You just bought the latest iPhone, flipped on that Apple Log toggle, and filmed something you thought would look like Dune. Then you dropped it into Premiere or Resolve. It looks gray. It looks flat. Honestly, it looks like a foggy morning in London, and not in a cool, cinematic way.
That’s the "log" life.
To get that vibrant, punchy look everyone sees on YouTube, you need to bridge the gap between that flat data and a standard screen. That’s where the Apple Log to Rec.709 LUT comes in. It isn't just a filter. It’s a mathematical translation. If you don't use it, or if you use the wrong one, your skin tones will look like literal plastic or, worse, weirdly orange.
What’s Actually Happening with Apple Log?
Apple Log is a logarithmic gamma curve. Basically, it’s a way for the iPhone’s tiny sensor to cram as much dynamic range as possible into a file without blowing out the highlights or crushing the shadows into a grainy mess. It’s 10-bit. It’s powerful. But screens don't speak "Log." They speak Rec.709.
Rec.709 is the international standard for high-definition TV. It has a specific, limited range of colors and brightness. When you apply an Apple Log to Rec.709 LUT, you are essentially telling the computer: "Take this flat, gray-looking data and stretch it out so it fits the standard colors of a normal monitor."
The Official Apple LUT vs. The Boutique Options
Most people start by hunting down the official Apple version. You can find it on the Apple Developer website. It’s clean. It’s safe. It’s what Apple intended. But here is the thing: many professional colorists find the official Apple Log to Rec.709 conversion a bit... sterile.
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Sometimes the highlights roll off a bit too harshly.
On the flip side, you’ve got "boutique" LUTs from creators like Cullen Kelly or companies like FilmConvert. These don't just transform the color space; they add a "flavor." They might emulate Kodak 5207 film stock or soften the digital sharpness of the iPhone. If you’re just trying to get a neutral starting point, stick to the official transform. If you want a "look" immediately, go boutique.
How to Apply the Apple Log to Rec.709 LUT Without Breaking Your Image
The biggest mistake? Putting the LUT at the end of your color grade.
LUTs are destructive. If you tweak your exposure after the LUT, you’re trying to recover data that the LUT might have already clipped. You’ve gotta work under the LUT. In DaVinci Resolve, this means putting your LUT on the last node or using the Color Space Transform (CST) tool.
In Premiere Pro, it’s a bit clunkier. You usually drop it into the "Basic Correction" tab in Lumetri Color. But wait. If your footage was overexposed—which, let's be real, iPhone auto-exposure loves to do—applying the Apple Log to Rec.709 LUT might make your highlights disappear into a white void.
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Why the "Technical" LUT is Different from a "Creative" LUT
Don't confuse the two.
- Technical LUTs: These do the math. Log to Rec.709. Purely functional.
- Creative LUTs: These do the art. "Teal and Orange," "Vintage Glow," "Moody Blues."
You should almost always apply the technical transform first. Get the image looking "normal" before you try to make it look "cool." If you skip the technical step and just slap a creative LUT on raw Apple Log footage, the colors will shift in ways that are nearly impossible to fix later. It’s like trying to paint a house before you’ve built the walls.
The Overexposure Secret
Most experts, including the folks over at PetaPixel and various ASC cinematographers who have tested the iPhone 15 and 16 Pro, suggest overexposing Apple Log by about one or two stops.
Why? Because it keeps the shadows clean.
The iPhone sensor is small. Small sensors hate shadows; they produce noise (that dancing grain stuff). By pushing the exposure up while filming, then using your Apple Log to Rec.709 LUT and bringing the "offset" or "exposure" down in post-production, you "bury" that noise. Your blacks look deep and inky instead of muddy and buzzing.
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Limitations You Should Know About
Look, it’s still a phone.
Even with a perfect Apple Log to Rec.709 LUT, you aren't getting Arri Alexa quality. The bitrate is high, especially if you shoot ProRes to an external SSD, but the sensor still has physics to deal with. You’ll notice "banding" in the sky if you push the saturation too hard. You’ll see the artificial sharpening if you look too closely at hair or fine textures.
Also, watch out for the "Variable Frame Rate" (VFR) issue. iPhones love to change their frame rate slightly to keep up with processing. If your audio starts drifting out of sync in your NLE, that’s why. It has nothing to do with the LUT, but it’s the most common headache for iPhone filmmakers.
Color Space Transform (CST): The Professional Alternative
If you use DaVinci Resolve, you might not even need a LUT file.
The Color Space Transform (CST) plugin is arguably better. You set the Input Color Space to "Apple Log" and the Input Gamma to "Apple Log," then set your Output to "Rec.709." The reason this is better than a fixed LUT is math. LUTs use a 3D grid of points (like 33x33x33 or 65x65x65). If a color falls between those points, the computer guesses. A CST uses pure math. It’s smoother. No artifacts. No banding. Just clean pixels.
Getting Started: Actionable Steps
Stop guessing. If you want your iPhone footage to look professional, follow this sequence:
- Download the official Apple LUT. Go to the Apple Developer support page. Search for "Apple Log Profile." Download the DMG or ZIP file.
- Shoot in ProRes. If you have the storage, use it. Standard HEVC (H.265) Apple Log is okay, but it falls apart much faster than ProRes 422 HQ when you start grading.
- Use a monitor. If you can, use an app like Blackmagic Cam (it’s free). It lets you load a "Monitor LUT." This means you see the Rec.709 version on your screen while you're filming, but the phone records the flat Log file. It prevents you from messing up the exposure.
- Exposure Check. Aim for your skin tones to sit around 40-50% on the waveform monitor when in Log. Once the LUT is applied, they should jump up to 60-70%.
- Node Order. If using Resolve, make Node 1 your primary adjustments (exposure/white balance) and Node 2 your Apple Log to Rec.709 LUT. This way, you feed the LUT a perfectly balanced image.
iPhone filmmaking has reached a point where the hardware isn't the bottleneck anymore. It’s the workflow. Master the transform from Log to Rec.709, and you’re already ahead of 90% of the people posting "cinematic" reels on Instagram. It’s about control, not just clicking a button and hoping for the best.