Canon C-Log3 to Rec.709 in Final Cut Pro, step by step

Final Cut Pro has a Canon Log 3 Camera LUT built in, so most C-Log3 clips need a menu check, not a download. What decides how they look is the color space your camera recorded, one library setting and whether Final Cut recognized the clip. This guide covers all three, plus Canon's own CMT 709 LUT as a custom camera LUT.

Last checked 2026-10-10.

What Final Cut Pro does on import

Apple says that when you import log media, Final Cut Pro detects metadata that identifies the camera maker and applies the matching built-in Camera LUT, converting the clip to the working space of the current library. Camera LUTs apply at the media level, across the whole library, and before any clip effects.

For Canon, Apple's list has three entries: Canon Log, Canon Log 2/Cinema Gamut and Canon Log 3/Cinema Gamut. The Canon Log 3 entry uses Canon's EOS C300 Mark II 3D LUTs, and Apple says it converts to Wide DR gamma. Apple's entries for several other makers say Rec. 709 instead, so this one may not look identical to a plain Rec.709 LUT. The scope comparison in the steps below settles it.

The camera setting that has to match

Canon lets you choose the color space a C-Log3 clip is recorded in. Canon's EOS R5 manual lists BT.709, BT.2020 or Cinema Gamut for C-Log3, and says the choice is available when the Color Matrix is set to Neutral (picking C-Log3 sets Neutral for you). Other bodies word this differently, so check your own manual.

The Final Cut entry is named for Cinema Gamut, and Canon's CMT LUTs list Canon Log 2 and Canon Log 3 with Cinema Gamut as their input. A clip recorded in BT.709 or BT.2020 primaries goes into a conversion built for different primaries, and colors come out off. If your Canon offers Cinema Gamut, that is the setting that matches both LUTs. If you shot something else, test on the vectorscope before trusting the conversion.

The library setting that changes the result

Every Camera LUT depends on the library's color processing. A Standard library uses linear RGB with Rec.709 primaries, and the log conversion tone-maps the clip down to SDR. A Wide Gamut HDR library uses Rec.2020 primaries, and Apple says its built-in Camera LUTs then skip tone mapping and keep the full dynamic range of the log clip.

Pick one before you start. The setting is library-wide, changing it can alter how effects and blend modes look, and Apple suggests a separate library for each project or deliverable.

Canon's CMT 709 LUT

Canon's support site offers Canon 3D LUT for CMT Ver.1.0.0, a zip of about 25 MB. It converts Canon Log 2 and Canon Log 3 to four CMT color spaces: CMT 709, CMT DCI, CMT HLG and CMT PQ. For a Rec.709 film, CMT 709 is the one. In Canon's camera guide, CMT stands for Canon Monitor Transform, and CMT 709 outputs BT.709 for SDR viewing.

Three cautions. The page does not say what file format is inside, so look for a .cube or .mga after you unzip, since those are what Final Cut takes. Canon says to read the ReadMe in the zip before first use. And the terms on the page I read limit the LUT to personal, non-commercial use, at your own risk. Canon's terms can differ by region, so read the ones on your region's download page before using it on paid work. The built-in Camera LUT needs no download.

Step by step

1. 1. Choose the library's color processing

   Select the library in the Libraries sidebar, then choose File > Library Properties (or press Control-Command-J). Click Modify at the top of the Library Properties inspector and choose Standard or Wide Gamut HDR. For a plain Rec.709 film, Standard is the simpler setup. Choose Wide Gamut HDR if you want the full log range kept for grading or plan an HDR deliverable. Set it before you grade and do not change it midway.

2. 2. Check the Camera LUT on one clip

   Select a C-Log3 clip, press Command-4 to show the inspector and click the Info button. Click the Metadata View pop-up menu at the bottom left and choose General, Extended or Settings, then look at the Camera LUT pop-up menu. On a clip Final Cut recognized as C-Log3, it shows Canon Log 3/Cinema Gamut, and the picture should look like a normal, slightly flat image rather than a gray one.

3. 3. Set it by hand if it says None

   Apple notes that some cameras do not embed the metadata, and that it can be lost when a file is transcoded. Select all your C-Log3 clips in the browser and choose Canon Log 3/Cinema Gamut in the Camera LUT pop-up menu. Choose the Canon Log 3 entry and not Canon Log or Canon Log 2, which are separate entries. Apple says the change applies to every instance of the clip, in all projects and events in the library.

4. 4. Or import Canon's LUT as a custom camera LUT

   In the Camera LUT pop-up menu, choose Add Custom Camera LUT and select the file. Final Cut accepts .cube and .mga files, and you can pick one file, several, or a folder. Then use the Output Color Space pop-up menu to choose the color space the LUT converts to, the Rec.709 option if the list has one. Apple says the target is usually in the LUT's name. The LUT then appears in the Custom Camera section of the Camera LUT menu. Choose it on every C-Log3 clip.

5. 5. Compare the two on the scopes

   Choose Window > Show in Workspace > Video Scopes (Command-7) and show the waveform and vectorscope. Run one clip through the built-in LUT, then through Canon's, and compare. Apple describes the built-in Canon Log 3 conversion as ending in Wide DR gamma, while Canon's CMT 709 outputs BT.709, so the two can differ in contrast. Pick one for the whole shoot.

6. 6. Set white balance with the eyedropper

   In the Video inspector, open Balance Color, set it to White Balance and click something that should be neutral. Do it clip by clip, because the light changes through the day.

7. 7. Set exposure on the scopes

   Bring faces to roughly 60 to 70 IRE with the color board or color wheels and keep highlights from clipping. Trust the scope over a laptop screen. Match the other cameras to the Canon last, as in the multi-cam order.

Where C-Log3 in Final Cut goes wrong

• Stacking conversions. A Camera LUT set to Canon Log 3 plus a Custom LUT effect on the same clip converts the clip twice. If you convert with a clip effect, set the Camera LUT to None first.
• The wrong Canon entry. Canon Log, Canon Log 2/Cinema Gamut and Canon Log 3/Cinema Gamut are separate entries for separate curves. A C-Log3 clip needs the C-Log3 entry.
• A recording color space that does not match. Footage recorded in BT.709 or BT.2020 primaries goes through a conversion built for Cinema Gamut. Check the camera setting.
• A clip with no readable metadata. Final Cut does not convert it until you choose a Camera LUT yourself.
• Changing the library's color processing after you have graded. Apple warns that filters and blend modes can look different when you switch.
• Moving the library to another computer without the LUT. A custom camera LUT lives in Final Cut's Camera LUTs folder. If the file is missing, a yellow warning button appears next to the Camera LUT menu so you can reimport it.

Where Basecut fits

C-Log3 is two conversions, the curve and Cinema Gamut, Canon's wide gamut. Basecut's Canon conversion does both, using Canon's published C-Log3 curve and a Cinema Gamut to Rec.709 matrix. It assumes the clip was recorded in Cinema Gamut, so the camera setting above matters to it too.

In Final Cut Pro, Basecut does not apply that color. It sends an FCPXML file with keyword collections and Favorite and Reject ratings, and ships one .cube file per clip. Apply it with the Custom LUT effect and set the clip's Camera LUT to None first, so you do not convert twice. The 14-day free trial has 5 free exports and needs no card. See it on real footage.