ND Filter - the choice of one....

Paul Iddon · Jan 27, 2023

So, if you had to get a single ND filter for the Mini 3 Pro (not a set of 6 etc)., which would you get?

ND16, ND32, ND64, and so on?

msinger · Jan 27, 2023

I'd buy an adjustable filter (like this K&F filter) so one filter could be used in place of several.

Paul Iddon · Jan 27, 2023

msinger said:
I'd buy an adjustable filter (like this K&F filter) so one filter could be used in place of several.

View attachment 159967

I saw that, but it weighs 1.1 which would take the drone over 250...

Paul.

Deleted member 170519 · Jan 27, 2023

Paul Iddon said:
So, if you had to get a single ND filter for the Mini 3 Pro (not a set of 6 etc)., which would you get?

ND16, ND32, ND64, and so on?

Maybe choose which conditions you fly mostly in.
I use a nd/pl 32 mostly

ND Filter	Conditions	Old Exposure Time	New Exposure Time	Shutter speed
ND2	At dawn or dusk	1 sec	2 sec	1/
ND4	During overcast or cloudy days	1 sec	4 sec	1/250
ND8	Partly cloudy conditions	1 sec	8 sec	1/500
ND16	Partly cloudy but mostly sunny conditions	1 sec	16 sec	1/1000
ND32	Sunny and clear conditions	1 sec	32 sec	1/1250
ND64	Extremely bright conditions with reflective surfaces	1 sec	1 minute	1/2000

akdrone · Jan 27, 2023

if i couldn't get a variable I guess I'd get a 16. I probably have used that more than any of the others. If I wanted to do hyperlapse it might be 512 or 1000.

a2tomm · Jan 28, 2023

nd 32 for me ,(use something ) the mini3p air2s come with nothing ,just a bare lens

Ralph thompson · Jan 28, 2023

msinger said:
I'd buy an adjustable filter (like this K&F filter) so one filter could be used in place of several.

View attachment 159967

Very nice, with glass elements. Looks like this company makes quality photography gear. But I do like having the polarizer also, might be a tricky design with a variable ND. Of course, maybe the design is just cross polarizing so that might be inherent. I see they have them also for the m3 but not the m3 classic yet.

mike foy · Jan 28, 2023

Mark_F said:
Maybe choose which conditions you fly mostly in.
I use a nd/pl 32 mostly

ND Filter Conditions Old Exposure Time New Exposure Time Shutter speed
ND2 At dawn or dusk 1 sec 2 sec 1/
ND4 During overcast or cloudy days 1 sec 4 sec 1/250
ND8 Partly cloudy conditions 1 sec 8 sec 1/500
ND16 Partly cloudy but mostly sunny conditions 1 sec 16 sec 1/1000
ND32 Sunny and clear conditions 1 sec 32 sec 1/1250
ND64 Extremely bright conditions with reflective surfaces 1 sec 1 minute 1/2000

Shouldn’t the shutter speed values be in the other order, as you add more and more neutral density filters, the image gets darker and if the aperture remains the same you need longer exposures to get the same light.

Deleted member 170519 · Jan 28, 2023

mike foy said:
Shouldn’t the shutter speed values be in the other order, as you add more and more neutral density filters, the image gets darker and if the aperture remains the same you need longer exposures to get the same light.

These are fixed shutter speeds that would be required with no ND Filters in those conditions

SethB · Jan 28, 2023

Paul Iddon said:
So, if you had to get a single ND filter for the Mini 3 Pro (not a set of 6 etc)., which would you get?

ND16, ND32, ND64, and so on?

1. Are you shooting video?
2. What’s the weather like in Preston?

Here in overcast Western Oregon, my default is an ND8. I often pull out the ND16 in broad sun, and occasionally a 32 or 64 for beach or snow.

There is no fixed ND filter for all seasons and reasons; I’m mounting an ND specifically for conventional motion blur in video, or, extreme motion blur as an effect in stills.

Mark_F said:
Maybe choose which conditions you fly mostly in.
I use a nd/pl 32 mostly

ND Filter Conditions Old Exposure Time New Exposure Time Shutter speed
ND2 At dawn or dusk 1 sec 2 sec 1/
ND4 During overcast or cloudy days 1 sec 4 sec 1/250
ND8 Partly cloudy conditions 1 sec 8 sec 1/500
ND16 Partly cloudy but mostly sunny conditions 1 sec 16 sec 1/1000
ND32 Sunny and clear conditions 1 sec 32 sec 1/1250
ND64 Extremely bright conditions with reflective surfaces 1 sec 1 minute 1/2000

This is helpful! It’s probably not got the best accuracy for a specific location, sun height, and weather, but it shows the weather trend vs. available light and starting filter in an easy to understand way.

Paul Iddon said:
I saw that, but it weighs 1.1 which would take the drone over 250...

Paul.

Have you weighed your drone? It’s in a 249g class, but that isn’t the same as it weighing 249! My Mini 2 is also “249g”… except on the scale, where it’s 238g.

I myself haven’t used a VND on a drone - no comments to share.

But, why this question? Is there something specific you want to get out of using an ND, is there some reason that one ND filter to do it all seems a good choice?

mike foy · Jan 28, 2023

Mark_F said:
These are fixed shutter speeds that would be required with no ND Filters in those conditions

Ah thanks, my background is way back to film photography and working in darkrooms and we would only use ND filters if we wished to slow down the shutter speeds(like taking photos of water flowing where given a really slow shutter, the water became blurred like a fog) now with the 180 rule the shutter speed should be at least twice the frame rate, so as you add on more filters either the shutter speed must decrease or the aperture increase to get perfect exposure. Since the drone is ‘usually’ flown some distance from the object and depth of field is of less concern, is it better to change the aperture rather than the shutter speed and hence frame rate? Or am I missing the point here and that ND filters are mainly used for photographs rather than video.
And thank you for answering my question, I appreciate this. I am not being a troll here. I really want to know why ND filters are the must have item, where I would have thought that polarising filters would be more important for changing the sky and reflections on water, (something that as a drone photographer would be so important considering it’s position.)
Thanks again

Mike

SethB · Jan 28, 2023

mike foy said:
Ah thanks, my background is way back to film photography and working in darkrooms and we would only use ND filters if we wished to slow down the shutter speeds(like taking photos of water flowing where given a really slow shutter, the water became blurred like a fog) now with the 180 rule the shutter speed should be at least twice the frame rate, so as you add on more filters either the shutter speed must decrease or the aperture increase to get perfect exposure. Since the drone is ‘usually’ flown some distance from the object and depth of field is of less concern, is it better to change the aperture rather than the shutter speed and hence frame rate? Or am I missing the point here and that ND filters are mainly used for photographs rather than video.
And thank you for answering my question, I appreciate this. I am not being a troll here. I really want to know why ND filters are the must have item, where I would have thought that polarising filters would be more important for changing the sky and reflections on water, (something that as a drone photographer would be so important considering it’s position.)
Thanks again

Mike

ND filters are mainly used for video to conform footage to the 180-deg rule, producing conventional motion blur. However, their use is debatable even there, as most drone video is of the slow, wide, and scenic variety, and conventional motion blur won’t even be perceptible on a still frame from typical video.

Most drone cameras do not have variable aperture, so, the only available exposure controls are ISO, shutter speed, and any filters.

Most drone cameras have small-ish sensors and are used at focal lengths and subject distances where shallow depth of field (DoF, depth of focus) is never going to be available as an effect. This too is pretty different than conventional terrestrial photography.

ND filters for stills are therefore not used to support wide apertures for shallow focus, but are sometimes used for blur on water, blur on moving objects or blur on camera movement. More of an effects approach, and different than the goals for motion blur in video.

ND filters are not a “must have” item, but manufacturers want you to buy them, retailers want to sell them, influencers want to talk about must-have stuff, and purchasers want to justify their investments. To be clear, I’m a purchaser with a wide range of ND for my own and my employer’s drones.

***edit***
!!!Collect them all!!!

Paul Iddon · Jan 28, 2023

msinger said:
I'd buy an adjustable filter (like this K&F filter) so one filter could be used in place of several.

View attachment 159967

Thanks - I have ordered this K&F one.

SethB said:
1. Are you shooting video?
2. What’s the weather like in Preston?

Here in overcast Western Oregon, my default is an ND8. I often pull out the ND16 in broad sun, and occasionally a 32 or 64 for beach or snow.

Have you weighed your drone? It’s in a 249g class, but that isn’t the same as it weighing 249! My Mini 2 is also “249g”… except on the scale, where it’s 238g.

The weather in Preston (UK) is quite varied - so the one I have ordered above would probably be fine. I shoot video - but will take photos.

I did weigh my drone and it's 247g without the gimbal cover on, so a 1.1g filter should be good.

Paul.

Jake 61 · Jan 28, 2023

I have the Skyreat 6 pack, but the ND16, is the one that is permanently fitted.

waynorth · Jan 28, 2023

mike foy said:
I would have thought that polarising filters would be more important for changing the sky and reflections on water, (something that as a drone photographer would be so important considering it’s position.)
Mike

Polarizing fliters (PL) are problematic on drones for two reasons.
First, cameras on drones are mostly wide angle, with diagonal angle of view between approx. 75 - 84 degrees. As the polarizing effect is strongest with the sun in a certain angle to the lens, photos with blue skies tend to look ugly with a PL-filter, with half of the sky dark blue and the other half much lighter. If you try stitching such photos for a panorama it will be terrible.
Second, as everybody with experience from photography with PL-filters will tell you, you need to rotate the filter depending on the angle of the sun and lens to get full effect. That is a bit difficult when the drone is mid-air.

Deleted member 162835 · Jan 28, 2023

ND 16. Unless it's stupid bright out (high noon stupid bright out) an ND 16 covers most cases involving the sun for me.

Deleted member 170519 · Jan 28, 2023

mike foy said:
Ah thanks, my background is way back to film photography and working in darkrooms and we would only use ND filters if we wished to slow down the shutter speeds(like taking photos of water flowing where given a really slow shutter, the water became blurred like a fog) now with the 180 rule the shutter speed should be at least twice the frame rate, so as you add on more filters either the shutter speed must decrease or the aperture increase to get perfect exposure. Since the drone is ‘usually’ flown some distance from the object and depth of field is of less concern, is it better to change the aperture rather than the shutter speed and hence frame rate? Or am I missing the point here and that ND filters are mainly used for photographs rather than video.
And thank you for answering my question, I appreciate this. I am not being a troll here. I really want to know why ND filters are the must have item, where I would have thought that polarising filters would be more important for changing the sky and reflections on water, (something that as a drone photographer would be so important considering it’s position.)
Thanks again

Mike

I dont do video, but I do use ND Filters. Sometimes you want that blur effect either with the clouds or water. I use the 32ND a lot but for blur I go with the ND1000. Manual adjust the shutter speed then increase or decrease iso. Most of the time for water blur, I start setting the shutter at 2 sec. ND1000. Then look at exposure. Most of the time I get away with 100 iso which is what I want.