I’ve been digging into the difference between D-LOG M and HLG on the Mini 4 Pro. From what I understand, D-LOG M is basically 10-bit H265 in Rec709, just without contrast and saturation baked in. The LUT that DJI gives you doesn’t actually change the color space—it just brings back that missing contrast and saturation so it ends up looking more like the regular color profile, but with better detail in the shadows and no in-camera processing.
HLG, on the other hand, is also 10-bit H265 but in Rec2020 (or BT2100 HLG). It’s built for HDR and covers a wider color range. I feel like I get more midtone detail and still enough shadow info to recover without too much noise. Also, editing things like blue skies is easier—less banding, more flexibility.
Right now I’m playing around with converting Rec2020/HLG footage to Davinci Wide Gamut, grading it there, and then taking it back to Rec709 for final delivery. If I want a more film-like vibe, I use something like the Kodak 2383 LUT over that.
Weirdly, I’m finding HLG gives me nicer colors—especially sunsets, greens, and skies—even when I’m watching it on an SDR screen that’s HDR-capable.
Anyone else using HLG more than D-LOG M? Are you liking it better too?
Denny said:
This whole color space stuff confuses me… I never fully understood it. I just pick whatever. Is the DJI LUT good enough by itself?
You mean the way I explained it, or just the topic in general? If you’re just trying to make LOG footage look more normal, then yeah—the DJI LUT will do that fine. But if you’re after more of a ‘cinematic’ look, then you’ll probably want to go beyond that and grade it more deeply.
Denny said: @Vic
Yeah, I meant the topic in general. I want a cinematic look. Can I just apply the DJI LUT first, then another cinematic LUT after that?
You can, but it might not look right unless you adjust things like blending or layering. And it won’t magically look like what you see on big YouTube channels like Peter McKinnon’s. There are lots of good tutorials on YouTube though that can help you build a nice look from scratch.
One heads-up: a lot of LUTs online are made for Sony S-Log and have color transforms built in. Those usually don’t work well with DJI footage. Make sure you’re using LUTs made for Rec709.
Denny said:
This whole color space stuff confuses me… I never fully understood it. I just pick whatever. Is the DJI LUT good enough by itself?
Color grading is just part of the game now, even for short clips online. Most of the time, the real scene didn’t look as amazing as the final footage does. Everything’s enhanced in some way.