using Labs. Thanks for the useful info in this video!

[@JonesDronesCle]

This is very helpful thank you. I color with Resolve instead of Adobe. No LUT is available that I know of. Every little bit helps, Thanks

[@MarkusFinholt]

LUT from LOGB / GP-Log to Rec709 here: community.gopro.com/s/article/10-Bit-Log-Encoding?language=en_US IDT from LOGB / GP-Log to DWG / ACES here: github.com/xtremestuff/protune-transforms

[@JonesDronesCle]

This is gold man thank you. I am still learning color. I am not sure how to apply the transforms yet and how they work with the LUT. I thought the LUT only worked with Adobe and Final Cut. This gives me a good start. thanks again @@MarkusFinholt

[@Mike_Oscar]

Do you have recommendations for low light/ at night with gp log? (with no ND in post preferable)

[@JaydenLawson]

So, now that there is a camera update, your advice is to use GP-Log, and change the EV Comp to 0?

[@MarkusFinholt]

Yep. But make sure the firmware is correct!

[@PlsDontWatchThis]

Great Vid!! Great info!! Also, What camera did you shoot the video on?! So crispy 👍👍👍

[@MarkusFinholt]

Panasonic Lumix S1H, with a 24-105 F4 panasonic lens.

[@engineerfpv]

Do you use wide=1 on hero 11 to match the gplog of hero12? Which do you prefer?I didnt have the time to really do tests.

[@MarkusFinholt]

I don't use wide anymore. I find the results to be so insignificant. Also the wide profile doesn't work on my hero 11 for some reason.

[@Kehisthe1]

Stupid question probably (I’m new to color grading and filmmaking), but I should be able to use the LUT Gopro provided for the Hero 12 on the 11?

[@MarkusFinholt]

Not a stupid question! The LUT will work for the hero 11 as long as you shoot with LOGB=400 enabled. The WIDE=1 setting does not work properly on my hero 11, but the image still looks correct with the gopro LUT only using LOGB=400.

[@imrin4059]

this setting and Ev settings only work with auto right? if i wanna go logb on gopro 11 and use fix shutter like 60 or 30 it doesnt matter?

[@MarkusFinholt]

That's right.

[@Flyer2303]

Did Gopro did not test this? It looks so obviously bad in your example. Do you not think gopro might change this in the standard firmware?

[@MarkusFinholt]

Gopro hasn't really done much to innovate over the years. The only people who listen to feedback are those who work on the labs firmware. The labs open source workers even commented that if they were to decide, they wouldn't have put the EV comp at -2. So most likely someone with less knowledge on gamma curves made the decision, higher up in Gopro.

[@imrin4059]

are log color on 11 and 12 same? if use with firmware or if use 12 with firmware is even better? how about if wanna shoot in 30 fps or 24 fps with 180 shutter angle lock does it impact log etc

[@MarkusFinholt]

The wide gamut on the hero 11 has some issues, so they are not the exact same no. Nothing you mentioned affects log recording.

[@leomatis_]

With big cameras we exposure at around +1.7 when shooting log. Isn’t that the case with gopro? Do you just exposure to 0?

[@MarkusFinholt]

That's an arbitrary number I have no idea how you landed at. We expose to the right with log curves that require it. It all depends on how the dynamic range is allocated compared to the middle gray value of that curve. ETTR is much more complicated than just shooting +1.7 stops. For gopro it's also hard, because it has more stops below middle gray, so exposing very far to the right is going to heavily limit your usable dynamic range. Usually, setting the ev comp to 0 results in optimal exposure for gopros. For snow you might bump it up to +0.5

[@leomatis_]

@@MarkusFinholt thanks for the insight! All I know is whenever you shoot log at least on Sony you have overexposure to +1.7-2.0 stops. Everyone recommends that or else you just lose information in the dark areas. Never seen anyone exposure to normal like in 709

[@OfftheTopMTB]

Fantastic Video Markus, very helpful....I have just generated a QR code for LOGB=400 and NR01=50. Do I also need to add the EV comp of +2 9to bring back to 0) in the QR code or can change this in the settings menu on the GOPro once i have scanned the QR Code? Many thanks

[@MarkusFinholt]

You don't need to use a +2 ev comp if you're using labs. If you're using the newest gopro firmware, you can also set the GP-Log profile to 0 ev comp.

[@babyboy1971]

I’ve noticed that in some footage from my GoPro hero 12, especially when it comes to peoples faces, there’s too much detail or weird artifacts. Do you recommend just turning the sharpness down to low or is there something I have to do in GoPro labs? I use footage straight out of camera and I’m using it to vlog. Weirdly, I’ve especially noticed it when I’m using standard color versus vivid or flat. Details on foliage and other inanimate objects looks really beautiful, but peoples faces just look too sharp unless I set the sharpness all the way to lowest. I’m new to GoPro. Any recommendations?

[@MarkusFinholt]

Turn the sharpness to low if you want to fix weird midtone detail

[@Marek_Holland]

What LUT's did you use?

[@RideTheTrack]

Great video

[@MattMcCormickSnow]

Capeesh jacket is rad

[@MarkusFinholt]

Supporting the locals

[@AirKhanFPV]

Did you also use WIDE=1 on the Hero 11? And do you prefer it combined with logb=400?

[@MarkusFinholt]

I have tried it, but haven't found a good workflow for it yet.

[@philipjamesricafort]

Hello do you need to set normal color profile (flat) then set the logb400? Or just direct logb400. Thanks

[@MarkusFinholt]

The order doesn't matter, but I set it to flat.

[@Max-mh5yo]

Do i just have to install the labs firmware or do i also have to adjust some settings in the menu (or in Quik)?

[@MarkusFinholt]

I made a gopro labs guide, check it out here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/f5yslpmZpbmEaKc

[@rudydoyle]

I'm confused. How do I fix this on hero 12

[@MarkusFinholt]

Upgrade to the newest firmware, or download gopro labs and use LOGB=400 instead. Labs tutorial: kzbin.info/www/bejne/f5yslpmZpbmEaKc

[@MrNategates]

Thank you for the video! I don't know if I have it working tough... Installed GP Labs, scanned QR code they have on site that's supposed to give the settings for log (Hero 11).. I still don't see what others have mentioned anywhere >> logb=400, wide=1, nr01=50

[@MrNategates]

After HOURS of scouring the web and fiddling with things, figured it out. Would be nice if someone posted a video on using the QR Control App to make make changes to the settings.. it is simple ONCE you SEE what's going on (even the app gives lousy instructions).

[@MarkusFinholt]

Sorry for the late reply. Here is a labs tutorial for those that need some help: kzbin.info/www/bejne/f5yslpmZpbmEaKc

[@ColindeSilva]

@@MrNategates I think you just gave yourself an idea for your next video? 🙂

[@jonatslab2284]

Even having GoPro labs installed and applying the recommended settings (LOGB=400, NR01=50), the EVComp is still locked when you adjust the Shutter Speed to 180* rule. Is this only applicable for Auto Shutter or I am missing something to force EVComp=0 even with shutter speed change?

[@HANKUS]

so your video doesn't explain how to do anything. I installed the labs firmware and notice no difference in unlocking EV while on GLog, likewise I am confused where the "noise reduction" settings/options are thanks

[@MarkusFinholt]

This is not a Gopro Labs walkthrough. It's just an explanation of gopro log. There are tons of other resources online to guide you through the labs process.

[@HANKUS]

@@MarkusFinholt i appreciate you bringing it up, but "Here's How To Fix It" implies an element of teaching which it didn't really. i suppose i misunderstood the video's intent i did install gopro labs and find it quite the thing to dive into, wondering why the gopro12 footage has more noise than the gopro11 in your example.. was that your settings or the hardware?

[@MarkusFinholt]

@@HANKUS I might do a video on gopro labs later, since many people are struggling with it. Download the QR code app here: gopro.com/en/us/info/gopro-labs and install the firmware. Then you have the advanced settings in the "extra" tab in the app. The hero 12 has more noise because the footage was exposed by Gopro Log, which is underexposed by 2 stops. When normalized to the same exposure level, it brings the shadows up and the noise is exaggerated. Simply; expose correctly and you won't have a noisy image. That's why the hero 11 looked better. It was exposed correctly.

[@HANKUS]

@@MarkusFinholt thank you for this follow up. so shooting with GoPro GLog with proper exposure would yield best results then? also idk if this was patched, but i noticed that adjusting shutter greys out the EV comp, and vice versa.. even with go pro labs (though big chance im not setting thigns up properly) thanks mate

[@jizn_v_kaif]

The new firmware has not been released?

[@PointShoot1]

The ev -2 looks better, contrast is good

[@user-xj8eb4gp1n]

I got the GoPro 11 and it’s sharp as eagle eyes ✨

[@shotbyarian]

i still didn't get how i can fix this issue and if it is worth upgrading? you say "with labs you can get logbase 400 on the hero 11, which is the same as gp-log" - so no need to upgrade? with the hero 12, to fix the issue, i should get labs fw and use it with LOGB 400 and ev 0? so both hero 11 and 12 are the same then?

[@MarkusFinholt]

Yes they are basically the same camera.

[@shotbyarian]

@@MarkusFinholt interesting, thanks for the video! set my gopro 12 now to logb=400, wide=1, nr01=50 and hope this will improve image quality! can you maybe upload the gopro lut? the link from their website is not available anymore unfortunately

[@MarkusFinholt]

@@shotbyarian community.gopro.com/s/article/10-Bit-Log-Encoding?language=en_US#editfootage It's still there.

[@yarnykh]

@@MarkusFinholtHi Markus. Could you please clarify WIDE setting was 0 or 1? Did you use LUT gp-log for Native WB or Auto WB?

[@MarkusFinholt]

WIDE=0, AutoWB@@yarnykh

[@sunlit777]

Do you mean to say that Hero12 sets the EV comp to -2 internally? Or is it visible in the UI controls for EV comp? I've experimented a bit with log on my GP12 and it does not show noise as bad as in your test. It looks like you've manually enabled further -2 comp and then brought it up in post. In my experience in normal bright daylight (gopro says log ISO is limited to 400 so there's no point shooting gplog in lowlight) there is LESS noise in shadows in my log footage compared to same in HDR or standard profiles.

[@gemeen_aapje]

Good video. However, when I enable log on my new Hero 12 it says the EV comp is locked at 0 not -2. So, did they fix it in latest firmware? Sorry I'm very new, this is my first GoPro. I downloaded GoPro labs - can someone tell me the correct QR code to fix this issue if needed?

[@MarkusFinholt]

It says 0, but it is -2.

[@gemeen_aapje]

@@MarkusFinholt thanks. Do you know how to fix with GoPro labs?

[@MarkusFinholt]

​@@gemeen_aapje If you can't figure that out from what I showed you in this video, you should probably not use it. It's very advanced and it's for people who have lots of experience in the video field.

[@gemeen_aapje]

@@MarkusFinholt thanks I think I have it though. I'm new to videos but experienced with professional photography. Not used to using to jump through so many hoops just to change exposure etc. Good video, thanks again

[@MarkusFinholt]

@@gemeen_aapje Great! Yeah it's definitely quite a lot of work to just get the same settings other cameras already have.

[@abaksha]

Gopro say that they fixed thath with their latest software. Just tested my gopro hero 12 in Log and applying gopro's LUT make my video very dark(

[@MarkusFinholt]

have you updated the firrnware and shot the video at 0 ev comp?

[@abaksha]

​@@MarkusFinholtyes. Firmware 1.30, fixed shutter at 1/50 and iso 100

[@MarkusFinholt]

Your camera can't let in more light if you set a manual shutter and iso.

[@Yan-jc4qx]

I just got a gopro and im new. Why cand j change the ev comp?

[@thejackmack]

Thanks for the Video! So how do i fix this with the GoPro 12? Scanning the QR-code and adding the shown settings to "Additional Commands"?

[@MarkusFinholt]

Here is a gopro labs tutorial I made if you still need help: kzbin.info/www/bejne/f5yslpmZpbmEaKc

[@ASVideo]

Thank you very much for the information! I hope that GoPro will fix it 🥴

[@MarkusFinholt]

They have fixed it now!

[@ASVideo]

@@MarkusFinholt finally with the 2.0 update 🎉

[@robertopopitanu]

There is more mushiness but I prefer the color of the GoPro 12. Maybe personal preference but I like the contrast.

[@MarkusFinholt]

The LUT is designed for the hero 12. With the correct IDT from the hero 11 they would look identical.

[@RetroBusker]

The log is completely unusable, stupid that they capt it at 400 iso, waaay too underexposed, losing too much information in the dark areas compared to standard mode... got the go pro 12 purily for Log & they completely scamed me

[@biggooseadventures]

Let’s just be really honest nobody nobody buys a effing action camera to log