UPDATE 12/04/2023
DNG Vignetting / Colour Shift issue and Missing Images is still prevelant in current firmware release.


Just done a quick test after the .300 FW update got released, which contains considerable improvement (thank you very much DJI!) to the previous situation,
However a couple of issues still remain unresolved:

1. Sphere is not complete, images missing


solution to this is to add another 2 images in the top row. 2 in to tal is not enough to capture a complete shere.

2. DNG Vignetting still present
I cannot see that any lens correction has been applied to the DNG file after the debayer process. This includes some colour shift that is noticable from centre to edge (not in this example image above)
Solution: Either correct in DNG or include recommended factory lens correction data in Metadata for 3rd party image editors.

It is probably not possible to image a complete sphere due to the hardware limitations (maximum 60° pan angle!). Why DJI has taken the solution 4 rows à 8 + 2 zenit, I do not understand either, especially since it would have worked wonderfully with a complete 4th row at max 60° (see image 1, manual 4. row, before FW update). But at least the result is much better than before.



For DNG processing that is not done with the appropriate developers (ACR, etc.), metadata optimization is definitely required. However, with respect to panoramas, it may be helpful to use suitable programs that perform appropriate vignetting correction in the calculation. Even if the images still look scary after import (image 2), the worst vignettes are already eliminated after the first alignment (see image 1).



With the right program ;o), you can see almost nothing of the vignetting in the result (image 3). By the way, the workflow was done with the original DNGs.

Tip: Affinity Photo is able to eliminate the DNG vignetting completely, but even here you have to do it manually in the development process by setting the lens vignetting correction to 100%.

The Mini3 can definitely tale enough images to capture a complete sphere.
If the top row is shot horizonal +60 then there might be a resulting very small gap which might be acceptable,
but could also be avoided with an image in the upper row that was taken vertically. As the sensor is 4:3 the longer side would then cover a wider FOV vertically.

I have various softwares that can correct the Vignette, [CaptureOnePro, Affinity Photo, ON1 Pro, PTGui, RAWTherapee], mileage may vary, but having a manufacturer designed lens correction missing in action for a fixed lens wide open that naturally will show all shortcomings is an oversight and doesn't do the drone justice or DJI any favours.
It was meant to be fixed with the previous FW update (see changelogs) but never did, or did get overwritten in a minor FW correction (there was 2 different releases within a day or 2..).
The lens corrections that are required are a little more complex than just a simple de-vignette.
I have a 'home baked' LCC for Capture One (created shooting a uniform grey wall out of focus) which works fine, but this is besides the point, it needs to be fixed in the DNG as the RAW image goes through the debayer process (48mp > 12MP)

update for FW 01.00.0500

Even if I shoot Jpeg
Vignetting / Colour Shift issue is still prevelant in current firmware release.
The Zenith is patched in jpeg for the missing image which only works well if the sky is plain.

Dji please fix this issue both for Jpeg & DNG