Mavic Air - PolarPro ND Filters

[xdronedk]

Hi guys,

just bought the Cinema 6 pack from PolarPro. (ND4, ND8, ND16, ND4/PL, ND8/PL, ND16/PL)

Can someone tell me just plain and simple which ISO + Shutter speed i am supposed to use on each of these filters? I don't get the 1/25 comments etc.. Like just straight to business.. Would be much appreciated, thank you!

+ Which one of these are your personal favorite and why?

 

[THE CYBORG]

The idea is to use whatever filter lets you use your desired shutter speed, the filter used will change with the lighting conditions on the day.

The higher the filter the darker it is therefore blocking more light so you can set the ISO at 100 but change the shutter speed with a different filter.

 

[xdronedk]

So ISO: 100

But isn't there like any general rule for shutter speed when applying any of these filters?

 

[Olav van Gerven]

I start with the setting of my camera, generally ISO 100, 4K/25 fps, Shutter 50. Then I look how the exposure is and decide what filter I take. Sometimes I just get the drone up to see if there is any major change in exposure if I get up (depending on where I am) to correct the filter then.

Last saturday, in bright sunlight (12:54) I used a ND16 and got a good result. I have used ND 8 or 4 or sometimes no filter (late in the evening). I don't think there is an absolut "must" it simply depends on what you want to get and how far you can (want to) work on it in editing. You can also play with contrast, brightness etc. but for the beginning, I would keep that standard untill you know what results you get with simply using the filters.

 

[xdronedk]

I intend to color grade my clips in post. I suppose ND4, ND8, ND16 is best then because they are without color saturation opposite the PL filters. Correct?

And ND16 is the best one to use in bright sunlight while ND8 is for cloudy weather and ND4 is for sunrise/sunset.. Is that correct too?

In which cases would I use PL filters or is that just a waste of money if I wanna edit all my footage in post??

 

[THE CYBORG]

Polarising filters can be used to good effect in stills but not so good for video because as you turn the drone you alter the angel of the light hitting the filter.

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[kjcbid54]

I intend to color grade my clips in post. I suppose ND4, ND8, ND16 is best then because they are without color saturation opposite the PL filters. Correct?

And ND16 is the best one to use in bright sunlight while ND8 is for cloudy weather and ND4 is for sunrise/sunset.. Is that correct too?

In which cases would I use PL filters or is that just a waste of money if I wanna edit all my footage in post??

ND and PL filters have nothing to do with color saturation or color grading. They are neutral density, that means they have no effect on the color profile of your footage. You only use ND filters to slow down your shutter speed. You only need to slow down your shutter speed for basically 2 reasons. 1) To slow the shutter down to twice the frame rate to create proper motion blur in your videos, 2) to slow shutter speed for long exposure still photos. In both cases, the filter is a tool to allow a slower than "auto" setting shutter while still maintaining proper exposure. That is basiically it, not really any other reason to use them.
A PL filter will help to eliminate glare from reflective surfaces such as water or glass. They are typically tricky and frustrating to use on a drone because you cannot adjust them midflight. Once you set the polarizer, the lighting conditions can change when you change direction of flight, which could create an undesired effect.