I’ve been getting a ton of emails regarding the recent video you see above from readers wanting to know the workflow steps I used for getting a cinematic look with the Sony NEX-5N. While I’ve been more than happy to respond to each, and every email, I thought it would be a better idea to just answer all of the frequently asked questions in one post, overviewing the basic workflow used for Autumn – Getting Cinematic with the Sony NEX-5N
Please Note: These are just the basic workflow techniques I practiced for this particular short video. It is by no means “the best” nor “the only” ways of handling Sony NEX-5N footage. These are the absolute basics and is intended be a bit simplistic for NEX-5N newcomers.
1. Camera Settings:
- Picture Profile
- White Balance
- Capture settings
Picture Profile – Due to the fact that I knew a cinematic tone was the goal, a fair amount of color correcting was ultimately going to be needed to transform the look of the images into a darker, film look. Although I always use flattest picture profile available on all cameras, the Sony NEX-5N “portrait profile” does a superb job of creating a flat image when tuned to the right settings:
Menu – Brightness and Color – Creative Style – Portrait (set to these values)
- Contrast -3
- Color +0
- Sharpness -3
The values give the images the greatest amount of latitude when color correcting, an example of which is the before and after example here: (Before and After)
White Balance – In terms of white balance, it would have been nearly impossible for me to choose anything other than auto for the 4 hour window I had to shoot and in all intents and purposes, worked out fine.
Capture Settings – Really basic stuff here but I still have been getting a few questions pertaining to this very topic. All non-slow motion clips were captured in 1080/24p and slow motion clips were captured in 1080/60p and conformed to 24fps using Cinema Tools. You can choose these capture settings in:
Menu – Image Size – Movie – File Format (AVCHD 60i/60p)
Menu – Image Size – Movie – Record Setting (24P 24M (FX) Maximum Quality) or (60P 28M (PS) Maximum Quality)
These were the basic settings set before I started shooting.
2. Handling the footage:
- Color Correcting
- Editing
Color Correcting – I choose to color correct all my footage first, so that means importing the files to Adobe After Effects CS5. AE can handle the AVCHD files natively so there was no need for me to convert .MOV at this point. I wanted to keep the images on the darker-side, giving the mid-tones a hint of sepia and this color style is present throughout all the clips.
Once the color correction was finished for each clip, I exported the files using Apple Pro-Res 422 (HQ) and conformed any of the clips that were meant to be slowed down. Now on to:
Editing – Nothing fancy, just a quick edit in Final Cut Pro X matching the clips to the dramatic aspects of the song used: Ryan Stewart’s “Autumn.” With the intent of uploading to Vimeo, the final edit was exported to the web-friendly H.246 codec from FCPX.
Again, this is just the particular workflow I used for this video. If you are a Sony NEX-5N user, share your own workflow tips with our readers in the comments section below!
If you any specific questions, send me a message via the contact page.
Thank you so much – I’m in awe of your result.
Of course! Thanks for looking Asger.
This is awesome! I saw this video posted on Sony Alpha Rumors and my jaw just dropped. Unfortunately I don’t have the NEX-5n, just the NEX-3. However, if I keep the NEX-3′s limitation in mind, I’m sure I can produce some cool stuff. Thanks for the tips and guides!
Thanks Voohoo!
I’m happy you were able to take something from the info.
Love the cinematic look! For the before and after shot, how did you get it to stretch out to a wider aspect ratio without distorting or losing sharpness? Maybe something to do with the pixel aspect ratio?
GS,
It actually isn’t stretched, although it does look so. I apologize for the poor scene-grab on my part. The clips were not from the identical frame either.
Also, the letter boxing does give it an added “stretched” allusion.
Thank you for visiting and checking it out. I appreciate it.
about color correcting:
I have sony vegas pro 10 and magic bullet looks. Can you help me produce similar results? even without bullet looks which sony vegas filter should i use to color correct? any tutorial?
I’ve found the Portrait picture profile on the NEX-5N to boost the black level so much that there’s a lot of shadow noise, even at ISO 100. How have you gotten around this? By crushing the shadow detail so that the noise is no longer visible?
I’ve found the Sunset profile as recommended by Andrew Reid at EOSHD.com to be a good compromise between a flat image and noticeable shadow noise.
Yes, the sunset profile is a great style to use and I’ve covered Andrew’s “hidden gem” post here. It does an amazing job smoothing out the color gradient changes which can look a tad nasty normally. Here’s a good example of it being used by Marlon Torres: http://thedigitalvisual.com/the-sony-nex-5n-gets-cinematic
It just won’t give you the added latitude the Portrait profile provides. The blacks were def. crushed in the video but haven’t noticed as much shadow noise on the NEX-5N as compared to say, my T2i.
Can you tell me what tools you used in AE Cs5? Any presets? I will try to mimic this setting on some of my footages. Outstanding job again.
love it. great work. how did you keep the camera steady? did you use a dolly or is it just smoothed out with the 60 to 24 conversion?
Thanks Kevin!
Just used the tripod and slider for all shots- tried to be as steadily as possible. There are only a few 60 to 24 clips in there, everything else was recorded at 24. No stabilization in post.
Using a slider (this one in particular) can be quite the game of patience. Usually takes around 3 to 5 attempts to get it right.
beautiful work! what song did you happen to use for your video? it works great
Thank you! I appreciate the kind words. The song used was Ryan Stewart’s “Autumn.”
Hi!
You are from now my “idol”, honest. This video make my thinking of life change…yes a short video taken with SONY nex 5 can make that.
I have a SONY nex 5n but I have not started yet to use it with making videos. I have a similar thinking as you regarding filming – dreaming way.
I have looked at your video sooo many times now, and I can still see a lot more times. Its eally inspire me to start make videos.
Is it any way to make a slider cheap? I mean, to buy this is so expensive. I will soon order a steady cam “Hague mini motion” – its really cheap. But the other – a slider…hm.
Is it possible to make this color changes and finnish video in Light Room 4 you think? Or Mac´s iMovie?
Thank you Michael. That means a lot.
The slider used in this video was the IndiSlider Mini. It is one of the most inexpensive sliders out on the market and produces some workable shots if you have the patients of retaking a few shots from time to time.
I purchased mine for $115 and you can probably find it cheaper if you look around. I would recommended this if you are looking for an inexpensive slider.
Best of luck to you with the NEX5N. Email me if you have any questions regarding settings, menus, shooting, etc…
Hello! Great video! What lenses were used?
Regards from Sweden
Thanks Janne!
The lenses used were:
Sigma 30mm f/1.4 (Canon Mount)
Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8 (Canon Mount)
Minolta 50mm f/1.7
Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8 (Canon Mount)
Sony 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 Kit Lens
Fantastic processing! Slightly boost contrast and a hint of sepia to the shadows, have I gotten the gist of it?
Did you use Color Finesse by chance?
Thanks!
Hi,
What tripod did you use for this video, the panning is pretty smooth?
Mark,
I used the Davis & Sanford Provista 7518 Tripod w/FM18 Head. You can find it here:
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/243272-REG/Davis_Sanford_PROVISTA7518B_Provista_7518_Tripod_w_FM18.html
It’s a great unit and well worth the price IMO.
Nice tutorial and great video.
Im also a big fan of NEX cameras, check my article: http://www.enriquepacheco.com/sony-nex5n-dslr-killer
Sorry to bother you with more questions, just two short ones…
Did you use metabones adapter with Canon lenses?
Did you apply sharpness in AE?
Kind regards.
Enrique
No bother Enrique!
Unfortunately at the time when this was shot, the metabones adapter wasn’t released yet. So, all the shots with Canon lenses were wide-open. As for sharpening, I applied roughly a value of 15-25 for each clip in AE. The in-camera sharpening was dialed down to -3.