PolarPro Cinema Series still problematic to gimbal?

Pablo · Feb 7, 2017

MavicKhan said:
I figured it out...I wasn't pushing the filters all the way in to the back and that's what was limiting the clearance.

...but I can understand why I wasn't pushing them all the way...The resistance going in is very high and it is even higher now to take it off...I have to balance the (strong) force of the fingers pulling the filters with that of the couple of ones holding the gimbal and, since there's not much room to hold the gimbal, I am afraid the fingers holding it just slip and that a strong jolt is induced by ones pulling the filter.

All this force, pulling and balancing can't be good for the gimbal...

MK

Put them on and take them off with the gimbal clamp attached. Hold the camera barrell while doing it. Can't see how it can cause any issues this way.

deltalimatango · Feb 7, 2017

Hmmm... I will have to follow this thread. I have the RC Taco Filters and I guess they are okay. They do not cause any gimbal problems but I do not like the performance or the color rendering. Was gonna get some Polar Pro Cinema Series.

deltalimatango · Feb 7, 2017

Just saw this from Amazon Germany. Says:
"The Shutter Collection Filter 3-Pack is part of the new PolarPro Cinema series. Equipped with the highest quality glass and the best coating, the Cinema series is for pilots who expect the best. The aluminum frames of the Cinema series filters for the DJI Mavic drone are thin enough not to be removed during the gimbal startup. The shutter collection for the DJI Mavic includes an ND8, ND16 and an ND32 filter, which extend the shutter speed of the camera and provide a richer color."

I assume this is the series that people here are discussing?

deltalimatango · Feb 7, 2017

On the DJI site in regards to their filter set, they state: "Specifically made for the Mavic Pro. This set includes ND4, ND8 and ND16 filters. ND filter reduces the amount of light coming into the sensor, giving you the freedom to create your own work by allowing more control of the camera's aperture, exposure time and sensor sensitivity settings." If I am not mistaken, you can't control the aperture on the Mavic. Only the ISO and shutter speed. Did I miss something here?

Andrew F · Feb 7, 2017

deltalimatango said:
On the DJI site in regards to their filter set, they state: "Specifically made for the Mavic Pro. This set includes ND4, ND8 and ND16 filters. ND filter reduces the amount of light coming into the sensor, giving you the freedom to create your own work by allowing more control of the camera's aperture, exposure time and sensor sensitivity settings." If I am not mistaken, you can't control the aperture on the Mavic. Only the ISO and shutter speed. Did I miss something here?

They aren't working for me but my initial take is that they caused my ISO to change not my shutter speed. I'm not gonna spend time playing with them if they don't start without the gimbal overload message. I'm still waiting to hear back from PolarPro support. Waiting . . .

Helo · Feb 7, 2017

deltalimatango said:
On the DJI site in regards to their filter set, they state: "Specifically made for the Mavic Pro. This set includes ND4, ND8 and ND16 filters. ND filter reduces the amount of light coming into the sensor, giving you the freedom to create your own work by allowing more control of the camera's aperture, exposure time and sensor sensitivity settings." If I am not mistaken, you can't control the aperture on the Mavic. Only the ISO and shutter speed. Did I miss something here?

Aperture is the size of the lens opening and controls the amount of light entering the camera, a ND filter controls the amount of light by using a tinted lens. They both accomplish the same thing, the exception being by changing the aperture you change the depth of field (DOF, how much of the photo is in focus) while the filter has no effect on DOF.

So the first part of the statement "ND filter reduces the amount of light coming into the sensor " is correct. The "allowing more control of the camera's aperture" is not, the filters have no effect on the aperture.

deltalimatango · Feb 8, 2017

Helo said:
Aperture is the size of the lens opening and controls the amount of light entering the camera, a ND filter controls the amount of light by using a tinted lens. They both accomplish the same thing, the exception being by changing the aperture you change the depth of field (DOF, how much of the photo is in focus) while the filter has no effect on DOF.

So the first part of the statement "ND filter reduces the amount of light coming into the sensor " is correct. The "allowing more control of the camera's aperture" is not, the filters have no effect on the aperture.

Thanks Helo, I understand how apertures work and all. I was pointing out the inaccurate statement, which you also caught. This is very misleading on DJI's part and I would be willing to bet you, someone will read that and be stumped as to why their aperture does not change.

Metal69rock · Feb 8, 2017

Here is the video as mentioned before:

Sent from my iPhone using MavicPilots

PolarPro · Feb 8, 2017

Andrew F said:
They aren't working for me but my initial take is that they caused my ISO to change not my shutter speed. I'm not gonna spend time playing with them if they don't start without the gimbal overload message. I'm still waiting to hear back from PolarPro support. Waiting . . .

Hi Andrew, I am pretty sure I reached out to you, our support team is a little busy right now, but I am more than happy to help: [email protected]

The filters should not cause any gimbal initialization problems, if they do, I am more than happy to help you through it,

Jeff

Golfnut · Feb 8, 2017

Jeff: Any comments on the video where the guy has cut off part of the retaining ring to allow the filters to go on and off easier?

BAPaik · Feb 8, 2017

It has only occurred to me a couple times while using the ND8 in my cinema series set. It's hit or miss with that one. For the other two, I haven't had that problem.

PolarPro · Feb 8, 2017

Golfnut said:
Jeff: Any comments on the video where the guy has cut off part of the retaining ring to allow the filters to go on and off easier?

I would rather have you guys work directly with me and send replacements rather than modifying that trim ring.
[email protected]

-Jeff

Yellow1976 · Feb 8, 2017

I was getting the gimbal overload error out in the field all day yesterday using the cinema filters. I eventually had to take the filter off for the error to go away and fly without it. With the filter on the gimbal was acting crazy bumping the sides of the housing. I am going to do some more testing when i get home. Just a question though, when I start my mavic up if its on slightly uneven ground will this cause this gimbal overload error? My take is the filters are too heavy.

erwheezy · Feb 8, 2017

BAPaik said:
It has only occurred to me a couple times while using the ND8 in my cinema series set. It's hit or miss with that one. For the other two, I haven't had that problem.

I had the same issue, only the nd8 filter would hit.

Andrew F · Feb 8, 2017

Yellow1976 said:
I was getting the gimbal overload error out in the field all day yesterday using the cinema filters. I eventually had to take the filter off for the error to go away and fly without it. With the filter on the gimbal was acting crazy bumping the sides of the housing. I am going to do some more testing when i get home. Just a question though, when I start my mavic up if its on slightly uneven ground will this cause this gimbal overload error? My take is the filters are too heavy.

I might have a work-around for you. I'm going to post a new thread.

Andrew F · Feb 8, 2017

erwheezy said:
I had the same issue, only the nd8 filter would hit.

With my set the 8 is clearly different. The rim is a bit thicker and it weighs a bit more. The 4 and 16 look identical and weigh the same.

Yellow1976 · Feb 8, 2017

Andrew F said:
With my set the 8 is clearly different. The rim is a bit thicker and it weighs a bit more. The 4 and 16 look identical and weigh the same.

Now that you mentioned it mine was the #8 all the rest seemed to have worked fine.

PolarPro · Feb 8, 2017

Yellow1976 said:
I was getting the gimbal overload error out in the field all day yesterday using the cinema filters. I eventually had to take the filter off for the error to go away and fly without it. With the filter on the gimbal was acting crazy bumping the sides of the housing. I am going to do some more testing when i get home. Just a question though, when I start my mavic up if its on slightly uneven ground will this cause this gimbal overload error? My take is the filters are too heavy.

Weight is not an issue, the physical interference on startup would cause error codes.
If you are having issues, please shoot us an email, we are happy to help you troubleshoot and try out new filters if needed.

Having the Mavic relatively flat during gimbal initialization is recommended,

Jeff

flyNfrank · Feb 8, 2017

G

PolarPro said:
Weight is not an issue, the physical interference on startup would cause error codes.
If you are having issues, please shoot us an email, we are happy to help you troubleshoot and try out new filters if needed.

Having the Mavic relatively flat during gimbal initialization is recommended,

Jeff

Based on my experience I would have to disagree with weight not being the issue. The added weight causes the gimbal to simulate an obstruction. Dji has it set so that when X-amount of force is being detected the gimbal stops,briefly resets, and attempts to continue in the commanded direction. Unfortunately, this issue will become even worse when in flight. The PolarPro Lens housing design could magnify things even that much more.

I would suggest that users 1st try doing a complete gimbal calibration with the PolarPro installed. If user's continue having trouble, there is two options remaining. It's very doubtful Dji would comply, but PolarPro could ask Dji to adjust the gimbal shut down sensitivity rate. The last option would consist of PolarPro redesigning the current Lens Housing to lighter and less bulky to improve it's aerodynamics.

I'm currently in the market for the polarized lenses. Since I download the logged flight data from each of the Mavic's flights, and analyze the data, I would be open to help PolarPro out. The data allows me to see the exact moment certain things take place, if needed.

PolarPro · Feb 8, 2017

flyNfrank said:
G

Based on my experience I would have to disagree with weight not being the issue. The added weight causes the gimbal to simulate an obstruction. Dji has it set so that when X-amount of force is being detected the gimbal stops,briefly resets, and attempts to continue in the commanded direction. Unfortunately, this issue will become even worse when in flight. The PolarPro Lens housing design could magnify things even that much more.
I would suggest that users 1st try doing a complete gimbal calibration with the PolarPro installed. If user's continue having trouble, there is two options remaining. It's very doubtful Dji would comply, but PolarPro could ask Dji to adjust the gimbal shut down sensitivity rate. The last option would consist of PolarPro redesigning the current Lens Housing to lighter and less bulky to improve it's aerodynamics.
I'm currently in the market for the polarized lenses. Since I download the logged flight data from each of the Mavic's flights, and analyze the data, I would be open to help PolarPro out. The data allows me to see the exact moment certain things take place, if needed.

Hi,
Weight is not the issue, it is a physical interference causing the gimbal to throw codes.
The Physical interference could be caused by manufacturing variances on both ends. The ND/PL filters are the only ones subject to this because they are slightly taller than the straight ND filters. For those few having issues, we are more than happy to send out replacement filters that work with their specific camera.

You will notice that no one is having these issues with the Straight ND's which have more clearance and are less subjective to manufacturing variances on the Mavic camera lens.

-Jeff