Camera Settings for photos

[Donzo98]

What camera settings are you using on your Mavic 3 Pro??

I have been setting my aperture at F3.5, and letting the camera set SS and ISO.

Basically… just using aperture priority.

Thoughts??

 

[Erk1024]

Hy Donzo98

My recommendation is to use ISO-100 and just use longer exposures. The lenses are fast enough that it works fine for any daylight, golden hour or even blue hour photos. These are small sensors and they get noisy in a hurry. f5'ish is the best aperture for the main camera, BUT if you're low on light, then f2.8 is fine. And take panoramas! That's the best way to boost image quality. The 70 mm camera is also really good. It's a smaller sensor, but punches above it's weight.

If you want to go all out, you can bracket AND shoot panos and then combine it all in post.

Examples (zoom in, they're big!)

Main camera:

HardRockInYellow5120.jpg

drive.google.com

70m camera:

FerrisWheel70mmPanoInMotion5120.jpg

drive.google.com

 

[Meta4]

What camera settings are you using on your Mavic 3 Pro??

Whatever settings are right for the subject, the lighting conditions and the desired look of the images.
That's why cameras have so many settings and adjustment possibilities.
There are no magic one-size-fits-all settings.

 

[Donzo98]

Whatever settings are right for the subject, the lighting conditions and the desired look of the images.
That's why cameras have so many settings and adjustment possibilities.
There are no magic one-size-fits-all settings.

I'm a serious hobbyist photographer, I have shot Nikon, Leica, and now currently Sony. I shoot Aperture priority and Auto ISO nearly all the time with my cameras (with excellent results). I have my drone set up the same way, and not 100% happy with the results. That's why I was wondering what you guys were shooting?

 

[Donzo98]

Hy Donzo98

My recommendation is to use ISO-100 and just use longer exposures. The lenses are fast enough that it works fine for any daylight, golden hour or even blue hour photos. These are small sensors and they get noisy in a hurry. f5'ish is the best aperture for the main camera, BUT if you're low on light, then f2.8 is fine. And take panoramas! That's the best way to boost image quality. The 70 mm camera is also really good. It's a smaller sensor, but punches above it's weight.

If you want to go all out, you can bracket AND shoot panos and then combine it all in post.

Examples (zoom in, they're big!)

Main camera:

HardRockInYellow5120.jpg

drive.google.com

70m camera:

FerrisWheel70mmPanoInMotion5120.jpg

drive.google.com

These shots are awesome!! So are those both F2.8, ISO... and whatever SS?

 

[Meta4]

I shoot Aperture priority and Auto ISO nearly all the time with my cameras.

Why are you leaving ISO on auto?

I have my drone set up the same way, and not 100% happy with the results.

What is it about the images that you aren't satisfied with?
It might help to show some examples.

 

[Donzo98]

Why are you leaving ISO on auto?

What is it about the images that you aren't satisfied with?
It might help to show some examples.

Here are 3... the first two are with the 70mm, and not in very good focus. Aperture was 2,8, 1/200 and 1/160 SS. Auto ISO (150, and 180). Not happy with the focus...I don't think it's motion blur.

The third one was the 24mm, and looks fine after processing. ISO 100, F3.5, SS 1/200

 

[Filmarik]

What camera settings are you using on your Mavic 3 Pro??

I have been setting my aperture at F3.5, and letting the camera set SS and ISO.

Basically… just using aperture priority.

Thoughts??

If you want best uniform sharpness from edge to edge and low noise for daytime shots use f5.6, ISO100 and let camera set the shutter speed. For the best IQ shoot DNG and process in something like Lr. That way you will have a lot more control over the end result and will be able to extract maximum of what the camera is capable of.

 

[Donzo98]

If you want best uniform sharpness from edge to edge and low noise for daytime shots use f5.6, ISO100 and let camera set the shutter speed. For the best IQ shoot DNG and process in something like Lr. That way you will have a lot more control over the end result and will be able to extract maximum of what the camera is capable of.

Yes… I always shoot RAW, and everything gets processed in LR.

I’ll try F5.6 and ISO 100.

 

[Meta4]

Here are 3... the first two are with the 70mm, and not in very good focus. . Not happy with the focus...I don't think it's motion blur.

Rather than a focus issue, could it be that you've got subjects with light areas that are overexposed and brighter than the other parts of the scene?
I did a quick tweak of shadows and highlights.
Is that any better?
If you'd shot on an overcast day, you'd avoid having bright glare and darker shadows.

 

[Donzo98]

I think it's a sharpness issue... the pics I posted are resized to 2K on the long end. At 100% you can def see the blur. The first pic you re-edited def looks better though. The second still looks blurry to me.

Those shots are with the 70mm lens...maybe that's why??

 

[Meta4]

I think it's a sharpness issue... the pics I posted are resized to 2K on the long end. At 100% you can def see the blur.
The first pic you re-edited def looks better though. The second still looks blurry to me.

If you post the full-size original jpg files, I can look closer and/or tweak better..
You might have to upload to Google Drive or similar and post a link.

Those shots are with the 70mm lens...maybe that's why??

Unless you have a bad camera, I don't see that just being from the short tele would be an issue.
I've used it extensively over the last two years and achieved plenty of great results with it.
Because of the perspective it offers, it's my workhorse lens.
Here are a couple of typical examples of how it works out for me ... the subjects are moving fast and the drone is flying fast to keep up while I'm shooting.
Click on the images to see them larger.

 

[Donzo98]

If you post the full-size original jpg files, I can look closer and/or tweak better..
You might have to upload to Google Drive or similar and post a link.

Unless you have a bad camera, I don't see that just being from the short tele would be an issue.
I've used it extensively over the last two years and achieved plenty of great results with it.
Because of the perspective it offers, it's my workhorse lens.
Here are a couple of typical examples of how it works out for me ... the subjects are moving fast and the drone is flying fast to keep up while I'm shooting.
Click on the images to see them larger.

Those are amazing!! Both shot with the 70??

 

[Meta4]

Those are amazing!! Both shot with the 70??

And they look even better at full size.
Yes ... it's the lens that I use the most on the Mavic 3 pro.
I still haven't had a good chance to give the new drone a proper workout in good light, but I do like the perspective from the main camera more than on the Mavic 3 pro too.

 

[Donzo98]

And they look even better at full size.
Yes ... it's the lens that I use the most on the Mavic 3 pro.
I still haven't had a good chance to give the new drone a proper workout in good light, but I do like the perspective from the main camera more than on the Mavic 3 pro too.

Where did you shoot those pics from?? Is that a part of your job??

 

[Meta4]

Where did you shoot those pics from?? Is that a part of your job??

Those two were shot from the shore.
Maritime photography is what I most use the drone for.

 

[Erk1024]

These shots are awesome!! So are those both F2.8, ISO... and whatever SS?

Yes. These were lower light situations, so I was shooting f/2.8. Of course there is no choice on the 70mm camera--it has fixed aperture. That shot of the Hard Rock was 1/5th of a second. I couldn't use brackets for those shots because the light colors were continuously animating, cycling through the rainbow.

 

[Erk1024]

If you post the full-size original jpg files, I can look closer and/or tweak better..
You might have to upload to Google Drive or similar and post a link.

Unless you have a bad camera, I don't see that just being from the short tele would be an issue.
I've used it extensively over the last two years and achieved plenty of great results with it.
Because of the perspective it offers, it's my workhorse lens.
Here are a couple of typical examples of how it works out for me ... the subjects are moving fast and the drone is flying fast to keep up while I'm shooting.
Click on the images to see them larger.

Those are fantastic shots. And I agree that the 70mm camera is great. It punches way above it's weight for a 1/3" sensor. Also the lens is nice and sharp. But you do have to keep the ISO low.

 

[Erk1024]

You can shoot panos with the main lens and the 70mm lens and that helps a lot to bring up the image quality. Can't send up big, heavy lenses with the drone, so we have to find ways to work around the limitations. But with panos, you can get pro level results. Brackets plus panoramas are even better.

I think this one was ... 23'ish shots. Two rows of images, shooting straight down with the main camera.

ClamPassRed-1 Panorama 32x9_7680.jpg

drive.google.com

 

[Felix le Chat]

You can shoot panos with the main lens and the 70mm lens and that helps a lot to bring up the image quality. Can't send up big, heavy lenses with the drone, so we have to find ways to work around the limitations. But with panos, you can get pro level results. Brackets plus panoramas are even better.

I think this one was ... 23'ish shots. Two rows of images, shooting straight down with the main camera.

ClamPassRed-1 Panorama 32x9_7680.jpg

drive.google.com

Agree completely. With the price of Air 3S, the Mavic 3 Pro and the Mavic 4: it is not unreasonable to expect the image quality normally found in the better consumer class DSLR's, but until DJI take a leaf out of Autel's book and fit quality optical glass lenses, we have to make the best out of what we have to hand.

Really impressive pano.