Jeff is a wise man and as a DP, I can tell you that everything he said is dead on.
When the time is right, you can addend all these things. As for auto vs, manual, one thing I want to mention is NEVER EVER EVER EVER shoot in AWB (Auto White Balance) mode. That is different than shooting in MANUAL vs AUTO mode and I just wanted to be clear because AWB is a mess. Shooting in auto is just fine. Difference. There are some who I will remain nameless on YouTube who tell you this is the way to get the shot you want to look the most cinematic which for about 50 reasons makes no sense.
If you are a photographer, you know why you wouldn't use it. I don't even know why it exists. One of the easiest things to correct in post is white balance but obviously you don't want to do as much color temperature change as you have to (temperature is what some post apps/software call white balance).
Color is real easy to get right and that is because if you have a perfect white or perfect black you can set all the temperatures to their right balance. You only need one right color to get all the others correct. If you set it to AWB and let's say you are heading to the sun and then you turn toward a bunch of buildings the camera will automatically change the color temperature to match that of the changing sun. In fact, the worst type of camera to have AWB on is a UAS because this happens often. Now if you have multiple color temperatures, the method I just gave you to change the color to the correct ones with a click just became impossible for all intents and purposes (or you would have to keyframe the changes which is literally almost impossible to do correctly and have it look right). You should either pick one of the presets like (sunny, cloudy) or whatever they are but the best method is to choose custom and push it to whatever it is closer to that day or WHAT YOU WANT IT TO BE. So if it's bright out (that is a K (Kelvin) color close to blue and you should push it closer red if it's less bright).
Photographers call blue "cool" and red "warm". Blue being brighter and red being darker.
AWB is never the way to go.
In the style white balance menu you should NEVER choose AWB and you are okay if you choose a close one with the style because all it will do is pick a custom color for you based on a word but once you have an idea, you should go to custom and push the Kelvin "K" to what is closest to your scenario.
PICK "Custom" and choose and Kelvin temperature. If you are unsure, put it in the middle and then WB in post. PM me if I made this simple process sound harder than it is but its crucial if you take one thing from this that you don't choose AWB (even when it is working as its supposed to, yo still see dramatic shifts in color temp that look horrible).
Cloudy for example would be Custom pushed closer to red. Sunny would be the opposite. Play around with "Custom" and figure out how to do it properly.
After that, I will start telling you my thoughts on how to manually get the other best settings, but this is the first thing you can start with and one of the important ones.
Next we will talk about the sensors and what ISO does and how it plays with the filters and the shutter speed and how all 3 work together. Usually its aperture, ISO, and shutter speed to get your desired effect but because we have a locked iris, we essentially "Step Up" or "Step Down" our "F-Stop" the amount our iris is open using these filters. We use polarizers to remove glare and reflection but to an effect, not complete removal.
Also, we want to learn how to make it look cinematic by ADDING what is called motion blur. That is what the 180 rule does in effect. It makes the camera look less PERFECTLY sharp and more like it would in film. Wave your hands in front of your face as fast as you can. You see blur right?
Well thats what we want, when we are shooting for cinematic effect. If we want the "Soap Opera" effect, we use different methods.
I am going to make a lot more tutorials in the coming months that will work for all the locked IRIS DJI products including the Mavic, Phantoms, and X3 Inspires, Phantom 3, etc.
SAFE FLYING!
And thanks Jeff. He is a true asset around here.
A little frustrated. So I spent 150 to get the cinematic series 6pk. I'm thinking this should help me out to get best picture.
I was instructed to use the PolarPro APP to have it calculate which lens it would need for best picture. And I did use it....
The app suggested CP lens. Well guess what "that one" isn't one of the 6 lens. I also don't see an option to buy it alone. They want another 50 more to get the CP Lens that comes with 2 other lens which ND8 and ND16 which I already have.
The UV Filter Lens is sold separately... Why isn't the CP Lens sold separately?
Soooo what is the point of using this APP when I can't see which would be the best option from the lens I have. Sorry but I'm not made out of money to just buy every lens out there.
Why can't you make an option in your APP that will allow you to choose which lens you have and then app can suggest best lens from the ones I own.
I'M NEW AT THIS AND LEARNING... Sooooo if I don't have CP lens which of the 6 should I use from this cinema series set. The app sure as heck isn't suggesting any of the 6 I own.
Do I even really need these CP lens?
Thanks...
Mike
I was instructed to use the PolarPro APP to have it calculate which lens it would need for best picture. And I did use it....
The app suggested CP lens. Well guess what "that one" isn't one of the 6 lens. I also don't see an option to buy it alone. They want another 50 more to get the CP Lens that comes with 2 other lens which ND8 and ND16 which I already have.
The UV Filter Lens is sold separately... Why isn't the CP Lens sold separately?
Soooo what is the point of using this APP when I can't see which would be the best option from the lens I have. Sorry but I'm not made out of money to just buy every lens out there.
Why can't you make an option in your APP that will allow you to choose which lens you have and then app can suggest best lens from the ones I own.
I'M NEW AT THIS AND LEARNING... Sooooo if I don't have CP lens which of the 6 should I use from this cinema series set. The app sure as heck isn't suggesting any of the 6 I own.
Do I even really need these CP lens?
Thanks...
Mike
Are there other lens the APP will suggest besides the CP Lens that I don't have. I personally don't have money to buy every lens out there. It was hard enough to get the 6 Pack of the cinema series and the mavic.
I don't want to sound dependent on the APP but as a beginner it will help me understand better what lens to use. Sometimes I'm very limited on time to get the drone up for some quick footage.
I can't stress enough for the app to have an option to select what lens you own so it can suggest the best option that you have available. Or maybe list 2.... The recommended lens (owned or not) and the closest one from the lens you do have. That way be able to purchase those lens you don't have down the road when you have the funds to get them.
Atleast I wouldn't ruin my footage too bad. I ended up shooting the footage the other day without lens because I didn't have CP lens and I didn't know what would be best suited from the ones I own. My footage ended up having a lot of haze in it being so cloudy and I was really frustrated. I was able to touch some of it up with software but again... I'm still learning.
Hope they can do an update and add some of these options to the app. I've seen what the lens can do and I'm excited about using them more. It just doesn't help me as a noob in selecting when I don't own that particular lens.
Mike
I don't want to sound dependent on the APP but as a beginner it will help me understand better what lens to use. Sometimes I'm very limited on time to get the drone up for some quick footage.
I can't stress enough for the app to have an option to select what lens you own so it can suggest the best option that you have available. Or maybe list 2.... The recommended lens (owned or not) and the closest one from the lens you do have. That way be able to purchase those lens you don't have down the road when you have the funds to get them.
Atleast I wouldn't ruin my footage too bad. I ended up shooting the footage the other day without lens because I didn't have CP lens and I didn't know what would be best suited from the ones I own. My footage ended up having a lot of haze in it being so cloudy and I was really frustrated. I was able to touch some of it up with software but again... I'm still learning.
Hope they can do an update and add some of these options to the app. I've seen what the lens can do and I'm excited about using them more. It just doesn't help me as a noob in selecting when I don't own that particular lens.
Mike
Last edited:
to be honest you really don't need the app. depending on the effect you are trying to achieve you can use different filters. if you bought the vivid series they are polarized i believe. so you can pop those on play with the settings and achieve great results.
There are a couple of in depth videos on youtube that can help you out achieve the desired result you are looking for.
So to answer your question you dont need every filter under the sun to get great results.
I have the cinema series:
Vivid and Shutter
And couldn't be happier with them. at some point down the road I may end up getting filters I don't have at the moment but i'm still learning what works with what.
For instance today is a really bright sunny day and popped on a polarized nd16 from the vivid collection to find it was not enough for what i was trying to accomplish, so I pulled out the non polarized nd32 filter from the shutter collection and it was perfect. I had to adjust a couple of other setting and worked fine even though it was not polarized. Reflections were not an issue since I wasn't aggressive angle that would make that particular issue a problem.
I hope this helps some. The magic is going to happen when you are editing, filters and camera hoods help make it a bit easier to address while editing.
Good Luck and don't give up, I'm learning a ton and in a hurry as well. Once you find your niche on what you like you will be changing filters, messing with settings and take more daring shots and video in no time.
There are a couple of in depth videos on youtube that can help you out achieve the desired result you are looking for.
So to answer your question you dont need every filter under the sun to get great results.
I have the cinema series:
Vivid and Shutter
And couldn't be happier with them. at some point down the road I may end up getting filters I don't have at the moment but i'm still learning what works with what.
For instance today is a really bright sunny day and popped on a polarized nd16 from the vivid collection to find it was not enough for what i was trying to accomplish, so I pulled out the non polarized nd32 filter from the shutter collection and it was perfect. I had to adjust a couple of other setting and worked fine even though it was not polarized. Reflections were not an issue since I wasn't aggressive angle that would make that particular issue a problem.
I hope this helps some. The magic is going to happen when you are editing, filters and camera hoods help make it a bit easier to address while editing.
Good Luck and don't give up, I'm learning a ton and in a hurry as well. Once you find your niche on what you like you will be changing filters, messing with settings and take more daring shots and video in no time.
another thing is since these filters are tiny, well small make sure you CLEAN CLEAN CLEAN. any smudge will deteriorate image quality. I go a little overboard and use a nitrile glove to attach and detach my filters since I don't want fingerprints. It is not necessary, but it is an extra precaution I take.
Like I posted above just play around with them and you will figure it out. If you haven't tried already before you attach your vivid collection lenses rotate them in front of your phone or tablet screen to get the desired polarized effect before attaching to the mavic.
Like I posted above just play around with them and you will figure it out. If you haven't tried already before you attach your vivid collection lenses rotate them in front of your phone or tablet screen to get the desired polarized effect before attaching to the mavic.
Rotate? Do they change by rotating the lens? That makes it even more confusing. So there is different options with just one lens by rotating?
My pleasure. I am making another on specifically for the Mavic in a few days. Waiting for the filters right now. Cheers for the kudos.
Just wanted to give an update.....
Inquired about the CP Lens with PolarPro reference my 6 Pack Cinema Series. I didn't want to spend another $50 just to get the CP Lens and have duplicates of the other 2 lens included since it is not sold separately. I recieved the following response.....
Hi Michael,
Thank you for contacting us.
The ND4/PL is nearly identical to a CP filter.
A CP reduces a camera's shutter speed by 1.6 F-stops, and an ND4/PL reduces by 2 F-stops.
You can essentially treat your ND4/PL as a CP if the app is recommending one.
Hope this helps!
Thanks Michael.
Dan
Just wanted to share this in case anyone else has similar experience and is new at this like me. I'm still trying to understand when I need them to improve my video footage.
Mike
Inquired about the CP Lens with PolarPro reference my 6 Pack Cinema Series. I didn't want to spend another $50 just to get the CP Lens and have duplicates of the other 2 lens included since it is not sold separately. I recieved the following response.....
Hi Michael,
Thank you for contacting us.
The ND4/PL is nearly identical to a CP filter.
A CP reduces a camera's shutter speed by 1.6 F-stops, and an ND4/PL reduces by 2 F-stops.
You can essentially treat your ND4/PL as a CP if the app is recommending one.
Hope this helps!
Thanks Michael.
Dan
Just wanted to share this in case anyone else has similar experience and is new at this like me. I'm still trying to understand when I need them to improve my video footage.
Mike
RobP62
Well-Known Member
Hi Jeff,
I have a lot of questions so sorry for the lengthy post. I've read enough posts of yours to trust and respect all your answers. It's nice to know you're a asset to the community wether the outcome is beneficial to PolarPro or not. So thanks in advance.
First and foremost, based on what I've quoted above, can you tell us new owners of the Mavic how to determine if we have old stock or new so we get the correct diameter filters? I picked mine up at a Best Buy on the east coast on the 30th last month. Received the "in stock" notice and picked it up.
So I watched the filter installation instruction video in this thread. That was great information. The PolarPro I saw in that went on very easy. It came off just as easy too. No joke, I'm a big guy with sausage sized fingers, and generally a bull in a China shop most of the time. With the gimbal being as delicate as it is I'm super concerned about using filters at all and almost willing to sacrifice better vid results rather than damage something. Trying to force the wrong size filter and damaging it would devastate me being I've only flown it three times due to limited time and weather. Not to mention the grief I'll receive from my accountant [read wife]. I do feel however after watching the vid even I could pull it off with the correct size filter.
Also, I read on another thread here that there is a "limited edition" set of filters in the works. Are you at liberty to elaborate on that? I'm not opposed to pay a higher premium for better quality. Experts will say more than three or four filters are a waste of money. I'm more of a boy scout in that I believe its always better to be over prepared. If I can, I would prefer to wait for a set that has more than I may ever need. Because that one time I wished I had it and didn't would cause regret. I'm too old for regrets now.
Does PolarPro ever run any sales? Yea, I wish the Mav didn't need filters but we all know they help the camera on it. We all know this is not a P4P. I've accepted that. If I didn't want the incredible portability the Mav offers I would not be typing this. The initial cost is tough enough but all the additional accessories are really adding up quick.......
I also saw a post by you stating we can order single filters if we wanted. How's the price comparison on that? I'm not an expert photographer/videographer and prefer to just have fun and let my artistic instincts take over. Of course I pay the price for that most of the time so I'm going to download the filter selection app to help me to learn to be better. Again, I'm not opposed to having whatever it takes to always be prepared for any subject or lighting situation but if I could have the best of the best in a minimal package to keep things as portable as possible, that would be preferred.
I'm also interested in some other PolarPro products so I'm also wondering about package discounts if that's a possibility?
Anyway......thanks again for your time.
Rob
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We stopped shipping version 1 in November 2016, BestBuy has only received the new versions. If you are having trouble you can reach out to [email protected] and our support team would be happy to assist you.
We also have the Cinema Series filters for the Mavic. These use a higher grade glass, and are also multi-coated with Anti-Reflective coatings to help reduce lens flaring.
Generally we run one sale a year, on black friday, that one is a ways away
We do have some bundles in the works, you will see them popping up on our site over the next few months. Single filters are always available, for pricing and availability please email [email protected]
Hope that answered all of your questions!
-Jeff from PolarPro
Just tried the Polar App and disappointed it doesn't seem to work on the S6 edge, no matter what settings are entered, there is never a filter recommendation.
Also seems to be a nightmare to actually select anything in the interface........
Also seems to be a nightmare to actually select anything in the interface........
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Here is a great video on how to use the app, it will explain in detail how to use it properly:
If you are just plugging in random numbers to "test" the app try raising the shutter speed past 1/500th if you want the numbers to move.
-Jeff from PolarPro
Hi Jeff,
thanks for the video, really useful and confirmed I wasn't doing anything wrong.
The issue for me is being able to select the elements, so for example:
The device is a Samsung S6 Edge (SM-G925F) Currently running Android 6.0.1
Incidentally, I have also tested this on my Nexus 7 (2013) running Android 6.01 and its exactly the same, only way to select an option, is to dial it in, then click on an empty part of the screen.
If it helps, I will try and video it tomorrow whilst at work.
Oh final bit, makes no difference whether I use portrait or landscape mode.
Sorry to be a pain.
thanks for the video, really useful and confirmed I wasn't doing anything wrong.
The issue for me is being able to select the elements, so for example:
- I hit shutter speed and scroll to 1/1600 - as in the video, if I then tap that window, nothing happens. In order for me to set that speed in, I need to tap elsewhere on the screen, for example, either on another option, or on a blank part of the screen.
The device is a Samsung S6 Edge (SM-G925F) Currently running Android 6.0.1
Incidentally, I have also tested this on my Nexus 7 (2013) running Android 6.01 and its exactly the same, only way to select an option, is to dial it in, then click on an empty part of the screen.
If it helps, I will try and video it tomorrow whilst at work.
Oh final bit, makes no difference whether I use portrait or landscape mode.
Sorry to be a pain.
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It auto-updates, so before you click the calculate button it auto-calculates for you.
This is something we are changing in the next version because it is confusing a lot of people.
-Jeff
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