Great video. I have been using ND's on the drone for a long time, but never really understood how they improved the clips. The example with the fence summed it up for me. 👍🏻
Thanks Gary. Finally shooting something where I could see a difference helped me too! The fence made the difference for sure! It really is subtle, but I like the smooth motion blur that it gives in the foreground. If you're not doing close flybys though... maybe not a big deal.
I'm surprised you haven't spoke about fps. Filter allows you to match the shutter speed with your fps to get that cinematic feel (24fps, 1/50th second, 60fps 1/125th second, etc...), it's not just about blurring the image :)
You know - I hear that reasoning, but to be honest, I'm not sure I advocate that filmmaking "rule." That's partly why I didn't bring it up. I didn't want to perpetuate a "rule" that I've never really been able to see much of a difference in as I shoot. Plus, I think that "rule" is based on something that is quickly changing. But, you're right in bringing it up as an important reason why many people advocate the filters!
You say that but in the video the only reason the clip looked blurred was because it followed this rule. ND filters allow someone to follow this rule and get what has been coined the cinematic look. However other people can be a fan of the crisp look so yes it shouldn't be a "rule" that one must follow rather a guide to how to get it too look good. lol I'm a fan of the blur. Great video btw.
Not sure I understand. The biggest reason is because when shooting video, you can’t fluctuate the shutter. 30fps requires 60 shutter. But without an Nd in the sun, it gets blown out. Thats why I throw on a filter.
Your demonstration with foreground of a fence really good to demonstrate the difference of the extent of motion blur with and without ND filters. Thanks indeed!
I bought polarpro polarised ND 4,8 & 16 filters for my autel X-star apart from being hesitant to adjust the polariser by rotating it when the gimbal is active, they work a treat. We are finally starting to get some great weather in Australia so I look forward to shooting tons of aerial footage. Also I bought an adjustable 82mm ND filter for my 6D & Tamron 24-70mm which ranges from Nd2 to N400 for some cinematic looking video from my DSLR. Cinematic video is the way to go! Also don't forget to take aerial long exposures with your ND filters. I'm sure you see lots of spectacular waterfalls in your line of work...
Finally..... a clip thatsimplified everything in a nicely timed video.....sorry 'clip'....some people out there may not understand 'video'...my bad. I would love to see some more of your works. This was very easy to understand and stick with...I thank you.
Your fence example was great. Something else about high shutter speeds is that with some drones, and in some situations it can cause a flicker. The flicker is effectively eliminated with an ND. A PL is nice too in those cases where you'd like to see something through a reflective surface, or maybe just improve your skys (not that I have had too much issue with doing that in post, although it's nice when it's there already).
On my Spark, I've been very pleased with Cinema Series ND/PL filer pack frokm Polarpro. These newer variations snap on easy and don't affect the gimbal motors like the first version did. The pack has ND4/PL, ND8/PL, and ND16/PL (my goto ND filter for video). I use these primarily for video, especially video with cinematic panning shots. By reducing the light hitting the sensor, that Sony sensor is forced to keep the shutter open longer to get exposure. This helps to add a level of "blur" to moviing objects. Without these, I would have to crank up the frame rate to 60fps or more, which would loose the cinematic look we go for on 24fps...
Thank you. I have been trying to figure out the filter situation on my drone for months. And you showed me how and why they are important to use. It reminds me of watching movies that were shot on film when I was a kid. These filters enable you to replicate that cinematic look and feel from Hollywood's big mechanical camera days. But now I can achieve this magical look with my drone. Hey thank you brother for sharing.
Thanks for sharing this. I have just bought myself some filters (haven't tried them out yet, bloody English weather). I am excited to start taking my video capture skills to the next level. It's fun to see the capturing progress alongside the editing. It's amazing to see how with consistent practice, my videos are getting better and better. Your footage looks great, and thanks for the tips. I can imagine a lot of people find them really useful, just like I do 💪
Its so true that many people find it hard to understand what nd filters do. Especially those who just dont get into the technical aspects of camers. This video though is the best I've seen. Anybody will grasp the understanding of what they do after this video!!!!! Thanks for sharing!!
"more videos more often" YYYYYEEEEAAAHHHHSSSSS .. can't wait to get inspired again and pick up my projects with new things ive learned through this channel. I am still going through old videos as well just to give myself assignments to make some of the ways to shoot something more second nature.
Thank you for your informative video tutorials. I worked in film/tv but felt overwhelmed and intimidated with learning new material.Please keep up all of your hard work- it is truly appreciated.
Hey, thanks for that nice comment. I understand why you'd be intimidated. Often many of the folks on film/tv shoots are tech geeks and they can make it all feel very difficult. Truth is, it's not as difficult as they make it out to be. You can get really caught up in the intricacies if you're not careful!
Best explanation of how/why ND filters help with footage on a drone that I've seen so far. Great explanation of how shutter speed impacts video, and the demonstration with the fence, while very simplistic and maybe not a great composition (as you pointed out) was a perfect way to demonstrate the difference between using an ND and not. Other videos I've seen have shown clarity/color differences (I think they were confusing a CPL with an ND), which didn't make sense to me. Great job with the explanation, thanks!
Well done video, but more information regarding camera settings would have been helpful. Therefore, from a technical standpoint ND (Neutral Density = will not alter observed colors) filters will allow more or less light to reach the camera’s sensor, which allows for changes to the exposure settings given the same lighting conditions! A slower shutter speed allows the same number of photons to reach the sensor as will a faster shutter speed when a wider camera aperture is used, this is called exposure. You can over or under expose the sensor or film which will affect the final picture grain or pixilation. A slower shutter speed can introduce motion blur while a faster shutter speed can freeze a moving subject (thus the fence effect in the video above). A still picture of a distant building taken with an ND 32 filter will look exactly like that taken with an ND 4 filter (as noted above) if the exposures are the same, i.e. the aperture or shutter speed or ISO is changed to accomplish equal exposure (same number of photons) and if the camera stable or mounted on a tripod. If the shutter speed remains constant, exposure can be increased or decreased by changing the camera’s aperture (or opening). As you increase the aperture number you are decreasing the lens opening and the amount of light that reaches the sensor or film. This also increases the depth of field. As you decrease the aperture number, your depth of field decreases, and close or distant objects may become out of focus. When using a camera in manual mode under the same lighting conditions, you can change shutter speed, aperture, ISO (film speed), and exposure compensation, and when combined with ND filters, you can get additional various artistic effects. ISO or exposure compensation (changes sensor sensitivity and exposure), shutter speed - motion (changes exposure and blur/sharpness), and aperture - changes exposure and depth of field to wide or narrow.
You could keep it at 1/50th shutter speed at 24fps and drop the aperture to f14, right? I've never used drones before, so I don't know much but I think its reasonable to assume that no one needs to shoot at f2.8 as on the mavic 2 pro in broad daylight- especially if what you're doing is high shots, I'm gonna get a drone very soon but I think I'd do most of the ground shots on my x-t3 and ronin. Maybe if I wanted to track someone or something on a cliff maybe then I'd need to keep the aperture low like f4 or f2.8? Please let me know!
From a technical standpoint: Having a lower shutter speed allows the sensor capture light information more accurately because the information transmitted by the light is exposed to the sensor for longer. You will get more colors, more detail and better dynamic range. The theory behind blur is that your subject is generally your axis point meaning that everything around it is subject to movement. Its a way to draw your audience away from unnecessary detail by in effect removing it from the shot. Bokeh (Blurry background and foreground) is used fro the same effect.
I was in Cyprus some months ago, 32 ℃ with clear blue sky. Unfortunately I filmed the coast with no nd filter and when I checked the footage on my computer the sea looked like a blue sandpaper
Actually aperture does matte too. Most drone camera's (maybe even all of them) have a sweet spot for the best sharpness. Sometimes you need to tone down the light to get the best sharpness and the right shutter speed for a natural motion blur...
4:00 When you fly past the castle the biggest difference between no ND filter and open shutter with ND is that jitter look. The castle is a perfect example. Jitter is because no motion blur simulates the passing of movement. You will see a lot of epic drone shots on YT that have jitter. That's because they either have default on or are using the wrong ND filter with incorrect shutter. However. Its not wrong if that's the look you want. Its all about taste. Thank you for the video was great to see a nice explanation.
So what filter should you use if you like the crisp video without the added blur, but still want to increase the saturation/color like an nd filter does??!
Great explanation mate. I've been shooting still photography for years and use ND filters a lot and could never understand the link with video and why you would want the slower shutter speed, great way of explaining it 👍
I'm getting jittery video without filters. I only notice it in fast movement - either close to the ground or while turning. And it looks bad, like the computer is buffering. And I see it in your castle shot and fence shot, but disappears in the filtered videos. So thanks for your guide - I've ordered some filters. Hoping the filters will reduce the number of clips I throw away for being jittery.
You use ND filters on DSLRs to keep your shutter speed at double your frame rate to avoid “rolling shutters” when shooting video or to get long exposure times during the day to soften water/clouds. Do DJI cameras not suffer from rolling shutters since I assume the mechanism is different? If they do that would, in my opinion, be the primary reason for using them. Thanks for the video! Been missing your stuff.
James as Adrian said, rolling shutter is something else, that can't so easily be helped. Keeping your shutter at double the frame rate will increase motion blur (which can sometimes slightly reduce how noticeable rolling shutter is), but it's usually used to create cinematic motion blur.
7 ปีที่แล้ว
Seeing all the TH-cam videos about the importance of ND filters I thought I was crazy thinking some shots with my drone look better without an ND filter, all makes sence now... Best drone/ND filter video I've seen, thank you very much!! I subscribed of course!
The product shows polarization. I've learned light spins a few different ways. Might not have to with exposure. It might not be darker, just different light. Or less light. To test it, keep a boat on the water in the center of the frame with a camera directly above it then twist the frame so north at the top then east at the top to south then west at the top of the frame.
So I did many tests with the polarizer and had a few interesting results. 1. I found it pretty difficult to get it adjusted just right (probably not sandmarc, just the fact that it's hard to adjust it while on a moving drone before you take off). 2. When done right, it provides ok results - not fantastic, but a tad better than the normal image. 3. The benefits don't necessarily outweigh the problems in that it often reflects light into my sensor when shooting into the sun, creating a rainbow pattern. Thus, I stopped using the polarizer when I fly.
Hi, some precision i read on internet and book For have a nice "cinematic style" with drone or Dslr, you need to follow this : Fps * 2 = shutter speed 24/25 fps * 2 = 48/50 so 1/50s 30 fps * 2 = 60 so 1/60s etc etc etc With this you have the best shutters speed like cinema camera. ( sorry for my bad english )
EXCELLENT! I thought seing those filters: hey wait, playing contrast, colors and other options, is doable under Premiere Pro.... but NOW, with YOUR explanation, I understood the sense out of it, THNX for your clear explanation!!!! Cheers
Keywords to research : shutter angle and motion blur. Although, in a lot of cases where you want to speed up the footage from smaller drones like Phantom and Mavic, you actually want to shoot crisp and add motion blur in post to make sure it simulates the motion blur from the new movement speed.
If you're planning to speed up the footage shooting without motion blur before post is a bit moot, and it might even introduce jitter, or in some cases flicker.
The castle image looks great but I personally think ND16 brings too much blur. Maybe personal preference but I like ND8 for most shooting. For my shoots I like to gets my shutter around 120 most of the time no matter shooting 24, 30, or sometimes 60p for drone shooting. I like the blur amount around the 120 range. From their I find its perfect or you can add blur, or slow it down without loss of impactpuliness of image.
I am shooting Mavic drone video Rob & Jonas but on sunny days because I go through a large direction change I often have some part of the video clip over-exposed. This usually results in a ruined video clip as when I post correct by reducing the exposure it leaves the other part of the clip too under-exposed. Would ND filters circumvent this problem?
I think its about the 180 degree angle where you double your shutter speed with your fps so if you shoot at 25 fps you should use 1/50th shutter speed to get the cinematic blur. nd filter helps reduce light and with using flat profile you can have more dynamic range adding more color in post production. Nd16 is like 3stops of a light i think hehe. coz if you shoot at f2 then u go 2 stops thats nd8 if you go 1 another stop that nd16. so in this video ur lowering the light for 3 stops in f2 if its a drone.
Can't find any video about which filter is appropriate for flying into direct sun (light)...for example flying over the sealine of a beach facing the sun. Should I buy and use a 32 or 64 or should a 4/8/16PL suit this occassion? Or else would/could the 16PL make the 32(PL) redundant?
I think the 16 would probably be ok, but if you wanted to go really dark - sure, the 32 and the 64 would work too. The 16 is nice because you can fly it with it on most of the time. Those other two you'd have to take off to get other shots. - Rob
@ 4:00 the tree at the right of the castle @ 4:08 the tree at left to the castle Why don't you shot video in same direction ? (we want to see if there any color differ surrounding with nd filter)
Well. In retrospect. Would have been nice. I was on production shooting my new series for Science channel though and since they weren't paying me to shoot tutorials for youtube, I only had a few minutes to play around. I had mostly pretend like I was getting the shots the needed and doing is several times over and over again just wasn't an option. Again, in retrospect it would have been a good idea. - R
I use the Polar Pro cinematic filters with my Mavic Pro. As the camera on the mavic is a fixed aperture you can only control the ISO and shutter speed. I use the ND filters to try to follow the 180 degree rule i.e. shutter speed should be double the video frame rate in order to give the said motion blur shown in this video. It works really well, when shooting on a clear day above snow or a ‘white sanded’ beach I sometime have to use an ND32 filter! So yes you definitely need ND filters for your drone if you want to achieve more professional / cinematic feel to your shots!
Nicely explained. So what is the difference between the regular ND and polarized ND. I will be vlogging, taking aerial shots of hikes, forests, oceans, also some shots following me on my runs... Not sure whether I need both, or can get by with just one type.
No mention of the 180 degree shutter rule? You did mention using a 1/30th of a second shutter speed, which to anyone videographer would automatically assume that means your fps is 15 (based on that rule), which would look terrible and no camera I know even shoots at that fps. Perhaps that was to exaggerate and illustrate the point? ND filters are less of a "use them if you want to, totally up to you" kind of thing, and more of a necessity if you want professional footage. Doesn't make a difference using a drone compared to dslrs, with the exception of using wider apertures on dslrs more often.
Oooh. That would have been a good idea. I just crashed that drone (well, Jonas did actually). I'm not sure how the auto settings would change. I'm guessing you could manually control the shutter speed better if you WANTED a lot of blur. I'm sure DJI's auto settings would ramp up the ISO a bit to make sure it wasn't super blurry as you flew. Not sure though. If you do a test, let me know. I'm curious. - R
some drones like the mavic air 2 have a fixed aperture, you need ND filters because they act as sunglasses since you can change how much light comes into you camera
Great video! But why don't people talk about the color temperature change when you add a ND filter to a drone? I just bought a ND filter kit for my Air and got the same 'warmer' result you got at 3:45, as compared to 3:25. I know you can correct in post, but it is a pain, right? ;-)
Didn't think to talk about it. You may be right about the color temperature change, although I can't exactly think of a good explanation as to why that might happen.
6 ปีที่แล้ว
Sorry, did not mean to say you lacked this explanation, just that I've read so much about nd filters for drones, and no one seems to worry about it, and when I finally bought mine it does change a lot the WB. I would say most of them are made of a brownish glass, thus bringing this warmer tone to the footage. Thanks for answering and keep up with the great work!
Interesting and thanks for your comment. I'm going to look into this in any case.
4 ปีที่แล้ว
@@robnelsonfilms Hi, just to let you know, after 2 years, I'm still angry at the brownish tones I get both on my Mavic Air 1 and my Osmo Pocket, with different brands ND filters. The images are really hard to get a perfect wb in post. I am considering go back to shooting everything WITHOUT an ND filter. Cheers from Rio!
I use ND4, that's enough for me here in Sweden, running on Phantom 3 Pro, the difference with or without ND was bigger on this drone, I have been looking at Mavic 2 Pro, w'll see how it looks without there, well that's another story with a quite different camera, I guess. Good video though.
I found a problem which I believe many call the "jello effect".... using ND filters seems to counteract this as I believe (93% sure... ;) ) that the jello effect (wavy lines in video) is to do with a gimbal's operating frequency and the cameras shutter speed. The higher the speed of shutter (bright conditions) the more likelyhood of the jello effect. Anyway, wether my understanding is spot on or not, use of ND filters has made a difference..... if there is other advantages as mentioned in this YT video then a bonus :)
hi great video i have used them once found the video on my Samsung g 7 to dark ,question what other settings should i do in my pro 3 if i use ND 8 or ND 16 i mean in e video settings should it be on auto or none sunny or cloudy for example what the best over all settings where i can leave it basically without having to change it all the time or is that no possible any advice would be welcome
When you buy the filters you get the specifically for the model of drone you have. To be honest, I'm not sure if they changed threads between the 3 and the 4. I'd assume so. But, they do make all sorts of filters, so they would have the one you need.
Hello, I am new to ND filters and your youtube is an excellent source of martial, Please let me know what you use for post production. I am also running a MAC and just getting started here. Thankyou, Mike.
Just depends how much blur you want. Even at the smallest apertures, sometimes your shutterspeed is still too high to get descent motion blur. Again, it's personal preference and only really important if you're shooting low to the ground.
My Mavic Air shoots beautifully in 4k 120fps. But the image was too bright and washed out. I could not set low enough to correct it. That's what made me realize I needed filters. Problem solved. My shots now are rich and colorful, and buttery smooth in slow motion.
so far best nd filter explanation i've seen.
Thanks.
Adelaide Above I’ve seen this exact comment on damn near every ND explanation by content creators.
Agreed.... and the fence example really surprised me. Thanks for making this video!! :)
Great video. I have been using ND's on the drone for a long time, but never really understood how they improved the clips. The example with the fence summed it up for me. 👍🏻
Thanks Gary. Finally shooting something where I could see a difference helped me too! The fence made the difference for sure! It really is subtle, but I like the smooth motion blur that it gives in the foreground. If you're not doing close flybys though... maybe not a big deal.
I'm surprised you haven't spoke about fps. Filter allows you to match the shutter speed with your fps to get that cinematic feel (24fps, 1/50th second, 60fps 1/125th second, etc...), it's not just about blurring the image :)
True
You know - I hear that reasoning, but to be honest, I'm not sure I advocate that filmmaking "rule." That's partly why I didn't bring it up. I didn't want to perpetuate a "rule" that I've never really been able to see much of a difference in as I shoot. Plus, I think that "rule" is based on something that is quickly changing. But, you're right in bringing it up as an important reason why many people advocate the filters!
it's actually is about fps.
You say that but in the video the only reason the clip looked blurred was because it followed this rule. ND filters allow someone to follow this rule and get what has been coined the cinematic look. However other people can be a fan of the crisp look so yes it shouldn't be a "rule" that one must follow rather a guide to how to get it too look good. lol I'm a fan of the blur. Great video btw.
Not sure I understand. The biggest reason is because when shooting video, you can’t fluctuate the shutter. 30fps requires 60 shutter. But without an Nd in the sun, it gets blown out. Thats why I throw on a filter.
Your demonstration with foreground of a fence really good to demonstrate the difference of the extent of motion blur with and without ND filters. Thanks indeed!
I bought polarpro polarised ND 4,8 & 16 filters for my autel X-star apart from being hesitant to adjust the polariser by rotating it when the gimbal is active, they work a treat. We are finally starting to get some great weather in Australia so I look forward to shooting tons of aerial footage. Also I bought an adjustable 82mm ND filter for my 6D & Tamron 24-70mm which ranges from Nd2 to N400 for some cinematic looking video from my DSLR. Cinematic video is the way to go! Also don't forget to take aerial long exposures with your ND filters. I'm sure you see lots of spectacular waterfalls in your line of work...
Finally..... a clip thatsimplified everything in a nicely timed video.....sorry 'clip'....some people out there may not understand 'video'...my bad.
I would love to see some more of your works. This was very easy to understand and stick with...I thank you.
Your fence example was great. Something else about high shutter speeds is that with some drones, and in some situations it can cause a flicker. The flicker is effectively eliminated with an ND. A PL is nice too in those cases where you'd like to see something through a reflective surface, or maybe just improve your skys (not that I have had too much issue with doing that in post, although it's nice when it's there already).
On my Spark, I've been very pleased with Cinema Series ND/PL filer pack frokm Polarpro. These newer variations snap on easy and don't affect the gimbal motors like the first version did. The pack has ND4/PL, ND8/PL, and ND16/PL (my goto ND filter for video).
I use these primarily for video, especially video with cinematic panning shots. By reducing the light hitting the sensor, that Sony sensor is forced to keep the shutter open longer to get exposure. This helps to add a level of "blur" to moviing objects. Without these, I would have to crank up the frame rate to 60fps or more, which would loose the cinematic look we go for on 24fps...
Thank you. I have been trying to figure out the filter situation on my drone for months. And you showed me how and why they are important to use. It reminds me of watching movies that were shot on film when I was a kid. These filters enable you to replicate that cinematic look and feel from Hollywood's big mechanical camera days. But now I can achieve this magical look with my drone. Hey thank you brother for sharing.
Great video thank you. I don't currently shoot with a filter but I can certainly now understand why and when to use one. Thanks again!
middle of 2021 and still no better video on TH-cam to explain ND Filters, so easy that every noob like myself can understand the differences...
Thank you.. that’s the best demonstration of the desired motion blur I’ve seen.
I never thought of ND's for motion blur but for keeping the exposure and coloring more intact for editing later. Very helpful, thank you!
Thanks for sharing this. I have just bought myself some filters (haven't tried them out yet, bloody English weather). I am excited to start taking my video capture skills to the next level. It's fun to see the capturing progress alongside the editing. It's amazing to see how with consistent practice, my videos are getting better and better.
Your footage looks great, and thanks for the tips. I can imagine a lot of people find them really useful, just like I do 💪
Thanks Kris. It seems like a lot of people have found this helpful.
Its so true that many people find it hard to understand what nd filters do. Especially those who just dont get into the technical aspects of camers. This video though is the best I've seen. Anybody will grasp the understanding of what they do after this video!!!!! Thanks for sharing!!
Thanks Michal!
"more videos more often" YYYYYEEEEAAAHHHHSSSSS .. can't wait to get inspired again and pick up my projects with new things ive learned through this channel. I am still going through old videos as well just to give myself assignments to make some of the ways to shoot something more second nature.
Thank you for your informative video tutorials. I worked in film/tv but felt overwhelmed and intimidated with learning new material.Please keep up all of your hard work- it is truly appreciated.
Hey, thanks for that nice comment. I understand why you'd be intimidated. Often many of the folks on film/tv shoots are tech geeks and they can make it all feel very difficult. Truth is, it's not as difficult as they make it out to be. You can get really caught up in the intricacies if you're not careful!
Love how perplexed you look at :42 it's pretty amazing. :)
Best explanation of how/why ND filters help with footage on a drone that I've seen so far. Great explanation of how shutter speed impacts video, and the demonstration with the fence, while very simplistic and maybe not a great composition (as you pointed out) was a perfect way to demonstrate the difference between using an ND and not. Other videos I've seen have shown clarity/color differences (I think they were confusing a CPL with an ND), which didn't make sense to me. Great job with the explanation, thanks!
I was wondering about this, then I crashed my drone into a river lol
Capitan Bastos hahaha rollin 😂
XD
So you must be dumb crashing
Same, crashed my first baby spark then got a mavic Pro haha. Grateful I crashed the cheap one 😂😂
Xd
Well done video, but more information regarding camera settings would have been helpful. Therefore, from a technical standpoint ND (Neutral Density = will not alter observed colors) filters will allow more or less light to reach the camera’s sensor, which allows for changes to the exposure settings given the same lighting conditions! A slower shutter speed allows the same number of photons to reach the sensor as will a faster shutter speed when a wider camera aperture is used, this is called exposure. You can over or under expose the sensor or film which will affect the final picture grain or pixilation. A slower shutter speed can introduce motion blur while a faster shutter speed can freeze a moving subject (thus the fence effect in the video above). A still picture of a distant building taken with an ND 32 filter will look exactly like that taken with an ND 4 filter (as noted above) if the exposures are the same, i.e. the aperture or shutter speed or ISO is changed to accomplish equal exposure (same number of photons) and if the camera stable or mounted on a tripod. If the shutter speed remains constant, exposure can be increased or decreased by changing the camera’s aperture (or opening). As you increase the aperture number you are decreasing the lens opening and the amount of light that reaches the sensor or film. This also increases the depth of field. As you decrease the aperture number, your depth of field decreases, and close or distant objects may become out of focus. When using a camera in manual mode under the same lighting conditions, you can change shutter speed, aperture, ISO (film speed), and exposure compensation, and when combined with ND filters, you can get additional various artistic effects. ISO or exposure compensation (changes sensor sensitivity and exposure), shutter speed - motion (changes exposure and blur/sharpness), and aperture - changes exposure and depth of field to wide or narrow.
You could keep it at 1/50th shutter speed at 24fps and drop the aperture to f14, right? I've never used drones before, so I don't know much but I think its reasonable to assume that no one needs to shoot at f2.8 as on the mavic 2 pro in broad daylight- especially if what you're doing is high shots, I'm gonna get a drone very soon but I think I'd do most of the ground shots on my x-t3 and ronin. Maybe if I wanted to track someone or something on a cliff maybe then I'd need to keep the aperture low like f4 or f2.8? Please let me know!
From a technical standpoint:
Having a lower shutter speed allows the sensor capture light information more accurately because the information transmitted by the light is exposed to the sensor for longer.
You will get more colors, more detail and better dynamic range.
The theory behind blur is that your subject is generally your axis point meaning that everything around it is subject to movement.
Its a way to draw your audience away from unnecessary detail by in effect removing it from the shot. Bokeh (Blurry background and foreground) is used fro the same effect.
I was in Cyprus some months ago, 32 ℃ with clear blue sky. Unfortunately I filmed the coast with no nd filter and when I checked the footage on my computer the sea looked like a blue sandpaper
Actually aperture does matte too. Most drone camera's (maybe even all of them) have a sweet spot for the best sharpness. Sometimes you need to tone down the light to get the best sharpness and the right shutter speed for a natural motion blur...
4:00 When you fly past the castle the biggest difference between no ND filter and open shutter with ND is that jitter look. The castle is a perfect example. Jitter is because no motion blur simulates the passing of movement. You will see a lot of epic drone shots on YT that have jitter. That's because they either have default on or are using the wrong ND filter with incorrect shutter. However. Its not wrong if that's the look you want. Its all about taste. Thank you for the video was great to see a nice explanation.
;) Thanks. - R
So what filter should you use if you like the crisp video without the added blur, but still want to increase the saturation/color like an nd filter does??!
Thank you for explaining, the blur in close objects are great!
Great explanation mate. I've been shooting still photography for years and use ND filters a lot and could never understand the link with video and why you would want the slower shutter speed, great way of explaining it 👍
I'm getting jittery video without filters. I only notice it in fast movement - either close to the ground or while turning. And it looks bad, like the computer is buffering. And I see it in your castle shot and fence shot, but disappears in the filtered videos. So thanks for your guide - I've ordered some filters. Hoping the filters will reduce the number of clips I throw away for being jittery.
Finally a comprehensive video about filters with excellent, concise examples, thank you!
What about just changing the shutter angle in premiere to add motion blur in post?
Wow, that small change makes a HUGE difference!
You use ND filters on DSLRs to keep your shutter speed at double your frame rate to avoid “rolling shutters” when shooting video or to get long exposure times during the day to soften water/clouds. Do DJI cameras not suffer from rolling shutters since I assume the mechanism is different? If they do that would, in my opinion, be the primary reason for using them. Thanks for the video! Been missing your stuff.
Jacy and kacy
You're not using the term "rolling shutter" correctly
James as Adrian said, rolling shutter is something else, that can't so easily be helped. Keeping your shutter at double the frame rate will increase motion blur (which can sometimes slightly reduce how noticeable rolling shutter is), but it's usually used to create cinematic motion blur.
Seeing all the TH-cam videos about the importance of ND filters I thought I was crazy thinking some shots with my drone look better without an ND filter, all makes sence now...
Best drone/ND filter video I've seen, thank you very much!! I subscribed of course!
Hey, thanks for that. Really appreciate that.
The product shows polarization. I've learned light spins a few different ways. Might not have to with exposure. It might not be darker, just different light. Or less light. To test it, keep a boat on the water in the center of the frame with a camera directly above it then twist the frame so north at the top then east at the top to south then west at the top of the frame.
So I did many tests with the polarizer and had a few interesting results. 1. I found it pretty difficult to get it adjusted just right (probably not sandmarc, just the fact that it's hard to adjust it while on a moving drone before you take off). 2. When done right, it provides ok results - not fantastic, but a tad better than the normal image. 3. The benefits don't necessarily outweigh the problems in that it often reflects light into my sensor when shooting into the sun, creating a rainbow pattern. Thus, I stopped using the polarizer when I fly.
Hi, some precision i read on internet and book
For have a nice "cinematic style" with drone or Dslr, you need to follow this :
Fps * 2 = shutter speed
24/25 fps * 2 = 48/50 so 1/50s
30 fps * 2 = 60 so 1/60s
etc etc etc
With this you have the best shutters speed like cinema camera.
( sorry for my bad english )
I happy to learn more again from Rob & Jonas' Filmmaking Tips channel. Thanks Rob!
That was a very interesting video and I don't even own a drone !
goldrace10hahah
This is crazy, I was watching the video and then suddenly there was a clip from my city: Gothenburg :P
EXCELLENT! I thought seing those filters: hey wait, playing contrast, colors and other options, is doable under Premiere Pro.... but NOW, with YOUR explanation, I understood the sense out of it, THNX for your clear explanation!!!! Cheers
It's always nice to learn. So I added this information to my knowledge. Thanks for making this video! Keep up the great work!
Thanks for stopping by Wim!
Thank you for your sharing your experiences with ND filter with us.
Keywords to research : shutter angle and motion blur. Although, in a lot of cases where you want to speed up the footage from smaller drones like Phantom and Mavic, you actually want to shoot crisp and add motion blur in post to make sure it simulates the motion blur from the new movement speed.
If you're planning to speed up the footage shooting without motion blur before post is a bit moot, and it might even introduce jitter, or in some cases flicker.
I've always used Pixel Motion Blur effect in Adobe to achieve a similar effect but it's not good for things up-close like that fence....
Probably the most well explained video ever congrats buddy great video
The castle image looks great but I personally think ND16 brings too much blur. Maybe personal preference but I like ND8 for most shooting. For my shoots I like to gets my shutter around 120 most of the time no matter shooting 24, 30, or sometimes 60p for drone shooting. I like the blur amount around the 120 range. From their I find its perfect or you can add blur, or slow it down without loss of impactpuliness of image.
Great comment. I agree. Shooting at 60 fps is a perfect frame rate for most of what I do.
I agree with all your observations...in fact I keep the ND16 on at all times unless its very overcast....works wonders :)
I am shooting Mavic drone video Rob & Jonas but on sunny days because I go through a large direction change I often have some part of the video clip over-exposed. This usually results in a ruined video clip as when I post correct by reducing the exposure it leaves the other part of the clip too under-exposed. Would ND filters circumvent this problem?
Looking for couple of ND filters, but wonder what are trade marks difference ?
I think its about the 180 degree angle where you double your shutter speed with your fps so if you shoot at 25 fps you should use 1/50th shutter speed to get the cinematic blur.
nd filter helps reduce light and with using flat profile you can have more dynamic range adding more color in post production.
Nd16 is like 3stops of a light i think hehe. coz if you shoot at f2 then u go 2 stops thats nd8 if you go 1 another stop that nd16. so in this video ur lowering the light for 3 stops in f2 if its a drone.
After an emergency water landing/sinking, my new drone will fitted with filters. Its not until you lose one do you truely appreciate goid video.
I don't know what you mean man, but it i think that was very sad, Hope your drone is okay.
nd 16= 4 stops, its 2^4
Fantastic! Finally somebody explained the difference in a proper way! Thanks!
Excellent, clears up a much better understanding on Filter use... Thanks!
Excellently composed explanation video; I understand exactly now from your video why I use/don't use ND filters.
Can't find any video about which filter is appropriate for flying into direct sun (light)...for example flying over the sealine of a beach facing the sun. Should I buy and use a 32 or 64 or should a 4/8/16PL suit this occassion? Or else would/could the 16PL make the 32(PL) redundant?
I think the 16 would probably be ok, but if you wanted to go really dark - sure, the 32 and the 64 would work too. The 16 is nice because you can fly it with it on most of the time. Those other two you'd have to take off to get other shots. - Rob
@ 4:00 the tree at the right of the castle
@ 4:08 the tree at left to the castle
Why don't you shot video in same direction ?
(we want to see if there any color differ surrounding with nd filter)
Well. In retrospect. Would have been nice. I was on production shooting my new series for Science channel though and since they weren't paying me to shoot tutorials for youtube, I only had a few minutes to play around. I had mostly pretend like I was getting the shots the needed and doing is several times over and over again just wasn't an option. Again, in retrospect it would have been a good idea. - R
Just got a set of freewells for my mavic air...so far so good.
I think the camera on the P3P is too sharp in full daylight, I use an nd8 to smooth out the motion.
I use the Polar Pro cinematic filters with my Mavic Pro. As the camera on the mavic is a fixed aperture you can only control the ISO and shutter speed. I use the ND filters to try to follow the 180 degree rule i.e. shutter speed should be double the video frame rate in order to give the said motion blur shown in this video. It works really well, when shooting on a clear day above snow or a ‘white sanded’ beach I sometime have to use an ND32 filter! So yes you definitely need ND filters for your drone if you want to achieve more professional / cinematic feel to your shots!
I have an ND32 now for the same reason.
Nicely explained. So what is the difference between the regular ND and polarized ND. I will be vlogging, taking aerial shots of hikes, forests, oceans, also some shots following me on my runs... Not sure whether I need both, or can get by with just one type.
No mention of the 180 degree shutter rule? You did mention using a 1/30th of a second shutter speed, which to anyone videographer would automatically assume that means your fps is 15 (based on that rule), which would look terrible and no camera I know even shoots at that fps. Perhaps that was to exaggerate and illustrate the point? ND filters are less of a "use them if you want to, totally up to you" kind of thing, and more of a necessity if you want professional footage. Doesn't make a difference using a drone compared to dslrs, with the exception of using wider apertures on dslrs more often.
any chance you can do a comparison with a filter,one in auto mode and one in manual,cheers from australia
Oooh. That would have been a good idea. I just crashed that drone (well, Jonas did actually). I'm not sure how the auto settings would change. I'm guessing you could manually control the shutter speed better if you WANTED a lot of blur. I'm sure DJI's auto settings would ramp up the ISO a bit to make sure it wasn't super blurry as you flew. Not sure though. If you do a test, let me know. I'm curious. - R
some drones like the mavic air 2 have a fixed aperture, you need ND filters because they act as sunglasses since you can change how much light comes into you camera
what about gradient filters when shooting towards the sun or a bright sky?
Haven't tried them, but these sound fantastic.
When you were shooting the castle with the nd16 filter ot was sunny?
It was bright, but I think it was partly cloudy.
Untamed Science so if I had to take just one filter it should be nd16 as all-rounder right? Btw I have a Spark
I think so!
This is probably the most consise explanation. Well done
Thanks! - R
Great video! But why don't people talk about the color temperature change when you add a ND filter to a drone? I just bought a ND filter kit for my Air and got the same 'warmer' result you got at 3:45, as compared to 3:25. I know you can correct in post, but it is a pain, right? ;-)
Didn't think to talk about it. You may be right about the color temperature change, although I can't exactly think of a good explanation as to why that might happen.
Sorry, did not mean to say you lacked this explanation, just that I've read so much about nd filters for drones, and no one seems to worry about it, and when I finally bought mine it does change a lot the WB.
I would say most of them are made of a brownish glass, thus bringing this warmer tone to the footage. Thanks for answering and keep up with the great work!
Interesting and thanks for your comment. I'm going to look into this in any case.
@@robnelsonfilms Hi, just to let you know, after 2 years, I'm still angry at the brownish tones I get both on my Mavic Air 1 and my Osmo Pocket, with different brands ND filters. The images are really hard to get a perfect wb in post. I am considering go back to shooting everything WITHOUT an ND filter. Cheers from Rio!
Just bought PP ND16 for my Mavic 2 Pro
I use ND4, that's enough for me here in Sweden, running on Phantom 3 Pro, the difference with or without ND was bigger on this drone, I have been looking at Mavic 2 Pro, w'll see how it looks without there, well that's another story with a quite different camera, I guess. Good video though.
Just bought a set for my Mavic, good video glad to see this info.
Great video! Would you recommend the N16-filter for absolutely all light-conditions since u get that "theater-effect"?
No - at dusk you definitely need all the light you can get!
I found a problem which I believe many call the "jello effect".... using ND filters seems to counteract this as I believe (93% sure... ;) ) that the jello effect (wavy lines in video) is to do with a gimbal's operating frequency and the cameras shutter speed. The higher the speed of shutter (bright conditions) the more likelyhood of the jello effect. Anyway, wether my understanding is spot on or not, use of ND filters has made a difference..... if there is other advantages as mentioned in this YT video then a bonus :)
In ultra bright sunlight, and less you have a filter, you can’t pick up the detail. Appreciate the effort.
So far the best explanation.
Yes, I have started using filters, especially polarized, on my Mavic Pro.
hi great video i have used them once found the video on my Samsung g 7 to dark ,question what other settings should i do in my pro 3 if i use ND 8 or ND 16 i mean in e video settings should it be on auto or none sunny or cloudy for example what the best over all settings where i can leave it basically without having to change it all the time or is that no possible any advice would be welcome
Can't wait for the next season, brilliant
Thanks for the great description on ND filters. I really appreciated the perspective!
Wonderful explanation with the ND filter.
One of the best simple drone filter videos, thanks a ton!
Short and to the point, now I understand, thank you
Can anyone please tell title of the song playing at 4:00 during castle fly by? Thanks!
Would you rather use with or without PL?
Thanks. Quick short description of ND filters
You absolutely need them!
Hallelujah! More Rob and Jonas vids! Keep em coming guys!
Great video! I still prefer shooting without the filter and at 30 fps. To each his own :-).
What is the better, the Neutral or PL ND filters??
Did you shoot part of this video in Gothenburg?
hmmm. No. I don't think any of this one was shot in Gothenburg.
Best video on ND filters for drones 👍🏻👍🏻
Thanks Arun!
Really helpful video, thanks!
Are you from Gothenburg? I saw clips from there.
you really nailed it, finally really understand why nd filter are neccessory
Thanks Jeff!
Very nice explaining! Thanx! Hugs from Romania!
Will those ND filters you tested in the video work on a phantom 3?
When you buy the filters you get the specifically for the model of drone you have. To be honest, I'm not sure if they changed threads between the 3 and the 4. I'd assume so. But, they do make all sorts of filters, so they would have the one you need.
180 law, that’ is why I slap one on.
Should probably have talked about that too... Thanks for that tidbit.
What is that?
Hello, I am new to ND filters and your youtube is an excellent source of martial, Please let me know what you use for post production. I am also running a MAC and just getting started here.
Thankyou, Mike.
I now use Adobe premiere, but in all honesty I may recommend final cut for newer users.
Hi, what is your MAC setup, I am looking purchasing a secondhand Mac Pro, thoughts?
What editing software do you use... thanks
What if you close the aperture to maximum? Still need nd filter?
Just depends how much blur you want. Even at the smallest apertures, sometimes your shutterspeed is still too high to get descent motion blur. Again, it's personal preference and only really important if you're shooting low to the ground.
My Mavic Air shoots beautifully in 4k 120fps. But the image was too bright and washed out. I could not set low enough to correct it. That's what made me realize I needed filters. Problem solved. My shots now are rich and colorful, and buttery smooth in slow motion.