How to Grade Log Footage Online Free — D-Log, S-Log3, V-Log to Rec.709
Turn flat, washed-out log footage into normal color without Premiere or Resolve. Apply conversion and creative LUTs in the browser — free .cube library included — plus what log profiles actually are and when to shoot them.
The 60-second version
Log footage looks gray and washed out on purpose — the camera squeezes a huge dynamic range into a flat image so nothing clips. To make it look normal you apply a LUT (a color look-up table). You don’t need desktop software for that anymore: open the Apply LUT to Video tool, drop your clip in, pick a conversion LUT for your camera’s profile from the free LUT library — D-Log for DJI, S-Log3 for Sony, V-Log for Panasonic — or upload your camera maker’s official .cube, click Process, download. Normal contrast, normal color, no installs.
The rest of this guide explains what’s actually happening, which LUT to pick, and how to stack a creative look on top.
What log footage actually is
Every camera sensor captures more brightness range than a normal video file can show. A standard profile (Rec.709) throws the extra range away at record time: skies clip to white, shadows crush to black, and what you see is what you get.
A log profile (D-Log, D-Log M, S-Log3, V-Log, C-Log, F-Log…) keeps that extra range by encoding brightness on a logarithmic curve instead. The trade-off is that the file looks wrong when played back directly — low contrast, muted color, gray everywhere — because it isn’t meant to be watched, it’s meant to be graded.
The fix is deterministic, not artistic: a conversion LUT mathematically inverts the log curve and renders the image for a normal screen. That’s why the first step of any log workflow is the same everywhere, from Hollywood to a drone hobbyist’s laptop.
Step by step: log to normal color in the browser
- Open Apply LUT to Video and upload your clip. Big files are fine — uploads run in resumable chunks and large jobs process on our servers.
- Add the LUT. Click the LUT slot and either:
- Pick from the library — the built-in LUT library has conversion LUTs for DJI D-Log, Sony S-Log3, and Panasonic V-Log, plus a Universal flat-log restore for anything else. Every LUT is previewed on the same reference frame.
- Upload your own
.cube— including the official conversion LUT from your camera maker (DJI, Sony, and Panasonic all publish theirs free). Any standard 33- or 65-point.cubeworks, applied with tetrahedral interpolation — the same quality desktop editors use.
- Click Process. Audio passes through untouched; you choose the output format and encode quality.
- Download — footage with normal contrast and color, ready to post or to edit further.
The same works for stills: Apply LUT to Photo applies any .cube to a JPG or PNG.
Which LUT do I pick?
| Your camera says | Pick this LUT |
|---|---|
| DJI drone / gimbal, “D-Log” | D-Log to Rec.709 |
| DJI “D-Log M” | Universal flat-log (or DJI’s official D-Log M cube) |
| Sony, “S-Log3” | S-Log3 to Rec.709 |
| Panasonic Lumix, “V-Log” / “V-Log L” | V-Log to Rec.709 |
| Anything else flat (“Flat”, “CineStyle”, unknown log) | Universal flat-log restore |
If you want exact manufacturer colorimetry, download the official conversion LUT from your camera maker’s site and upload it — the tool treats your .cube exactly like a library one.
Stacking a creative look
Conversion first, style second. Once footage is in normal Rec.709, run it through the tool again with a creative LUT — teal & orange for the blockbuster look, a film emulation for warmth, or monochrome. The library’s creative section previews every look on the same frame so you can compare honestly, and each one downloads as a standard .cube if you’d rather use it in Premiere, Resolve, or Final Cut.
Common problems (and what’s actually wrong)
“My graded footage looks noisy.” Log profiles need generous exposure. Underexposed log pushes shadow detail into the sensor’s noise floor, and restoring contrast makes that noise visible. Expose brighter next time (many shooters add 1-2 stops for log); for existing footage, run the result through the video denoiser.
“Colors look slightly off after conversion.” Tone-curve LUTs (including most free packs) restore contrast but approximate the camera’s color gamut. For exact color, use the manufacturer’s official conversion LUT — upload it directly.
“My editor exported a .look / .xmp / preset, not a .cube.” This tool applies 3D LUT formats (.cube, .3dl). Most editors can re-export any look as a .cube: in Resolve, right-click a still → Export LUT; in Premiere, export from the Lumetri panel.
“Should I even shoot log?” If you’ll grade: yes — skies and shadows keep detail you can’t recover from a standard profile. If you want straight-out-of-camera footage: no — the normal profile saves you a step. Now that grading is a browser tab instead of a software purchase, the cost of shooting log is a lot lower than it used to be.