Mavic 3 telephoto lens image quality comparison - Oval v.s. Round

[Bussty]

I just checked my recently purchased M3 (02/10/2022) and it has the oval lens. I suspect DJI will has a serious cleanup on isle 3 . . .

Hi James

Sounds like you might have one of the newer Oval M3's. I'm tossing up between the Mavic and and Autel Lite+ one of the big pluses for me was the ability for the M3 to manually take say a 4x3 grid (or larger) of images with the 7x optical Tele lens and then stitch that wall of images into one higher resolution image. It opens up all sorts of possibilities of getting higher resolution images in an optical zoom range between 1x and 7x. I sort of pulled back from that seeing the original results from the 7x lens but those samples of the full jpegs from above were actually pretty good I thought.

I was wondering (and please don't feel you have any obligation at all) if with the new oval design 7x in optical mode when next out if you could capture a 4x3 or 5x4 grid of images of a detailed subject then post the images on drop box or similar so I could stitch and see what sort of quality we are looking at? Potentially you could end up with better quality than the Main lens.

You would need about horizontal and vertical overlap of 25% for each shot and preferably the subject would be something fairly detailed with no haze or atmospheric disturbance and obviously stationary.

Is that something that you could possibly manage?

Thanks in advance

Andrew

 

[Skywatcher2001]

Yes I can Andrew. I'm going out this Saturday morning so I can capture these for you.

 

[Bussty]

That is awesome James thank you. I think there is so much potential with that lens used in that way. Would be perfect if DJI added a set panorama/grid mode for the tele so one button push and it's done. Maybe in future?

I use this technique with my Olympus DSLR and you can easily achieve better than medium format quality so very interested to see. By my calculations if the tele is a 7x zoom you could fit 7 "widths" if you like left to right to equal the same field of view of the main lens. So if the 7x sensor is 4000x3000 then horizontally that's 7 x 4000 = 28000 pixels wide by 21000 pixels high compared to the main camera of 5280 x 3956 pixels!! That would be a staggeringly detailed image.

Thanks do much for agreeing to do I'll naturally post the results back here.

Cheers

Andrew

 

[bogdi1988]

I would question on whether these 2 pictures were taking with a fixed drone that was not flying. Otherwise I would say that these are not apples-apples comparisons.

 

[GadgetGuy]

Both of mine are round on the tele. And they're fine. The update at the beginning of the year fixed the softness issue.

It's a 1/2" sensor, so it's never going to be great.

In good lighting, even a supplemental 1/2” sensor on a 162mm format equivalent lens at f/4.4 can seem great on a drone with a 5+ mile range and 33 minute realistic flight time! Perfect for first responders, law enforcement, and SAR! Certainly complements the MFT 24mm format equivalent lens on the main camera well! Very happy with my "round" one, too! Update fixed the focus issue.

 

[GadgetGuy]

The Pano doesn't use the lens in question.

True, but it makes for some great manual 360° panos!

 

[GadgetGuy]

That is awesome James thank you. I think there is so much potential with that lens used in that way. Would be perfect if DJI added a set panorama/grid mode for the tele so one button push and it's done. Maybe in future?

I use this technique with my Olympus DSLR and you can easily achieve better than medium format quality so very interested to see. By my calculations if the tele is a 7x zoom you could fit 7 "widths" if you like left to right to equal the same field of view of the main lens. So if the 7x sensor is 4000x3000 then horizontally that's 7 x 4000 = 28000 pixels wide by 21000 pixels high compared to the main camera of 5280 x 3956 pixels!! That would be a staggeringly detailed image.

Thanks do much for agreeing to do I'll naturally post the results back here.

Cheers

Andrew

Just use the 9 box grid overlay under the camera settings! Worked for me! Easily allows for creation of a 3 row, 360° stitched image using the 7x telephoto camera! The 35 minute flight time sure helps, with time to fly to the shooting destination and back!

 

[Bussty]

Just use the 9 box grid overlay under the camera settings! Worked for me! Easily allows for creation of a 3 row, 360° stitched image using the 7x telephoto camera! The 35 minute flight time sure helps, with time to fly to the shooting destination and back!

You have a 360 degree 3 row pano taken with the 7x???? The resolution must be off the charts! Any chance we could see the final jpeg? How many shots did that take? This is the sort of stuff that could make that 7x a real gem. Cheers

 

[GadgetGuy]

I would question on whether these 2 pictures were taking with a fixed drone that was not flying. Otherwise I would say that these are not apples-apples comparisons.

Assuming the test was objective and valid, I'm sure you could easily find that much difference among two extremes of the 7x lens with the so called oval covering. There is some slight variance in all manufactured lenses. As long as they are within the acceptable specs, they pass. Some are just slightly more perfect than others, and only pixel peepers will know or care!

 

[Bussty]

Just use the 9 box grid overlay under the camera settings! Worked for me! Easily allows for creation of a 3 row, 360° stitched image using the 7x telephoto camera! The 35 minute flight time sure helps, with time to fly to the shooting destination and back!

Oh and how do you use the grid overlay to line up the pano? Do you just move the drone left or right 2 boxes for each shot in the row then 2 down for the next row etc?? Seems like a smart way of doing it.

 

[GadgetGuy]

You have a 360 degree 3 row pano taken with the 7x???? The resolution must be off the charts! Any chance we could see the final jpeg? How many shots did that take? This is the sort of stuff that could make that 7x a real gem. Cheers

It is a real gem!

47 images for the single row 360°, with roughly a 33% overlap.
3 rows would be 141 images total.

Start the pano with the open sky just above the tallest visible object on the horizon in the prospective 360° view.
1. Pick a recognizable starting point that you will use to identify when you have completed the 360° when it reappears in the frame. Now pick any object in the center of the upper right 9 box grid, and yaw right until that point is in the center of the upper left grid box. Pick another point in center of the upper right, and repeat, until you return to the start, 47 images later.

2. Start the second row by picking an object in the center of the bottom right grid box and pointing the gimbal down until that point is in the center of the upper right grid box. Repeat step 1. above to complete the second row of 47 images.

3. Repeat step 2. above from the ending position, after completing the second row, to shoot row 3, again picking an object in the bottom right grid box, and move the gimbal down until that point is in the center of the top right grid box. Repeat step 1. above to complete the third row of 47 images.

4. Add as many more rows as you desire, but 3 rows is a good start!

5. Stitch in your favorite stitching program, and convert to HTML for sharing on the web on your own site, as no commercial site can handle it!

I have successfully completed a single row 360° pano and stitched it, mostly as a proof of concept. Still working on completing a 3 row 360°.

Observations: the 7x also compresses all the haze and heat in the air, too, so best on a very clear, cool day, without heat waves, for maximum sharpness.

This 7x pano stitch can also be used on closer subjects for greater detail, if flying closer is not possible, or maintaining the unique 7x perspective is the goal. Flying closer and using the main camera will lose the perspective of the 7x telephoto. Whenever possible, use the main camera, with its own automated 360° pano! It has amazing detail and only takes 75 seconds total, including stitching of a 50k-60k MB Hi-Res stitch without any stitching software needed!

 

[GadgetGuy]

Oh and how do you use the grid overlay to line up the pano? Do you just move the drone left or right 2 boxes for each shot in the row then 2 down for the next row etc?? Seems like a smart way of doing it.

Yup! Suggested to me by one of our other very insightful members: @adcimagery

 

[SkywalkerFeng]

I would question on whether these 2 pictures were taking with a fixed drone that was not flying. Otherwise I would say that these are not apples-apples comparisons.

Yes they are. The drones in comparison are on the ground.

 

[Bussty]

It is a real gem!

47 images for the single row 360°, with roughly a 33% overlap.
3 rows would be 141 images total.

Start the pano with the open sky just above the tallest visible object on the horizon in the prospective 360° view.
1. Pick a recognizable starting point that you will use to identify when you have completed the 360° when it reappears in the frame. Now pick any object in the center of the upper right 9 box grid, and yaw right until that point is in the center of the upper left grid box. Pick another point in center of the upper right, and repeat, until you return to the start, 47 images later.

2. Start the second row by picking an object in the center of the bottom right grid box and pointing the gimbal down until that point is in the center of the upper right grid box. Repeat step 1. above to complete the second row of 47 images.

3. Repeat step 2. above from the ending position, after completing the second row, to shoot row 3, again picking an object in the bottom right grid box, and move the gimbal down until that point is in the center of the top right grid box. Repeat step 1. above to complete the third row of 47 images.

4. Add as many more rows as you desire, but 3 rows is a good start!

5. Stitch in your favorite stitching program, and convert to HTML for sharing on the web on your own site, as no commercial site can handle it!

I have successfully completed a single row 360° pano and stitched it, mostly as a proof of concept. Still working on completing a 3 row 360°.

Observations: the 7x also compresses all the haze and heat in the air, too, so best on a very clear, cool day, without heat waves, for maximum sharpness.

This 7x pano stitch can also be used on closer subjects for greater detail, if flying closer is not possible, or maintaining the unique 7x perspective is the goal. Flying closer and using the main camera will lose the perspective of the 7x telephoto. Whenever possible, use the main camera, with its own automated 360° pano! It has amazing detail and only takes 75 seconds total, including stitching of a 50k-60k MB Hi-Res stitch without any stitching software needed!

Cheers for that makes good sense. Have you ever tried taking a grid with 7x to match the main camera view and see how they compare? Stitched 7x compared to 1 shot Main Camera... That would be quite interesting to see...

 

[GadgetGuy]

Cheers for that makes good sense. Have you ever tried taking a grid with 7x to match the main camera view and see how they compare? Stitched 7x compared to 1 shot Main Camera... That would be quite interesting to see...

I have, by digitally cropping in on the main camera image from the exact same position. I shot a main camera automated spherical 360° just before the 7x stitched single row panorama, and compared the appropriate still from each set of original images. The 7x image is noticeably sharper. However, it's a lot more work, and you lose the benefit of the rest of the unshot 360° pano that is captured by the automated 360° spherical pano in under 75 seconds. Everything is a compromise!

 

[GadgetGuy]

Cheers for that makes good sense. Have you ever tried taking a grid with 7x to match the main camera view and see how they compare? Stitched 7x compared to 1 shot Main Camera... That would be quite interesting to see...

Here is a direct test comparison I shot previously in the house in low light between a 600% cropped 1x on the 4/3 camera and a 100% image on the 7x telephoto 1/2” sensor from the exact same position, some 12 feet away. Note how much more detail and sharpness the 7x is able to pick up, but the 1x original image has a 7x larger field of view from which to create multiple different 600% crops, that are still very good, and the 4/3 camera has a much better dynamic range, and shoots at f/2.8 instead of f/4.4 so it is 3x as bright in low light. In good lighting,the 7x telephoto will always have more detail. At night, it might be a toss up!

 

[Bussty]

Excellent! I guess it means for that once in a life time shot if you want to really blow it up by using the 7x grid you can get awesome quality which is a little weird given it is an inferior lens. I hope DJI realizes that and builds in some super quick pano modes for the drone effectively giving it Gigapixel status via stitched 7x Grid sequences. Am I right in thinking there is no RAW or manual exposure settings currently?

 

[Bussty]

Here is a direct test comparison I shot previously in the house in low light between a 600% cropped 1x on the 4/3 camera and a 100% image on the 7x telephoto 1/2” sensor from the exact same position, some 12 feet away. Note how much more detail and sharpness the 7x is able to pick up, but the 1x original image has a 7x larger field of view from which to create multiple different 600% crops, that are still very good, and the 4/3 camera has a much better dynamic range, and shoots at f/2.8 instead of f/4.4 so it is 3x as bright in low light. In good lighting,the 7x telephoto will always have more detail. At night, it might be a toss up!
View attachment 145111

That's considerably more detail and probably an even more pronounced difference in strong daylight. Thanks for showing me that. I only do stills so this almost gives you DSLR quality in the sky for certain subjects.

 

[GadgetGuy]

Excellent! I guess it means for that once in a life time shot if you want to really blow it up by using the 7x grid you can get awesome quality which is a little weird given it is an inferior lens. I hope DJI realizes that and builds in some super quick pano modes for the drone effectively giving it Gigapixel status via stitched 7x Grid sequences. Am I right in thinking there is no RAW or manual exposure settings currently?

Indeed! It may be an Inferior sensor by comparison the the main sensor, but it is a true optical 162mm focal equivalent lens on it, albeit at f/4.4. I, too would love to see some pano automation for it. Maybe with Litchi, once the SDK is released in the future. No DNG or manual exposure settings on it currently. Odd, as the 1/2” sensor size is the same size as the one in the very capable Mavic Air 2, which is a full featured DJI drone. The telephoto lens on the M3 1/2” sensor camera shouldn't inherently prohibit DNG capability, nor manual exposure settings.

 

[Bussty]

Indeed! It may be an Inferior sensor by comparison the the main sensor, but it is a true optical 162mm focal equivalent lens on it, albeit at f/4.4. I, too would love to see some pano automation for it. Maybe with Litchi, once the SDK is released in the future. No DNG or manual exposure settings on it currently. Odd, as the 1/2” sensor size is the same size as the one in the very capable Mavic Air 2, which is a full featured DJI drone. The telephoto lens on the M3 1/2” sensor camera shouldn't inherently prohibit DNG capability, nor manual exposure settings.

Thanks sounds like I'm on the right path. You have been very helpful.