This part of our Canon EOS C200 review covers the following hands-on topics: skintones and Canon Log 3, Dual Pixel AF and STM lenses, Cinema RAW Light Codec in 10 Bit 60p as well as exposure latitude compared to the Ursa Mini 4.6K, general handling and of course our conclusion.[Please note, this is a translated version of the original article in German]
We went outside with Ricarda and the Canon EOS C200 to capture a few skintone shots with Canon Log3 and the new Cinema RAW Light codec. Mainly we used the dual pixel AF in combination with the Canon 50mm f1.8 STM. The C200 was operated at base ISO (800) with a rather large aperture thanks to the internal NDs from both tripod and handheld:
Mainly we shot 60p in maximum 4K 10 bit on CFast 2.0. The material was edited in DaVinci Resolve 14 Beta (MacBook Pro 2016). We used the official Canon LUT to BT709 (BT709_CanonLog3-to-BT709_WideDR_65_FF_Ver.1.1) and intensified the colors only a little bit but did not change them. 2 shots were slightly stabilized in post.
A brief comment on the performance of the 12 bit 4K Cinema Raw Light here on our Mac-based mobile editing system running the current DaVinci Resolve (Beta): 24 fps are played back in the editor without any problems - but only 19 fps in the color room. As soon as LUTs are applied to the raw material, we are down to 17 fps. Here it is worthwhile to conform the footage via "Generate optimized Media" to ProRes. The same goes for 60p material that you want to bring to 24p. For the final playout the RAW files should be used...
Skintones
In combination with the official Canon LUT to BT709, the C200 produces a rather discreet colour spectrum in 10 Bit Log3 Cinema RAW Light. Unlike many other 709 flavors (and maybe as a surprise to Canon DSLR filmmakers) the colors don´t pop here and don´t have to be desaturated, but rather amplified slightly.
Even out-of-the-box the Canon C200´s colors play out very well, so we didn't see any reason to change specific color tones in the color correction.
Addressing the worries that the RAW workflow might become too complex and thus time-consuming when grading, we can at least give the all-clear for daylight scenarios (as long as the editing system is powerful enough): Canon LUT + a bit of saturation and even on tight schedules, Cinema RAW Light workflows should lose their horror.
