What do you guys use for shooting from the ground?

[Heindrich1988]

As somebody who got into drone videography before any serious interest in film making in general, I don't have any serious camera or gimbal equipment. However, I can't deny that drone footage often could use some accompanying shots from the ground. So, I am looking for a solution at a minimal cost...

I just realized that tomorrow is the "Double Eleven" retail holiday in China. DJI has a few discounts on their older products.

My obvious option seems to be between the Osmo Mobile 3 ($90) and the Osmo Pocket ($272).

My phone is a Huawei P20 Pro. It's a bit old now (from 2018), but it came with a very good camera capable of shooting 40M photos and 4K video, so I figure I can get decent ground footage with my phone and an Osmo Mobile 3?

The advantage of the Osmo Pocket would be convenience and portability... but if the above setup works for my requirements, is it worth spending three times the price?

Am I missing something obvious here?

Thanks

 

[RadioFlyerMan]

As somebody who got into drone videography before any serious interest in film making in general, I don't have any serious camera or gimbal equipment. However, I can't deny that drone footage often could use some accompanying shots from the ground. So, I am looking for a solution at a minimal cost...

I just realized that tomorrow is the "Double Eleven" retail holiday in China. DJI has a few discounts on their older products.

My obvious option seems to be between the Osmo Mobile 3 ($90) and the Osmo Pocket ($272).

My phone is a Huawei P20 Pro. It's a bit old now (from 2018), but it came with a very good camera capable of shooting 40M photos and 4K video, so I figure I can get decent ground footage with my phone and an Osmo Mobile 3?

The advantage of the Osmo Pocket would be convenience and portability... but if the above setup works for my requirements, is it worth spending three times the price?

Am I missing something obvious here?

Thanks

I agree with your point about ground shots. I use the Osmo 3 with my old iPhone 6s, shooting in 4k 30fps, consistent with shots from my MPP. Works great.

 

[Nonprophet]

I use an Osmo 3 with my Samsung S9+ and am very happy with the results. $90 new is a really good price

 

[Jack43]

Am I missing something obvious here?

Hello Heindrich,
Maybe you also need a camera with a larger zoom factor. That allows you to make interesting tele-lens shots, which are not doable with the Osmo Pocket or the Huawei. I t depend how much you will/can spend. For example the

NIKON Coolpix A 1000​

is really an allrounder camera for a resonable price. There is UHD 30p a very large zoom factor (35 x) It´s small and not too expensive! Maybe that in China the price is even lower than for ex. in Germany. Here the price is about 350Euro!
Such a camera would allow you the shoot great closeup videos! BTW, the camera has also a stabilizator!
I hope that helps!
cheers Paul

 

[Jack43]

However, I can't deny that drone footage often could use some accompanying shots from the ground. So, I am looking for a solution at a minimal cost...

Heindrich watch my video and you will see some groundshots, which I made with a Hero7, a Sony A6300 with lenses from 18mm to 1300mm and some of the groundshots are made with the Samsung GalaxyS8+ The aerial shots are made with the Mavic Mini
Here:

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[Johnmcl7]

I have an Osmo Mobile 3 and very pleased with it particularly the way it folds in half so it's a far more practical shape to carry compared to the previous version. It's quick and easy to set up and with using your phone it makes it convenient to upload the videos plus when you upgrade your phone you can still use the gimbal. One of the main weaknesses on my phone (Galaxy Note 9) is the audio isn't great although I've not seriously looked into using an external mic.

I have been toying with a Pocket 2 now it has the improved audio as it's impressively small (I hadn't realised just how small until I saw one in store) and it means it doesn't tie up my phone when shooting although it's a lot of money to justify.

I do have the DJI Ronin SC and a Sony A7SII but I often just end up using the Osmo Mobile 3 as the Ronin set up is too heavy and bulky to easily carry with another camera and the drone.

 

[Slade]

As somebody who got into drone videography before any serious interest in film making in general, I don't have any serious camera or gimbal equipment. However, I can't deny that drone footage often could use some accompanying shots from the ground. So, I am looking for a solution at a minimal cost...

I just realized that tomorrow is the "Double Eleven" retail holiday in China. DJI has a few discounts on their older products.

My obvious option seems to be between the Osmo Mobile 3 ($90) and the Osmo Pocket ($272).

My phone is a Huawei P20 Pro. It's a bit old now (from 2018), but it came with a very good camera capable of shooting 40M photos and 4K video, so I figure I can get decent ground footage with my phone and an Osmo Mobile 3?

The advantage of the Osmo Pocket would be convenience and portability... but if the above setup works for my requirements, is it worth spending three times the price?

Am I missing something obvious here?

Thanks

I like my AKASO. The Mavic Mini also works as a fantastic vlogging camera.

 

[DougMcC]

Heindrich watch my video and you will see some groundshots, which I made with a Hero7, a Sony A6300 with lenses from 18mm to 1300mm and some of the groundshots are made with the Samsung GalaxyS8+ The aerial shots are made with the Mavic Mini
Here:

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Now that’s a beautiful, peaceful video and music. I’m in Californnia and this started my day. Well done.

 

[SmilingOgre]

Heindrich watch my video and you will see some groundshots, which I made with a Hero7, a Sony A6300 with lenses from 18mm to 1300mm and some of the groundshots are made with the Samsung GalaxyS8+ The aerial shots are made with the Mavic Mini
Here:

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Absolutely gorgeous depiction of the area. Fabulous job of making your audience feel Intimate with the surroundings.

 

[SmilingOgre]

Can't help much regarding a low budget solution. I have a Hero Black 7 with a Karma gimbal and I can't get anything from the pair that I would call cinematic. My footage all looks selfy/blog esk. My primary ground cameras are a Panasonic UX90 and a Nikon Z6 with a Ronin RSC2 gimbal. On occasion I will use a Nikon D850 for use with longer lenses. I only have one Z mount lens and no F2Z converter. I have seen some wonderful footage here from the Ronin Pocket but I'm afraid in my hands it would be just like the GoPro.

 

[Photo Beaty]

The transitions were perfect. Very nicely done, thanks for posting.

 

[DaveS]

Osmo would be a great choice. If cost is a big concern, look for a use GoPro 6 or 7 will work, they are good stabilization and 4K that should match up pretty well with your Mavic. GoPros are small, easy to carry (even in your pocket) and there are tons of accessories, including extra batteries, available anywhere! I've been shooting video professionally my entire 45+ year career and I love what GoPro can do. However, the Insta 360 looks like a pretty good bet too now.

 

[Heindrich1988]

Thanks for all the input and advice guys!

I'm afraid I made my purchase before some of your later comments, though I got a really nice deal ($95) for an Osmo 3 combo thanks to further discounts on top of the advertised offer I saw yesterday, so no regrets really.

The pandemic has not been kind on my finances and I've already splurged quite a bit on my Air 2 FMC that started my whole journey into the hobby. So, I really was looking for the cheapest option possible. I'm not expecting professional looking footage out of my smartphone, but the Osmo 3 is a cheap price to learn the basics and add some "ground game" to my drone videos.

If I get serious about non-aerial videography/photography, I can always upgrade in the future and consider getting a dedicated camera and gimbal. That might depend on whether my girlfriend takes a liking to modelling for my camera(s), then spending more money on a camera setup won't just be my hobby.

 

[arcticfrost]

I’ve been using the Osmo Action for POV shots when trail riding. And most everything else I’ll use the EOS R or sometimes my iPhone. I did finally get the audio adapter for the Action to use the Rode VideoMicro and that works great for the vlog style.

Check out a few different vids on my channel:

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[Dbez1]

Heindrich watch my video and you will see some groundshots, which I made with a Hero7, a Sony A6300 with lenses from 18mm to 1300mm and some of the groundshots are made with the Samsung GalaxyS8+ The aerial shots are made with the Mavic Mini
Here:

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Very nicely done! I watched the whole way through. I’m just curious, did you brush the tree near the end?

 

[Dale D]

As somebody who got into drone videography before any serious interest in film making in general, I don't have any serious camera or gimbal equipment. However, I can't deny that drone footage often could use some accompanying shots from the ground. So, I am looking for a solution at a minimal cost...

I just realized that tomorrow is the "Double Eleven" retail holiday in China. DJI has a few discounts on their older products.

My obvious option seems to be between the Osmo Mobile 3 ($90) and the Osmo Pocket ($272).

My phone is a Huawei P20 Pro. It's a bit old now (from 2018), but it came with a very good camera capable of shooting 40M photos and 4K video, so I figure I can get decent ground footage with my phone and an Osmo Mobile 3?

The advantage of the Osmo Pocket would be convenience and portability... but if the above setup works for my requirements, is it worth spending three times the price?

Am I missing something obvious here?

Thanks

Hi Heindrich1988 my Xian friend!

As you have seen on numerous videos submitted to this forum, I incorporate multi-media stills and video in all of my films. Thus, I travel with the following at all times
Nikon D750 DSLR (2 bodies). both of these used for stills and timelapse sequences)
Nikkor 28-300mm f/3.6-5.6 zoom lenses
Mavic 2 Pro
Osmo Action
Osmo Pocket
Osmo Mobile
Apple iPhone X Pro Max used for stills and 4K video
Really Right Stuff tripod
Manfrotto tripod

I find the Osmo Mobile to be too wide angle for most uses and thus, tend to do most still photography with the DSLR
I find the Osmo Mobile very cumbersome
I find the Osmo Pocket hard to set up quickly

Mostly, I shoot out of my car- I try to set up near the truck of my car near the site I am going to photograph. If needed to leave the car for a small hike to the site, I carry a trolley (collapsible luggage cart) that I purchased at the Doha Airport. It hold two back packs- one for the drone and one for the camera gear.
Photography is a LOT OF WORK for me.

Dale
Miami

 

[Jack43]

Now that’s a beautiful, peaceful video and music. I’m in Californnia and this started my day. Well done.

Oh glad that you sterted the day with my video

The transitions were perfect. Very nicely done, thanks for posting.

Thank you very much Beaty

Thanks for all the input and advice guys!

You´r welcome Heindrich

Very nicely done! I watched the whole way through. I’m just curious, did you brush the tree near the end?

Hi all, thank you very much for the nice comments, glad to read that you liked my video Oh yeah, I brushed the tree but the mini didn´t crash, lucky me

 

[Nonprophet]

There's a good amount of Osmo 3 footage in this video I made (including some great hyperlapse IMHO), also used it to take some nice panos that are also in the video:

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[Tentoes]

I use an Osmo Action.