ND Filter #16..Why?

[hayc59]

Cant a regular joe like me just buy ONE filter to try out and maybe keep?
they are so expensive!! or do I really need one?

 

[Lastrexking]

Don’t Polar Pro sell them individually?

 

[jigsaw]

Didn't you get 3 filters with your MA2?

 

[hayc59]

Didn't you get 3 filters with your MA2?

NO did no have the funds

 

[swooshdave]

Cant a regular joe like me just buy ONE filter to try out and maybe keep?
they are so expensive!! or do I really need one?

It's one of those things that if you don't know if you need one you probably don't. Also if you really want to get one there are a TON of Fly More owners who will never use theirs so you may be able to pick them up for a nominal sum.

I may experiment with the filters some but will I use them every time I go out? No. I'm just not concerned about getting the utmost out of my photos. If I do want to tweak a photo I'll probably just drop into Photoshop.

 

[Ice_2k]

I'm just not concerned about getting the utmost out of my photos. If I do want to tweak a photo I'll probably just drop into Photoshop.

Photos really don’t have anything to do with ND filters, unless you’re into long exposure photography (in which case you’re probably aiming higher than 16)

 

[Northwood Mediaworks]

Polar sells singles and Freewell also.

 

[Mel 08]

Polar sells singles and Freewell also.

My limited experience
Used the 16 filter last 2 trips
I'm no photographer but it makes a big difference

 

[Meta4]

do I really need one?

Probably not
Are you happy with the way your videos appear?
It's a personal choice .. there's no wrong or right.
But unless you have motion close to your lens, it really makes no difference.

 

[Ice_2k]

But unless you have motion close to your lens, it really makes no difference.

I would argue against this. I filmed a lot without filters and I was always getting the feeling there’s something wrong with my videos, they felt somehow “stuttery”. A very simple example is the simple helix quickshot. Even if the drone is 60-70m away from the subject, it makes a huge difference when the subject is sharp but the stuff on the side is getting blurry. Same thing when flying fast over buildings, it matters if the buildings buzzing by at the bottom of the image get that nice motion not instead of looking like a very fast slideshow

 

[Dave Maine]

This is the classic case where ND filters help to achieve motion blur to remove strobing from near objects moving very fast. The guideline is a shutter speed of 2x the frame rate - at 30 FPS use a shutter of 1/60. Pick the ND value to avoid needing to raise the ISO of the camera. The DJI sensors are very bad at higher ISOs.

 

[Ron Caballero CAP]

Didn't you get 3 filters with your MA2?

The three filters come with the Fly More Combo.

 

[Hiflyer808]

This is the classic case where ND filters help to achieve motion blur to remove strobing from near objects moving very fast. The guideline is a shutter speed of 2x the frame rate - at 30 FPS use a shutter of 1/60. Pick the ND value to avoid needing to raise the ISO of the camera. The DJI sensors are very bad at higher ISOs.

While i agree that there are a lot os scenarios where you want to slow the shutter down to get motion blur, I think people get too hung up on the 180° rule. That rule is largely an artifact of how mechanical shutters used to operate. The point is to get motion blur that looks natural to your eye. Ive done tests looking down at my waving hand at waist level with a gopro, so i could easily compare the video with how the motion blur looked to my eye, and at around a 60th of a second was the closest match, regardless of frames per second. In other words, no need to shoot at 1/120th if you are shooting at 60fps. And also, with any shutter speed from about 1/24th to around 1/200th the blur still looks pretty natural. So, to get natural blur you mostly just need to avoid the really high shutter speeds of 1/250th or above, where you do start to get a strobing effect. So your nd16 should be fine for all but the very brightest scenes. And for the most natural blur possible, forget the 180° rule, just shoot at a 60th. (Unless you are shooting at 120 or 240 fps of course.)

 

[Ron Caballero CAP]

This is the classic case where ND filters help to achieve motion blur to remove strobing from near objects moving very fast. The guideline is a shutter speed of 2x the frame rate - at 30 FPS use a shutter of 1/60. Pick the ND value to avoid needing to raise the ISO of the camera. The DJI sensors are very bad at higher ISOs.

I am curious about your comment, "

This is the classic case where ND filters help to achieve motion blur to remove strobing from near objects moving very fast. The guideline is a shutter speed of 2x the frame rate - at 30 FPS use a shutter of 1/60. Pick the ND value to avoid needing to raise the ISO of the camera. The DJI sensors are very bad at higher ISOs.

I am confused. Based on my experience as a semi-professional photographer and flying my Mavic air, it would seem to me that raisining ISO will make the sensor more sensitive and, therefore, require a higher shutter speed. The use of ND filters will permit lower shutter speeds at the same ISO. On the other hand, a dark ND filter will permit very long shutter speeds and get the movement of clouds. I know this works in single images and, I suppose, in video as well. I shall try it and let you know.