How to effectively reduce your iso below 100 and increase image quality massively!

[rwarrior]

This isn't an editing tutorial, it's a camera settings tutorial but I wasn't sure where else to post it.

Drones have small sensors compared to DSLRs. As a result, the light hitting the sensor is less, and therefore the noise levels and image quality at base iso isn't as good as a DSLR. There is however a way to make sure you are getting the best out of the sensor of whatever drone you fly. This technique is common in photography circles but I haven't seen it discussed much in the drone world so I made this video to explain why you should always make the most of the sensor's capabilities.

If you have any questions or require further clarification, let me know in the comments.

Happy flying and have a good weekend.

Thanks so much for sharing, l've definitely learned important new tips here, and will certainly try this out.
Thanks also to everyone who contributed to the discussion....learned a lot too.
Cheers
Ranjit

 

[vindibona1]

It is very tricky because while increased exposure on the darks can really help. But it is extremely easy to lose detail in highlights. And you must be VERY careful which are you get your exposure from. One you include both sky and ground in an image you have almost automatically exceeded the dynamic range of the sensor. Photos are more easily dealt with because we can shoot AEB- but not video.

One thing that I use almost routinely is putting a graduated ND filter on the camera. I got lucky and found a set of PolarPro gradients (in Japan, no less) and I love these. I rarely worry about blowing out the sky and can adjust exposure on the ground more reasonably. It should be obvious that the top part of the images will usually be brighter than the bottom part. And when I don't really*need* a gradient for having the gradient sort of "sculpts" the light a little more. I often end up vignetting photos and photos in post on a regular basis anyway. I have no idea why other filter makers haven't jumped on graduateds/gradients? PolarPro discontinued them, but PP has a way of just discontinuing items. But it was probably a mistake because there isn't a single set to be found in the world.