Hi fellow pilots and other DJI addicts. I’ve been the proud owner of my DJI Mavic Air for nearly 4 months now, which is CRAZY because it feels like I had it for ages! Therefore, I also feel like this is the perfect opportunity to share my knowledge and experience with you all.
Summary:
If portability is important for you, then you have a perfect drone in Mavic Air. It is the smallest foldable drone on the market with the option of 4K and 12 MP photos. The camera has a particularly high bit rate in 4K that provides more detail in the images. The drone has built-in MicroSD cards, so you don't have to worry about SD cards and formatting. The Mavic Air also has a higher frame rate than similar drones that you can use for cool slow-motion shots.
I have certainly learned a lot by using the Mavic Air constantly throughout this period. The drone has endured many kinds of climates and environments so far, from the tropical climate in Thailand and Cambodia to the maritime temperate climate in Denmark and Germany.
Before I got my Mavic Air, I used to watch tons of videos of the drone featuring its amazing footages and abilities. I must say that I’m one of those that prefer to see RESULTS and what the drone are CAPABLE of before buying it.
In this post, I’ll not only share my review regarding this product but I’d also love to take you all with me behind the scenes and share some of the things I’ve created with this little machine so far and which settings etc. I use to get these crispy looking photos and videos!
So, what do I think about this drone? Well, to be honest this is my first drone ever and the first one I tried as well. I must admit that I was a bit sceptical in the start, whether it would live up to my expectations or not.
However, I was very surprised by its ease of use, portability, battery life and the camera performance. These parameters are very important to me as I spend a lot of time traveling and filming, which ALSO means the drone must be durable. This is what concerned me most whether if I could use this small drone in tougher terrain and in strong winds or if I should pick a bigger one?
Surprisingly, for its size I think it performed really well in the different terrains I recorded, from the ruggy and windy places in Europe to the tropical beaches and high mountains in Southeast Asia. The only challenge with the Mavic Air is that it has less flight time and shorter range than Mavic Pro, but for its size I think it’s acceptable.
And now on to the FUN part!! Check my settings below:
Video settings:
Video Size: 4k 30 fps
For video size, I recommend recording in 4k at 30 fps. 24 fps tends to get jittery sometimes, therefore I prefer 30 fps as my standard.
Video Format: MOV or MP4
Quality-wise MOV and MP4 are identical. The MOV are designed for Apple users so I personally use that one.
White Balance: Sunny or Cloudy
Set this according to the current weather conditions. Auto will only ruin your footage by changing while recording.
Style: Sharpness: 0 | Contrast: -3 | Saturation: 0
It gives more information in the shadows and will be great in post.
Color: D-Cinelike
I always pick D-Cinelike, since I like to color grade my footage after and it gives you more freedom than Normal.
Photo settings:
Image Size: 4:3
If you post-process 4:3 is best since you can crop your photo to your own desire.
Image Format: RAW
RAW gives you much more control in post-process.
White Balance: Sunny or Cloudy
Set this according to the current weather conditions as mentioned earlier.
Style: None
If you are shooting in RAW, it’s not necessary to adjust that.
#1 TIP: Always use Manual Exposure, because you want to control your exposure without any drastic changes due to Auto. To help you expose right turn on Histogram and Overexposure Warning
#2 TIP: I can highly recommend using ND filters, they work like sunglasses for your drone and will help you to achieve even better quality footage.
An example of how your photos can look like before/after:
A video to give you an example of how your aerial footage can look like with the above settings and post-process:
Conclusion:
The Mavic Air is perfect for you who loves to travel and don’t want a big drone to carry around. The drone is small and compact - and therefore easy to take on the go. The camera performance is great for photos and videos and is the perfect match for beginners. If you on the other hand are a pro or advanced hobbyist that doesn’t care about the price or weight and are more interested in the best camera performance, flight time and range then I’d recommend investing in the Mavic Pro 2.
Thank you very much for the attention. Hope you enjoyed this review and my tips. If you have any questions, I’ll be glad to answer them.
Rathi