ND Filters and Still Photos

[CamoGreg]

Can you share those pictures pls ? Curious to see the result !

 

[ScubaBob]

Sure. I don't have the original files any longer as they were not that great but these are screenshots taken from my Facebook posting. You will get an idea as to what can be done.

 

[CamoGreg]

Really nice !

 

[ScubaBob]

Really nice !

Thanks

 

[Ricky R]

This is all correct. The MP has a fixed aperture so your only options are adjusting ISO and shutter speed. If the MP or the object being photographed are moving at a pace faster than a walk then you will need to set shutter speed at 1/250 or higher to stop the action. Otherwise you will get blurring. Because the sensor in the MP is not of the quality that you find in decent compact digital cameras you will start to see grainy photos once ISO (known as ASA for those who grew up on film) is above 300 or so. However, if you use Adobe's Lightroom (for photos, not videos) you can adjust the luminescence to smooth out the grainy pictures. I shot night photos on New Year's eve with ISO at the max and shutter speed at 1/125 and 1/250 and got respectable photos considering the above limitations of the MP.

 

[Ricky R]

I found this thread very helpfully. I am not new to photography but I am new to still photos with the Mavic.

 

[Stivako]

I have the PolarPro Cinema series six pack that I use all the time for stills, mainly because I’m using flipping back and forth between video. Living in Florida it’s almost a necessity. The polarization really helps add some saturation, and is really good for taking sunset/sunrise pics.

Hi Pingman68, which filters do you use more often? Do you tend to specifically set the ND/PL filter according to the angle you will shoot?

 

[RubiconCSL]

Thanks Lisa.

I was certainly confused (even with my very limited knowledge) by the previous comment. The Mavic Air that I have, definitely has a fixed aperture (2.8 I think); I think the Pro may have some adjustment. I've also read and viewed many youtube videos, where the "experts" say that one really should try to stick to ISO 100. So as far as I can see and based on always wanting to use 25fps to get motion blur (in the UK anyway), that means the only thing one can actually adjust is the shutter speed, which means using ND filters to achieve this. For video, that means doing one's best to get it to as close as possible to 1/50th. I'm no still shot expert either, but I can see why slowing it down could be useful for effects such as blurring water motion. But as I (and I'm guessing most casual users) will be doing a mix of video and stills, it means still trying to get it to 1/50th, which I hope won't affect stills to badly, unless flying in some very windy conditions.

I will add the caveat here for anyone reading my drivel, that I'm the proud owner of some 2 weeks of my first drone and racked up a rather impressive 30 minutes of flying time so far - so I'm no expert!

Actually, from my understanding, the Mavic has a fixed aperture, and therefore it has no way to adjust this factor. You, and the Mavic, are stuck with the fixed aperture of the lens and it cannot be adjusted to compensate for changes in light levels. In essence, your depth-of-field is not really going to change.

One critical component of the calculation that you left out is ISO (the light sensitivity of the sensor). That is what the Mavic can adjust (other than shutter speed) in order to adjust for variable light levels. Back in the "old" days, when we used film (Kodachrome and regular film), we used to have to choose the ISO (or also called ASA) of the film when we put it in the camera. Many pro photographers carried around multiple cameras with different ISO films already loaded, in order to adjust the ISO for a particular shot.

With digital cameras, one simply needs to turn a dial in order to adjust the ISO. This is what the Mavic adjusts (in combination with shutter speed) in order to match the desired EV value, if that is modified by the user.

Aperture + Shutter Speed + ISO = Exposure

 

[Pingman68]

Hi Pingman68, which filters do you use more often? Do you tend to specifically set the ND/PL filter according to the angle you will shoot?

It just depends on conditions and time of day. I definitely use the higher end of the scale more, and eventually want to pickup the ND64. I will make an attempt to set the PL filters correctly, but if you fly at a different angle, that changes as well. I’m not going to constantly land just to correct it for a change, so mainly I just deal with it. Still looks better than not using one.

 

[basophil]

I have recently acquired a Mavic Air and am loving it. That tiny camera is astonishingly capable. I also was wondering about the usefulness of ND filters in still photography. I understand the use of ND filters for longer exposure times, but does the Mavic Air hover provide a stable enough platform for long (say, >0.5 second) exposures?

 

[Paul2660]

A polarizer, will also help with reflected light. Especially on greens. So if you are shooting on a bright day, green leaves can take on a harsh look due to the reflected light. A polarizer will cut that and give you a more pleasing look. Also on fall colors, even on a overcast day, a polarizer will help. Polarizer will also cut glare on water. So working around streams, or lakes, you can use one to give you a better cleaner look. One consideration on water is that many times a polarizer can also cut a reflection.

Most polarizers are also going to cut exposure between 1-2 stops.

For stills unless working in very bright light around the ocean or desert I can't see much use for an ND. I tend to use ND's to slow exposure for water or help in a longer exposure for clouds or the like.

Paul C

 

[Dingo]

Polarizers, if you're shooting 90 degrees to the sun, will give you a darker blue in the sky. You can get some very nice rich skies that way. ND isn't going to do that for you. They work like sunglasses in that they lower the amount of light entering the camera, except the do this without changing the colors in any way.

Here's why it all works - and just skip this if you already know this...I'm not trying to be pedantic...but someone might want to know:

When you spin the exposure dial, you're changing the EV - which is YOUR REQUESTED exposure. You're effectively telling the Mavic how light or dark you want the image to be. From that point, the Mavic is going to do what it can to only let that amount of light hit the sensor. There are three things in play, the amount of light that's around, the size of the opening in the lens (called the Aperture), and the amount of time the sensor is exposed to the light (called the Shutter Speed). The Mavic has no control over how much light is out there, but it can control the other two (aperture and shutter speed). These two are inversely proportional, so if you double the length of time the sensor is exposed to the light, you need to halve the size of the opening in order to get the same exposure. Because of this, there are multiple "Correct" exposures. The Mavic, in Auto mode chooses one combination of both of these settings based common "normal" settings and tries to match the EV you set. That may be fine for a lot of people, but there are creative effects that can be had by choosing other balances between these.

On a plain Mavic with no accessories, the only thing we can set is the shutter speed (on other drones you can set both Speed and Aperture). The Mavic wants to expose the image to match the EV you requested. If you set the shutter speed, the Mavic will automatically set the aperture to be the right size to let in the amount of light to match your requested EV during the duration of the exposure. IF IT CAN. The problem that we face is that there is a maximum and minimum aperture size. If you pick a shutter speed that too fast, and the Mavic cannot open the aperture big enough to let in enough light, your picture will be underexposed and your shadow areas will black up. Conversely, if you decrease your shutter speed (like if you want water to blur a little), but the Mavic cannot close down the lens opening enough to limit the amount of light that gets in, too much light hits your sensor and your image will be overexposed and your light areas will wash out.

What an ND filter does for you, is control the third element of exposure...you're setting shutter speed, the Mavic is choosing the aperture...the third element is how much light is available. Normally, you're at the mercy of nature (how sunny is it?)...but with an ND filter, the amount of light that's available to the sensor is reduced...like wearing sunglasses. With less light to deal with, the Mavic can support slower shutter speeds within the limits of the aperture for a given exposure (EV). This lets you get creative by either choosing slower shutter speeds (which blurs and softens), or forcing shallower depth of field (the wider the opening of the lens, the less range that's in focus) by slowing your shutter speed and forcing the Mavic to choose a wider aperture to compensate.

So ND filters by themselves do not impact the image...but they allow the mavic to be set with slower shutter speeds, which does impact the image in both softness and depth of field.

Sorry if that's "TM already-known I" for most of the folks out there...Hope it's interesting to someone.

I have a question. Lately i have been taking still images with MP from 120 M with the object being the city skyline some 5 or 6 kms away. I noticed my images lack sharpness and look slightly out of focus especially when zooming in on a photo in post. I left a ND 4 filter on and shutter speed was approx 1/350 . Just wondering if the blur is from a too slow shutter speed? wind and vibration from the drone? should i take the ND filter off to increase shutter speed ? or use a CPL filter. I have the camera setting on +1 for sharpness. I am able to sharpen the image in post with photoshop but wish the original photo was sharper. I have noticed when taking photos at much closer range like 20-80Metres the image is sharper and more focused. Am i expecting too much from this little camera or is there something that can improve clarity/sharpness at long distance photos.Is it good to switch to tripod mode when up at 120 M before taking photos.?