I purchased a M4P several months ago and have been toying around with it. Love the video quality but I'm not really a "video guy." More a stills person.
Has anyone used these for mostly landscape images? Other than giving me a different vantage point than my cameras, I'm wondering how good the image quality is. Also, do people shoot in 12mp or 48mp mode? I'm a beginner but sounds like there's only really 12mp of pixels and the 48mp is not "true" 48mp?
I'm going an upcoming vacation to South Korea and China, and hesitate to bring it simply because of how many headaches there seems to be with regulations, permits, etc.
I use the Mini 5 Pro which has a 1" sensor. I only shoot the 12 MP mode as images from the 48 MP mode were ridiculously soft at the pixel level. I think the stills image quality of my drone is quite decent, better than I would have expected from a 1" sensor with the lens always set wide open to f/1.8. The stability and ease of flying of the drone are quite remarkable. I think for the purpose of capturing some aerial perspectives of familiar places is alluring, and I'm enjoying the results. It would be nice to have a larger sensor but that would require getting the Mavic which is a C2 drone in Europe, and that comes with some restrictions on where it can be used, and requirements for pilot training. Also the current version of the Mavic has 28 mm-equivalent FOV in the main (wide angle) camera. I'm not entirely convinced I wouldn't be needing a wider angle for some subjects. I'm also not convinced I would be comfortable taking the loss if I should damage or misplace an expensive drone like that. The Mini has the great advantage that it's allowed to use it near people and populated areas.
The Mini 5 Pro is slightly larger than the Mini 4 Pro which should help in maintaining visual contact with the drone as per open category requirements. I have been able to fly it to a distance of 300 m and still maintain visual contact, but a lot of the times it is easy to lose sight of it if flying that far, and if there are buildings, trees, etc. then it's not possible to fly far without losing eye contact. With a larger drone like the Mavic it should be possible to maintain visual contact at somewhat longer distances which should make flying with it safer and more practical, but the requirement that it never be flown above uninvolved people and maintaining a minimum horizontal distance equal to the altitude above ground level (if the drone is flying higher than 30 m) even with A2 pilot certification is quite a strong limitation and makes it extremely difficult to use the Mavic in built up areas which may have some people. So I'm unsure if this would be a viable option for me. I might consider the Air 3S also, as it can be flown in A1 category with almost the same relaxed restrictions as the Mini (the Air 3S cannot be flown above but can be flown near uninvolved people). However, the Air 3S probably would not give much of an image quality advantage, only a stability advantage (and the option of using the tele camera and a superwide angle attachment) over the Mini 5 Pro. Air 3S is intermediate in size between Mavic 4 Pro and Mini 5 Pro, closer to the former than the latter.
Anyway my opinion is that these drones do work for still photography, and can give images that are worth printing and look good in print. However, the main limitation is the dynamic range and tonality / color which is not as good as e.g. a full-frame interchangeable lens camera. So you are more dependent on having good light (not necessarily bright light, but light of good quality) on the scene. These devices are so stable that urban night landscape photos are possible and look surprisingly good. But just don't expect it to look like a high image quality mirrorless camera and you'll probably be fine. I would recommend considering Mini 5 Pro or larger for the larger sensor size than Mini 4 Pro, and for larger size making it easier to fly in open category.
I agree with all these points. I have a mini 4 pro and a mini 5 pro. The improvements are incremental but overall are significant. Don't neglect the flyability component. Here are some other things to consider:
1. A basic rule in the US is you need permission from the landowner whose land your taking off from. The faa has rules once you're up in the air. Check your local rules. This can be limiting, as you note.
2. Being so small, I'm often getting high wind warnings. Part of you flying skill will be knowing how much wind you can fly in. On the ground there is ground scrub (trees, buildings, etc. that partially block wind.) It's windier even 100 ft up.
3. The obstacle avoidance is good, but not with wires and trees without leaves.
4. You are fixed at wide open. You will need nd filters for video if you end up doing any. If you use log dji has a lut.
5. The 48mp mode images take noticeably longer to save. You can't shoot again until they're saved.
6. The flymore kit has extra batteries and props and maybe a basic nd kit.
7. Make sure you go through the setup, especially the return to home settings. (If you lose contact with the drone it can fly back to the last home point.) Losing contact with the drone is a truly nerve wracking experience!
8. The mini 5 pro doesn't need a tool to change a prop.
If you decide to buy one, practice at home first.
If you get over hurdles, it's a worthwhile experience. I'm editing drone images next to Z9, A1, R5II, etc. images and they hold up well. The gimbal is superb at holding the camera steady. It really comes down to dynamic range. In difficult light you will notice some limitation.
quote]ilkka_nissila wrote:
I use the Mini 5 Pro which has a 1" sensor. I only shoot the 12 MP mode as images from the 48 MP mode were ridiculously soft at the pixel level. I think the stills image quality of my drone is quite decent, better than I would have expected from a 1" sensor with the lens always set wide open to f/1.8. The stability and ease of flying of the drone are quite remarkable. I think for the purpose of capturing some aerial perspectives of familiar places is alluring, and I'm enjoying the results. It would be nice to have a larger sensor but that would require getting the Mavic which is a C2 drone in Europe, and that comes with some restrictions on where it can be used, and requirements for pilot training. Also the current version of the Mavic has 28 mm-equivalent FOV in the main (wide angle) camera. I'm not entirely convinced I wouldn't be needing a wider angle for some subjects. I'm also not convinced I would be comfortable taking the loss if I should damage or misplace an expensive drone like that. The Mini has the great advantage that it's allowed to use it near people and populated areas.
The Mini 5 Pro is slightly larger than the Mini 4 Pro which should help in maintaining visual contact with the drone as per open category requirements. I have been able to fly it to a distance of 300 m and still maintain visual contact, but a lot of the times it is easy to lose sight of it if flying that far, and if there are buildings, trees, etc. then it's not possible to fly far without losing eye contact. With a larger drone like the Mavic it should be possible to maintain visual contact at somewhat longer distances which should make flying with it safer and more practical, but the requirement that it never be flown above uninvolved people and maintaining a minimum horizontal distance equal to the altitude above ground level (if the drone is flying higher than 30 m) even with A2 pilot certification is quite a strong limitation and makes it extremely difficult to use the Mavic in built up areas which may have some people. So I'm unsure if this would be a viable option for me. I might consider the Air 3S also, as it can be flown in A1 category with almost the same relaxed restrictions as the Mini (the Air 3S cannot be flown above but can be flown near uninvolved people). However, the Air 3S probably would not give much of an image quality advantage, only a stability advantage (and the option of using the tele camera and a superwide angle attachment) over the Mini 5 Pro. Air 3S is intermediate in size between Mavic 4 Pro and Mini 5 Pro, closer to the former than the latter.
Anyway my opinion is that these drones do work for still photography, and can give images that are worth printing and look good in print. However, the main limitation is the dynamic range and tonality / color which is not as good as e.g. a full-frame interchangeable lens camera. So you are more dependent on having good light (not necessarily bright light, but light of good quality) on the scene. These devices are so stable that urban night landscape photos are possible and look surprisingly good. But just don't expect it to look like a high image quality mirrorless camera and you'll probably be fine. I would recommend considering Mini 5 Pro or larger for the larger sensor size than Mini 4 Pro, and for larger size making it easier to fly in open category.
