Sony FX3 / FX30 Flexible Exposure Mode Explained

Flexible Exposure Mode in the Sony FX3 offers a really nice way of managing the three main controls used to set exposure. With the same three buttons you're able to not only selectively lock each control but also set that control to automatic.
FX3 rig shown in the video...
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Sony FX3 - geni.us/Mc4njM
SmallRig half cage - geni.us/No7EPwh
Sony 16-35 GM Lens - geni.us/uTyE0W
SmallRig handle extension - geni.us/uenOVz
SmallRig 6" carbon rods - geni.us/EheyP
SmallRig 4" carbon rods - geni.us/tnQgRS2
SmallRig rod clamp - geni.us/iNBIW
Nitze monitor mount - geni.us/VIGVG9
Atomos Shinobi monitor - geni.us/AllxdBw
Kit used making the video...
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Sony FS5
Sony 35mm f/1.8 - geni.us/4q4LaB
Sennheiser MKH416 mic - geni.us/WeoR8
Tiffen Black Promist Filter 1/8 - geni.us/0yLR5
Table of Contents:
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0:00 - Intro
0:38 - The Buttons
1:00 - Lock Function
1:39 - Auto Exposure Function
2:19 - Auto Exposure Demo
3:00 - Setting Auto ISO Limits
3:37 - Closing thoughts
Links
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Blog Post - www.pauljoy.com/2021/10/sony-...
HashTags
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#SonyFX3
#FX3
#FX3guides

[@MUSAVISUALMEDIA]

I must have had 47 epiphanies during this video. THANK YOU. My FX3 was driving me NUTS. 🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽

[@PaulJoy]

That’s excellent, thanks so much for sharing your experience. Enjoy the FX3.

[@DennisRosenberg]

4 minutes of sheer enlightenment. Thank you.

[@PaulJoy]

Glad it was helpful Dennis.

[@MrVh78]

Just moved to the Fx3 from the A7siii and found your amazing videos! hope you keep making them

[@PaulJoy]

Really pleased they helped. I do plan on making more videos but April has been full on with production work so KZbin has had to be put on hold for now!

[@noel-issa]

Thats exactly what I needed + more. Thank you!

[@PaulJoy]

Glad it helped.

[@BehindTheNeedle]

Thank you for this video! So helpful! I have been using the FX30 for quite a while and you just taught me a ton of stuff. I had no idea...

[@PaulJoy]

Glad it was helpful!

[@efrawley55]

Y- I have an FX3 - learning about S Cinitrone - you are the first instructor thats explained the 100 - 2000 ISO so it made sense. I have been struggling with it. None that I have seen explained to make these setting the LOW and HIGH range in the auto setting. These other people ASSUME you know what to do - I watched your audio video this morning and it was easy to follow and made sense.

[@PaulJoy]

Really pleased you found the videos useful, thanks loads for letting me know and have fun with the FX3.

[@bluestilling101]

I just ordered the FX3, so I am absorbing as many setting tips as possible. I clicked on Subscribe with notifications, so I won't miss your next video.

[@PaulJoy]

Thanks loads. I’ve taken a bit of a break from YT as I needed to concentrate on production work however there will be more in the next few weeks :) Have fun with the new camera.

[@God_Son9]

Great job Paul.

[@PaulJoy]

Thanks, glad it helped.

[@revmatchtv]

Awesome video! Super helpful!

[@PaulJoy]

Thanks for the comments, much appreciated.

[@AlexLopez-iy4by]

Thanks for helpful demo.

[@PaulJoy]

Glad it helped, thanks for letting me know.

[@airavearentertainment9186]

Subscribed! I didn’t even know that holding the buttons turned on Auto-mode for those settings. THANK YOU for this!!

[@PaulJoy]

Happy to help!

[@MrRabbitTube]

Very helpful thanks 👍🏻

[@PaulJoy]

You’re welcome.

[@BobbyMacey]

Earned my sub. Thanks Paul.

[@PaulJoy]

Thanks for the sub and for letting me know :)

[@paulknirsch186]

Helped me out qiet a lot, thank you!

[@PaulJoy]

Great stuff

[@gravitymediapro]

New sub - thanks for sharing such great knowledge!

[@PaulJoy]

Thanks for the sub, glad it was useful.

[@ace.b]

Is there a button to quickly change ISO between the two base ISO's of 640 & 12800? My FX6 has that function whenn shooting in SLOG-3.

[@PaulJoy]

No I’m afraid not, I think that’s a feature of having the L / M / H gain switch on the bigger cameras.

[@mikaelhage898]

Hi - thanks for very good tutorials. Is there any external monitor that you can use to the FX3 where you can use the touch focus function? best . mikael h sweden:)

[@PaulJoy]

Hi Mikael. Good question! As far as I know this isn't possible over HDMI however I have heard mention of phone apps that allow you to touch focus. It's something I need to look in to more as well.

[@alanandrews7403]

Great video, I would love to see you cover the XLR and Mic setting when you want to use a dual channel wireless mic AND the shotgun mic for instance. (example: Rode wireless go 2 left and right channels and the shotgun)

[@PaulJoy]

Hi Alan. Great idea, look out for that one soon :)

[@AfroProRobNewman]

Great video I needed this lol😂

[@PaulJoy]

Glad to help, it's a useful feature.

[@teddaamen]

Hi Paul, great video's. I'm watchting theFX3 now. How can I go into the screen I see in this video on 3.21? And how can ik change the visible icons when pushing the Fn button on the fx3 (for example: I want to get the ISO icon also in there instead of for example this Zebra icon I don't use there). Hope to hear, thanks!!

[@PaulJoy]

Hi Ted. You go to the main exposure menu and choose ISO for that screen. I show the whole process for setting the function menu in this video kzbin.info/www/bejne/rYmznGeMf7WIrZY

[@teddaamen]

@@PaulJoy thanks!

[@milapuccini4703]

Could you make a video with ISO tests and the idea behind dual ISO explained? S-Log v Cinetone v Rec 709?

[@PaulJoy]

These are highly technical subjects and while I have an understanding of the advantages of each of them I'm probably not the best person to describe how they work as I'll likely get it wrong lol. I will consider putting together some basic understanding videos though, thanks for the suggestion. As a short answer though, Dual ISO simply means there are two ISO settings that offer best compromise between noise and gain. These are usually achieved using a change in circuitry between the two and is very useful as the higher base ISO offers the ability to use a higher ISO setting than may normally be possible with a normal single ISO circuit whilst maintaining usable noise levels. S-Log v S-Cinetone v Rec709 are different gamma curves, these determine how the sensor data is distributed within the output image which can either benefit speed of post processing (rec709 or CineGamma) or additional recorded dynamic range (S-Log).

[@beamititik]

Hello, I would like some help from you regarding the settings you use for the Sony A7s3 when filming indoor. I have some troubles with the exposure, because the video act is dynamic and setting the exposure right for a certain angles it will not be right for a different filming angle. I will ask some questions if you a kind to answer I will be forever in your debt. 0. How do you set exposure, do you use a gray card? 1. What picture profile are you using for video recording 2. Are you setting the white ballance with a white card or do you set it to AUTO 3. Are you always having the light of the camera ON and do you set the exposure with it on? Do you use an under or above camera light? 4. How do you cope with the auto focus, I set it on face detection but sometimes it changes the focus toward the face and I would like it to focus on the hands instead or other part of body. Kind regards, Beth

[@PaulJoy]

Hi Beatrice, let me take these one at a time... 0. How I set exposure: kzbin.info/www/bejne/aXTGZYSffq-rY80 1. I generally use Slog-3 2. How I set white balance: kzbin.info/www/bejne/bnPUla2Kps2HrZY 3. I'm not sure what light you are referring to? I tend to expose to the right for S-Log3 (covered in earlier video answering 0) 4. In that instance I would either use manual focus or use tracking on the hands. This might help... kzbin.info/www/bejne/e6qbqGCZabuoqZY

[@TLOverlander]

So.... Flex iso just allows the camera to change the exposure parameters when shooting video?

[@PaulJoy]

It just allows you to adjust ISO in the same way as you would without using Cine EI.

[@ChaseFiles]

Hey sorry for this rookie question but how did you connect your atomos shinobi to your fx3? as mine doesn’t connect at all

[@PaulJoy]

HDMI - HDMI

[@trever6317]

Hey Paul, enjoy your content. Is "Flexible Exposure Mode" Cine EI? Also, when I try to do this in "Video" mode, I get a screen which reads: "This operation or setting not available as follows: Exposure Ctrl Type: P/ A/ S/ M Mode." Any suggestions? Thanks!

[@PaulJoy]

Hi Trever. No Flexible exposure mode effects the way the controls work on the camera, Cine EI is a way of managing log shooting exposure. Try the following… MENU → (Shooting) → [Shooting Mode] → [Exposure Ctrl Type] → desired setting.

[@trever6317]

@@PaulJoy Thank you for the fast and informative reply, Paul! Investigating soon.

[@Slabysz]

so when you put the camera in automatic iso, is it not obeying the rules of the two base iso of 640 and 12,800?

[@PaulJoy]

No it’s not, auto ISO uses whatever ISO results in correct exposure.

[@mikaelhage898]

Thanks Paul - I´ll googel on:)

[@racemode]

Thank you

[@michelestapleton]

Let's say you want your aperture and shutter speed to stay constant and only the ISO to change. Can you do that? I like to shoot pretty wide open for the bokeh / shallow depth of field and would rather only the ISO vary.

[@PaulJoy]

Sure, you just set Auto ISO by pressing and holding the ISO button (if using flexible exposure mode).

[@edi18912]

I have the fx3 and going to my first real estate shoot tomorrow and I need your help please I want to shoot in bracket exposure with 5 shots but have no idea how to do it, as I only shoot video. Can you please tell me how to set it up. Thank you

[@PaulJoy]

Change to Photo A mode, then set drive mode to bracket and set bracket settings to 5. I'd recommend setting self timer as well to avoid camera shake.

[@FactHive0110]

Hello, when you are in flexible ISO mode on the FX3 and you use the dial to set it to 12,000 ISO, does it automatically switch to high ISO, or are you still in low ISO at 12,000? nice Video :P

[@PaulJoy]

Hi. When you're in Flexible ISO you are actually changing the ISO so the camera does not use the high and low base levels in the same way it would if you're shooting with Cine EI.

[@laurapaglin3933]

Thanks for the video! Let's say I'm filming in a very low light situation in S Log 3 at the high base ISO in Cine EI mode. I have my lens wide open and but I'm still a few stops underexposed. Am I better off switching to Flexible ISO and cranking up the ISO (and feeling psychologically better about my shot). Or should I leave it underexposed with the ISO untouched at 128000 - and bring up the exposure in post? Or am I better off not filming in LOG?

[@PaulJoy]

Hi there. the thing to remember is that the noise comes from the sensor so regardless of using Log or not if you're under-exposed you're still going to have the same amount of noise at the sensor. Always try to add more light if you can before reverting to increasing ISO, if you can't add more light then I'd switch out of Log and use S-Cinetone. While both will be as noisy at the sensor, with Log the camera is compressing a noisy under-exposed image in to a smaller chunk of the data range that you may struggle to fix in post. With S-Cinetone the image is being precessed before being compressed and can spread the data over a wider range so should result in a cleaner image. Regardless though, the result will still be noisy but it would be the better of the two options in my opinion if you have no other options for adding light. Also, don't forget you also have the option of a slower shutter speed, that's got me out of tricky situations sometimes where I've switched to 25p at 1/25th. You need to be careful as it doesnt work for eveything but it can be useful. Ultimately, do a bunch of tests and see what works best for you before doing anything important!

[@laurapaglin3933]

Thanks so much for your helpful answer! I had always heard that using LOG was questionable in low light situations. You have confirmed that and given a clear reason. Now I will go about figuring out how to set my menus so I can switch back from S Cinetone to S Log more quickly. I'm assuming that a really decent colorist will be able to deal with the style change in post.

[@PaulJoy]

@@laurapaglin3933 I wouldn't say Log is no good for low light situations, it's fine if you can expose it correctly but the benefits of the wider dynamic range may not apply unless there's also bright objects in the shot, it really comes down to what you're filming. In terms of post, I'd check with whoever is colour correcting it, but I've found that switching to Cinetone in the dark doesn't cause any issues for my own editing, you just need to let them know so they don't apply a LUT to it.

[@laurapaglin3933]

@@PaulJoy Thanks for clarifying. Yes, I meant specifically when the lighting/exposure is inadequate for the subject being filmed and one would be forced to crank up the ISO into a noisy range in order to compensate.

[@PaulJoy]

@@laurapaglin3933 Yeah I’d say if 12,800 isn’t giving you enough exposure then you’re likely better using Cinetone. It’s an easy test though, just try shooting in a dark room and see how far you can push the ISO until you feel it’s too much noise to be usable. Let me know how it goes/

[@VideoJTS]

Super helpful.. I had no idea why my camera kept locking my settings.. now I know lol

[@PaulJoy]

Glad it helped!

[@jesse_berger]

I have been setting up a new FX3 and seemed to have somehow locked the Av and I can’t unlock it. I have tried long pressing the “IRIS” button (which is set to “Av Auto/Manual”) but it does not unlock it. Also tried pressing IRIS button with and without a lens. Lens is Sony 20mm F/1.8. Also tried factory reset. Any ideas how unlock the aperture?

[@PaulJoy]

That lens has an aperture ring. In order to adjust with the camera the aperture ring needs to be in the ‘A’ position, have you tried that?

[@jesse_berger]

@@PaulJoy I actually had not tried that! Such a simply oversight on my part. Thanks for the reply.

[@PaulJoy]

@@jesse_berger Easily done with so much to learn at once! Glad I could help. Enjoy the new camera.

[@Sanam4KProduction]

Good

[@ListenHereOldMan]

Hi Paul, really helpful videos, subbed a few days ago and I'm wondering if you could help assuage my fears about my new FX3 and sel24105g (v1)... it just seems that I'm having to crank the ISO waaay too high to get properly exposed shots, and when I set many of the functions to auto (which is why I chose this vid to comment on, but it has nothing to do w the Flex exposure mode), it forces the camera into much higher ISOs than what I see others getting. Now I assume some of this is bc the lens isn't as wide an aperture, but Jason Hermann was using the same lens (however I believe a v2, whereas I have a v1) in his FX3 beginner's setup vid, and I was just having to crank the ISO so, so much higher than he did. I mentioned it to him, after he'd helped me out with some things (it appears that w firmware 2.0 the buttons no longer map to difft functions in Aperture and shutter priority modes, for instance, and it made me think my FX3 was messed up), but he told me not to worry about it. However I can't shake the feeling that seeing others get usable exposures at f4, base ISO and 1/60, and me having to go to 1/15 to get to 0.0 M.M. at the same (f4.0, 640 ISO). I still have a couple more days left in the return period for the camera, and I'm just getting anxious that there's some issue with it. If you could be of any assistance, gimme any tips I'd be more than happy to shoot you some funds for your time. thanks much, take care

[@PaulJoy]

Hi Jace. It’s hard to know if your camera is somehow performing differently however I’d say it’s very unlikely. If your struggling to get good exposure at ISO 640 with 1/60 shutter at F/4.0 then I’m going to assume you must be shooting indoors or in low light situations? If so then I’d say that sounds about right, in that situation you need 2 More stops of light so you either need to jump up to the 2nd base ISO (12800) and adjust from there or use a faster lens or add more light to the scene. Regarding button mapping, I don’t think v2 changed that so you might need to give me a bit more info about the issue there.

[@ListenHereOldMan]

@@PaulJoy nah, jason confirmed that it did change. in v1 the modes mapped the dials. look at Jason (Hermann)'s FX3 beginner setup vid if you don't believe me (he has chapters on each mode), the shutter priority and aperture priority modes used to map the rear dial, etc, and that's how it's still explained in the manual. So i'm almost positive this is true, already talked to sony about it (edit: well, i sent them a note and the camera shop that sold it to me said they were gonna reach out as well) but i think you're correct about the iso. I was getting poor performance inside, under fluorescent lights, which made me think i wouldn't need to step up much (i'm not new to photog, just video and the FX3, i've had a DSLR for 10y) to at least get 1/60, but they're old, janky fluorescents, and when i went outside and tested it w my new amaran 100d, things cleared up. thanks so much for your time, and the detailed, thoughtful reply! take care!

[@ListenHereOldMan]

like, for instance, in Aperture priority mode the rear dial used to be mapped to aperture, and that's how it's explained in the manual still, but it doesn't do that. I was following Jason's setup guide and when i encountered that i thought my cam was messed up, so he got an FX30 to check for himself, and they are different. and he initialized the camera before his setup vid, so it's not like he could've just accidentally left them mapped

[@PaulJoy]

@@ListenHereOldMan Okay, I don’t use aperture or shutter priority modes, I just leave it in manual and use flexible Exposure mode so I’m likely not the best person to help with that. Glad you sorted the exposure thing though, best of luck with the camera moving forward.

[@Whaever_1981]

I would avoid shooting in S-Cinetone unless you don't mind sacrificing 2-3 or more stops of DR

[@PaulJoy]

I often use S-Cinetone either because the clients don't want to deal with log footage or because I want somethign I can turn around quickly like KZbin videos :)

[@MUSAVISUALMEDIA]

Also, SUBSCRIBED!

[@PaulJoy]

Many thanks, glad the video helped :)

[@MUSAVISUALMEDIA]

@@PaulJoy you bet man. Keep these coming!

[@alanwillis5509]

I love your videos', and share them all to my FX3 Facebook group. I have owned the FX3 for over 7 months. I did look at the flexible exposure mode, but it does enhance the way my FX3 is set up. The custom button 1, I have set up for Exposure compensation. If I use Flexible exposure then this is disabled. The custom button 4 I use to switch between touch screen focus and tracking, like the A7iv. The other custom button is 5 which is focus mag, I would not want to assign this to Exposure compensation., All other buttons I need as they are. During filming the only constant is shutter, I would love to lock this.

[@PaulJoy]

Hi Alan, thanks loads for sharing the videos. I use the custom button 4 to cycle between dial functions so that I can control exp comp. I was going to include that in this video but I’m trying to keep them on point so will likely cover customisation in another video. Best regards Paul

[@ParsclickTV]

Panasonic does this much better trust me, FX30 I have the auto ISO does not go below 800 in flexible ISO which is not good but that's not the case with Lumix.

[@PaulJoy]

It will depend on the picture profile, if your shooting in S-Cinetone for example it should drop the ISO lower. Flexible ISO is a log format and 800 is the lower base ISO hence why it’s not dropping it lower to retain dynamic range.