Hello,
I just bought the "DJI Phantom 4 Neutral Density ND16 Filter, Grey" and would appreciate any tips on the best camera settings for using it? If it helps, I'm at the beach, so bright sunlight, plenty of water. (It's the only filter I have, so any tips on other filters won't help much.)
Related, I believe I saw something somewhere about trying to make the video look smooth by alterning the shutter speed or something? I include that in case that factors in.

Any tips greatly appreciated!

Search for nd filter camera settings, or have u.. I know I saw something, but I do not remember...  I think you can still use auto though. I think the idea is to force the camera to change it's parameters by blocking some light....  Also use this for video, not stills...
U can also go into manual mode, set your iso high (like 100-200), then play with the shutter settings while flying, se how things work.. i think someone said somewhere that you want shutter speed as close to 2x frame rate.. so if u record at 30fps, u want shutter near 1/60? Not sure...

You want to have the shutter speed running at 2X the frame rate.    So, if you're shooting 1080P @ 30 frames, the shutter speed should be showing 1/60.  If you're shooting 4K @ 25, then the shutter speed should be 1/50 and so on....

In a regular camera, you would adjust the ISO and the aperture to obtain the correct speed.  (The aperture is the size of the lens opening. A wide opening lets in lots of light.  If you make it smaller, then less light gets in).   

You can adjust the ISO on the phantom camera, but you can't adjust the aperture.  It's fixed at f/2.8  To make up for the fact that you can't adjust the aperture, you need to put ND filters in front of the lens.  They act as sunglasses and provide the same effect as reducing the size of the lens opening (the aperture).

If you leave everything in Auto and go for a flight with your filter installed, you should hopefully see the shutter speed close to the desired 2X value.   If you don't, then go into Manual mode and make sure the ISO is set to 100.  (That's the least sensitive to light).   If you still exceed the 2X shutter speed with your ND16 in place, then you need to install a darker filter. (Such as an ND32).   If the shutter speed is too slow, then you need a filter that isn't as dark (such as an ND8 or ND4).   This is why it's common to see filters sold in sets ND 4,8,16 and 32.  The one you would use depends on how bright the day is.

But, even if you can't get the shutter speed down to 2X at the beach on a bright day, it still will smooth things out if you compare the video shot without the filter.

jwt873@gmail.co Posted at 2016-7-10 19:32
You want to have the shutter speed running at 2X the frame rate.    So, if you're shooting 1080P @ 3 ...

based on your experience , what ND filter to use in bright day afternoon in the beach ? and what ND filter do you use the most ? thanks..

jwt873@gmail.co Posted at 2016-7-10 20:32
You want to have the shutter speed running at 2X the frame rate.    So, if you're shooting 1080P @ 3 ...

That was a great response.  Couldn't have said it better myself.  

ND 16 for mostly sunny w/ some clouds so a bright day should be nd 32 and an extremely bright day should be a nd 64