edit:
Instead of rendering like a photographer, what I mean to say is render as the human eye perceives things.
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Yes, bud... that's exactly what I suggested at the beginning of this long discussion.
Make only two modes: 1. behavior like a DSLR. 2. Behavior like a human eye (more less).
When we look at our natural surrounding, we rarely see burnt highlights, black shadows, etc... only in very extreme sunlight situations.
That's because our iris and the brain constantly compensate light dynamic changes in milliseconds.
We are in 2020. It shouldn't be impossible to write two codes that mimic a cam and an eye 99% correctly, instead of making 3D artist fiddle with curves.