Hi guys. I'm not happy with the quality of the Spark video footage. I intend to use the AC along with my GoPro Hero 5 for my vacation videos. The Spark footage simply is not as good as the GoPro's. This is not a complaint, it's just an observation. So when put together the difference in quality is quite visible. I rarely edit the GoPro footage, other than cutting or splitting clips, I almost never tweek the colours. I understand people do that too, but for me it does its job great, for its intended porpose: family and vacation videos.
So I feel like some color editing is required for the Spark, if I am to use it along side the GoPro.

Below there's a video I shot today. It's the first time I edited intensly, but I fee like I hardly have any idea what I'm doing. I'm on the fence about, I lack the cinematographer's eye.
So I ask for other's opinion. Does it look ok? Did I over did it, I feel like I over did it.
All criticism is wellcome. Oh, there's a scene at 01:36 that some of you might enjoy.

you're on the right track. looks slightly surreal, which I personally like.  colors are popping and you've got a nice sharp image.  

If I can offer some suggestions:
1. concentrate on your maneuvers with the aircraft.  Smooth flight will make a smooth end product.  Avoid jerky movements.
2. I don't like the green tint that your video has.  This is personal preference of course, and you might love it, and that's great!  I'd make it less green and maybe more blue since it's beachy.

Keep experimenting!  

Shameless self promotion: I have a three part youtube series on editing drone footage in final cut pro that you might want to check out.  Even if you don't have the same software, there is lots of general stuff in there.  

I'll add my vote for "too green". The greenish cast in the sky looks unnatural and unappealing to me, and at 1:45, the blue ocean has become green.

On the other hand, I liked the contrast better in the edit. The details stand out more than in the original. If it was mine, I'd try to add some contrast and saturation and maybe forget about colour grading, or at least tone it down. What is it that you don't like about Spark's video quality? I'm actually quite satisfied with it, although there's always room for improvement.

Otherwise, I liked the variety of shots in the video. To add to Robert Simpson's advice, editing really starts when you're shooting. The shots you take determine how it can be edited, so if you can plan ahead a bit, get different angles of the same subject, etc., the final result will flow better and be more watchable. On that point, you're already ahead of the game.

I would say Spark and GoPro cannot be compared. In my ppinion they are two different things with different settings. That means you need to work quite a bit to color grade both footages to look similar.
You did a good job overall. The green tint it's too much for my personal liking. RobertWSimpson tutorial is a good one to start with.
Keep in mind that different cameras have different color profiles. It's your view in the end as you are the artist.

Thank you all so much for your advice. I was actually certain the green tint was greatly exaggerated.
I will fly the AC again today, in a green field, and try to do better.

Antipaxi Posted at 2018-5-19 21:45
Thank you all so much for your advice. I was actually certain the green tint was greatly exaggerated.
I will fly the AC again today, in a green field, and try to do better.

G'day.   It looks like it was a dull cloudy day?  The sea may naturally look darker as it reflects the clouds, compared to a clear blue sky.  

I'm new to all of this & I've been slowly learning various options editing video with DaVinci Resolve. Many tutorials are on YouTube.  The basic process seems to be similar, regardless of the editing software, however the overall options available depends on the editing software.

Before I edit, I check the video from my 15.6" HP laptop screen vs a 22" Philips monitor (VGA connection -  DVI capable - I don't have a HDMI -> DVI adapter)   vs a 31.5" HD  Okano TV with HDMI & direct USB video input.

The colour & contrast may vary, depending on the output device. Calibrate the various options until all the screens look similar. I have Win 10, I assume IOS may be similar?

Then use your editor & view the results on each display. Find a balance that agrees with your requirements & looks natural overall.

Look at the the clouds at about 1min - the edited version increased the detail 50% with contrast/brightness, but the colour is over saturated. Adjust the contrast & brightness first. Then adjust
via XYZ video editing software or DaVinci Resolve - should be able to display a histogram of the colours & brightness for each frame &/or selected areas.  Adjust settings as required until it looks natural to your eye.

Happy Flying!

Sparkz71 Posted at 2018-5-21 02:39
G'day.   It looks like it was a dull cloudy day?  The sea may naturally look darker as it reflects the clouds, compared to a clear blue sky.  

I'm new to all of this & I've been slowly learning various options editing video with DaVinci Resolve. Many tutorials are on YouTube.  The basic process seems to be similar, regardless of the editing software, however the overall options available depends on the editing software.

Cheers, thanks for the advice. It would be a hassle to hook up another monitor to my laptop (Windows 10 too), but that sounds like a really good idea, comparing two different screens.

Antipaxi Posted at 2018-5-21 05:02
Cheers, thanks for the advice. It would be a hassle to hook up another monitor to my laptop (Windows 10 too), but that sounds like a really good idea, comparing two different screens.

If you are on Windows 10, maybe you could calibrate the laptop display.
Press the windows key & type in calibrate (display colour), then follow the instructions.
You will most likely need to use the display driver interface to adjust most settings on a laptop display, apart from brightness (?).   

I can understand your concern. I like the footage on the left side as it looks more realistic. The footage on the right looks like a camera shot in the 1960's which is kind of yellow and green.

With that said color is really subjective and you are bound to get a variety of opinions. This is the artistic part that encourages you to make your statement on how you want things to look. As far as a color to color comparison it would be more helpful to see a clip of the spark footage and a clip of the GoPro footage. That might get a more objective commentary on the merits of each.

I use a similar setup and IMO I think the colors mesh well between the two. You might try setting the auto white balance off on the spark and see if that helps. Flying up in the air like that there is a lot of different contrast based on the aircraft's position to the sun. I recall that there was a how too video posted here recently that explains how to turn off the AWB on the spark.

Sidd

Thank you all for your input, it's greatly appreciated.

well the vid it unavailable

RobertWSimpson Posted at 2018-5-19 14:14
you're on the right track. looks slightly surreal, which I personally like.  colors are popping and you've got a nice sharp image.  

If I can offer some suggestions:

nice one !

RobertWSimpson Posted at 2018-5-19 14:14
you're on the right track. looks slightly surreal, which I personally like.  colors are popping and you've got a nice sharp image.  

If I can offer some suggestions:

Good vid   

jacksonnai Posted at 2018-6-18 20:12
nice one !

Hey thanks! Hope you found it helpful!

A CW Posted at 2018-6-18 23:47
Good vid

Thanks I am glad you liked it!

RobertWSimpson Posted at 2018-6-19 05:54
Thanks I am glad you liked it!

      

RobertWSimpson Posted at 2018-6-19 05:54
Hey thanks! Hope you found it helpful!

you are welcome