Mavic Air bad camera/lens?

[Janjelmer1]

Do the DNG images show the same distortion as the JPG ones?

Very good question, the RAW file looks much much better! It really seems like it is a software problem! Thanks a lot for your input

EDIT: The distortion is gone when the RAW is opened in Photoshop, but is still there when I open the file in the regular Windows viewer. It seems like the RAW file already includes distortion compensation data which Photoshop applies or something like that?

 

[LivinLarge]

Very good question, the RAW file looks much much better! It really seems like it is a software problem! Thanks a lot for your input
View attachment 30862

That's really surprising. I would have expected the RAW images to have distortion that would be corrected in the JPG files. I wonder if this has to do with the distance to the subject. Some lenses exhibit different distortions close up vs far away.

 

[Jcborden]

Do the DNG images show the same distortion as the JPG ones?

I’ve taken a closer look at some of my images (sadly I don’t have raws for my bifold shots) but have some roof line shots where the JPGs show distortion but the raws are much better which is great news as it must mean the issues are software related and thus fixable with an update.

 

[Jcborden]

Very good question, the RAW file looks much much better! It really seems like it is a software problem! Thanks a lot for your input

EDIT: The distortion is gone when the RAW is opened in Photoshop, but is still there when I open the file in the regular Windows viewer. It seems like the RAW file already includes distortion compensation data which Photoshop applies or something like that?

View attachment 30862

Sorry, didn’t see your post before I posted my raw findings. Great news!

 

[LivinLarge]

EDIT: The distortion is gone when the RAW is opened in Photoshop, but is still there when I open the file in the regular Windows viewer. It seems like the RAW file already includes distortion compensation data which Photoshop applies or something like that?

What you are seeing in Windows viewer is not the DNG but a reduced size JPG (thumbnail) file that is saved with each DNG. It must be processed through the same Jpeg engine and thus has the same lens corrections.

 

[Janjelmer1]

I just opened the DNG file with another RAW viewer (RawTherapee), and it shows the same distortion. The lens correction data is included in the DNG file and is applied by Photoshop/Lightroom automatically (and not by RawTherapee). The lens correction data is there, but it seems like they don't apply it to the JPEG/video's. Hope they will release an update soon!

 

[LivinLarge]

I just opened the DNG file with another RAW viewer (RawTherapee), and it shows the same distortion. The lens correction data is included in the DNG file and is applied by Photoshop/Lightroom automatically (and not by RawTherapee). The lens correction data is there, but it seems like they don't apply it to the JPEG/video's. Hope they will release an update soon!

OK, I did not know that. Hope they can fix the JPG and video output.

 

[mark_anderson_us]

Very good question, the RAW file looks much much better! It really seems like it is a software problem! Thanks a lot for your input

EDIT: The distortion is gone when the RAW is opened in Photoshop, but is still there when I open the file in the regular Windows viewer. It seems like the RAW file already includes distortion compensation data which Photoshop applies or something like that?

View attachment 30862

Doesn't solve problems with video though

 

[Janjelmer1]

Doesn't solve problems with video though

No, but it shows that it seems to be a software problem, so let's hope that DJI will come with an update for the ISP soon!

 

[Turski]

I can be added to the list as I also get the same warping which is rendering my shots pretty useless.

 

[Janjelmer1]

I have created a new thread. I thought that more people should be aware of this issue. DJI can probably solve the issue with a firmware update for the ISP (Image Signal Processor) such that it applies the same lens distortion data which is embbed in the the RAW/DNG to the JPEG/video files. If more of us contact DJI with this problem, I think we will have a bigger chance that DJI will roll-out an update in the near future.

I also added a poll to the thread to check who have this problem, can you all please answer yes if you do?

 

[Yann99]

Distortion appears to be in its’ optics - no FW can correct.
Bad batch of plastic lens?

Edit: if in fact they’re plastic.

Software optimization can correct optical defects such as barrel distorsion or even vignetting. You have similar optimizations in your everyday phone. So YES, it can be corrected via a firmware updated, provided the defects are identical across the parts. DxO, if you know this company, has been supplying optical optimizations software for years to OEMs such as HTC.

 

[rockface]

"Unfortunately, the Mavic Air is not an approved device for insurance missions."

The above response was received from DroneBase support. Just tried to register my Mavic Air to do aerial photography for real estate and insurance. So sad!!!

 

[Scampcamp]

Should I be feeling nervous about this video issue & now people talking about a stutter problem? My Air is showing up on Friday.

 

[rockface]

This is my 1st drone. Flying it has been a real joy and I love the images & video it takes. Seems like the raw files do not show the distortion (just the jpg). I have no idea what the problem is with DroneBase.com so I'll update this post once my DroneBase application gets farther along.

 

[lorry_44]

Long time lurker first time poster, but hey here we go. Have also been seeing distortion mainly in video with pans n such so i made a quick vid to compare raw vs some edited footage.

 

[m2bfx]

My air also has this issue, it went back and returned stating nothing is wrong.......So its going back again to DJI for repair
Let hope it gets a NEW lens or something.

 

[whiteMavic]

My air also has this issue, it went back and returned stating nothing is wrong.......So its going back again to DJI for repair
Let hope it gets a NEW lens or something.

Hello m2bfx
I have the same issue on my mavic air. Did the repair solve the problem on your MA?

 

[sebip]

I have same issue

 

[kingofmyempire]

I don't think this is wierd, this is usual lens distortion, when panning with my Canon 16-35mm on a full frame in 24mm I get basically the same, maby not as severe at with the Mavic air. You might also need to calculate a slight bit of rolling shutter. You can ofcourse get around this in post production.

In Photo mode I guess a lens correction profile can be added in camera/drone, but in video mode there is no way it can be done live becaus of the processing power it would need.