Rob,
It´s probably extremely easy for you :-) REDs ISO setting is simply dialing in an intended push / pull processing. (Actually with very similar effects like more grain etc) AFAIK it has always been this way, at least it already worked that way when I started shooting RED with a Scarlet X quite a long time ago. It has been confusing for first time RED shooters and often resulted in heavily underexposed clips when unexperienced users gained up the ISO (which practically has no effect at all, just meta data).
Cheers!
Ulf, I agree with you about moving the ISO around. Especially early on with the MX sensors, as they kept upping the firmware which seemed like every month.
Once they hit the last MX firmware upgrade, I think two years ago and combined with Resolve 10, then 12.5 it was like a new camera with a much different look in color and grain.
Early on with my MXs 640 iso was tops, set to the best compression, now they go to 800 easy, not that I routinely go to 1000, but I can with very light noise reduction.
I think a lot of this is positive change is resolve and am now testing Resolve 14 which is much faster in loading, viewing, grading and debayering than the previous versions.
A lot faster.
I love(d) RED but they’re very strange. Now they’ve changed their lineup with one camera body and three different sensors, obviously not interchangeable sensors. The change to one body style wouldn’t bother me as long as they continue to service their past cameras, but we all know they dropped service on the MX cameras, so what’s next?
Two weeks ago I filled out the order form for the Scarlet Dragon, as everyone raves about the Dragon Sensor, then a few days later saw that RED made a change and discontinued all but the three cameras mentioned. I think the total order was $32,000 but lightly used if you search, a fairly complete kit is half that, so I’ve held off. I’ll call RED and see how long they’ll service this camera, but who knows. What I do know is the electronic world drives me crazy.
On this shoot, one of the young camera assistants looked at my MXs and said wow, old school. I kind of smiled and thought man, today there are movies shot around the world with film cameras that are 25 years old, but yea 8 or 9 year old electronic movie cameras are old school?
I guess it’s just a matter of personal preference.
IMO
BC