Purchased the Mavic 2 Zoom. Love the way it handles in the air.  No issues with video. Very pleased!

  

I chose the Zoom for the cinematic options and zoom capabilities. Wondering about the quality of the DNG (RAW) images.   Below is a link to my Google Drive with 9 still images. Is this the quality I should expect?

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1edfCNnKgbYen64I-yu3djvfvEQZtIAYs?usp=sharing

  

  

What are the ideal settings for capturing still images? Can you suggest a editoral for capturing still images using the Mavi 2 Zoom?

If I purchase the Mavic 2 Pro will the DNG(RAW) images be significantly improved?  Can you send an untouched DNG image from the Mavic 2 Pro

Thank you for your help.

George Randy Bass

Hello and good day GeorgeRandyBass. Thank you for sharing this link and this wonderful photos you have captured using your DJI Mavic 2 Zoom. Great work.

DJI Stephen Posted at 10-25 07:50
Hello and good day GeorgeRandyBass. Thank you for sharing this link and this wonderful photos you have captured using your DJI Mavic 2 Zoom. Great work.

Thank you for your kind words!

Did you read the message?  Do you have any comments?

Randy

You are very much welcome GeorgeRandyBass. I will be posting a DJI Forum link where in it will help you master the Art of Aerial Photography: 6 Lighting Techniques ( https://forum.dji.com/forum.php? ... D579%26typeid%3D579 ) and on Creating a Sense of Depth With Aerial Photos ( https://forum.dji.com/forum.php? ... D579%26typeid%3D579 ). I hope this can help. Thank you.

I don't see the pictures. What is the complaint exactly?

djiuser_Kf4iPA3DtL3S Posted at 10-27 03:45
I don't see the pictures. What is the complaint exactly?

Below is the link.

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1edfCNnKgbYen64I-yu3djvfvEQZtIAYs?usp=sharing

No complaint. Taken with Mavic 2 Zoom.  Would same image taken with Mavic 2 Pro be a notable improvement?

GeorgeRandyBass Posted at 10-28 17:08
Below is the link.

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1edfCNnKgbYen64I-yu3djvfvEQZtIAYs?usp=sharing

Fwiw, after looking at your Mavic 2 Zoom DNG, I'd say they are not appreciably better than what I see in my original Mavic. I've seen photos from a friend's Mavic 2 Pro that I did think were appreciably better.

You are wise to ask to look for examples, hopefully someone here will provide examples -- have you tried searching on Flickr for Mavic Pro images? They'll likely be processed, but you can do a similar search for photos from your onw model to compare.

For the purpose of my explanation I will assume that you don't understand the concept of shooting RAW (DNG) images. My apologies if I'm wrong ...

While JPEG format will deliver satisfying results in most average situations, post-corrections are very limited. DNG format - for change - is offering extremely wide palette of corrections in almost every aspect of digital image.

There's not much wrong with samples you provided. They're fairly well exposed, with good colour and sharpness. However, try to avoid Auto modes. This approach will result in slight shifts of colour balance and rarely correct exposure. For best results in such environment I will set WB to Sunny, ISO to 100, no filters of any kind, colour mode to D-Cinelike (for fair amount of details in shadowed parts), aperture at 5.6-8 and - finally - adjust shutter speed accordingly to measured +/- 0 EV value.

In many situations advanced sensor of M2Pro should deliver better image. Better resolution, colour rendering, less noise (particularly in low light). No doubt.

That said, most end users wouldn't be able to tell the difference between M2Z and M2P image. Editing (colour grading) is a very subjective art, where RAW image is offering practically endless options. But yes, if you're not skilled enough to take the advantage of RAW file editing, Mavic 2 Pro will be a better alternative.

Ex Machina Posted at 10-29 04:58
Fwiw, after looking at your Mavic 2 Zoom DNG, I'd say they are not appreciably better than what I see in my original Mavic. I've seen photos from a friend's Mavic 2 Pro that I did think were appreciably better.

You are wise to ask to look for examples, hopefully someone here will provide examples -- have you tried searching on Flickr for Mavic Pro images? They'll likely be processed, but you can do a similar search for photos from your onw model to compare.

Thank you for replying!

Good idea!

Matthew Dobrski Posted at 10-29 13:00
For the purpose of my explanation I will assume that you don't understand the concept of shooting RAW (DNG) images. My apologies if I'm wrong ...

While JPEG format will deliver satisfying results in most average situations, post-corrections are very limited. DNG format - for change - is offering extremely wide palette of corrections in almost every aspect of digital image.

Thank you for your feedback!

Would never shoot in any format other than RAW. Have for several years. Tens of thousands of images. These are good images that I captured and enhanced. However, they are not what I would expect with my DSLR.

However, my DSLR will not fly. :-)

Heard soooooo much about the Mavic 2 Pro having the highly rated Hasselblad camera, I am curious, will the image quality be closer to what I get with my DSLR.

Probably mute considering I am so pleased with the capabilities of the Mavic 2 Zoom that I am ordering the Mavic 2 Pro.  Will compare the images.

Again, thank you! Aerial photography is new to me. Need all the help I can get.

GeorgeRandyBass Posted at 10-29 19:12
Thank you for your feedback!

Would never shoot in any format other than RAW. Have for several years. Tens of thousands of images. These are good images that I captured and enhanced. However, they are not what I would expect with my DSLR.

I firmly believe that M2P camera can deliver stunning images. However, with such solid background in DSLR photography you may be disappointed by somehow limited capabilities of fixed lens. This is a major downside of consumer drones. Only Inspire class drones can employ X family gimbal cameras with interchangeable lenses. But that's a different story ...

Matthew Dobrski Posted at 10-30 00:19
I firmly believe that M2P camera can deliver stunning images. However, with such solid background in DSLR photography you may be disappointed by somehow limited capabilities of fixed lens. This is a major downside of consumer drones. Only Inspire class drones can employ X family gimbal cameras with interchangeable lenses. But that's a different story ...

Completely agree -- you can expect the Mavic 2 Pro to be better than the Zoom, but its performance will be closer to the Zoom than your DSLR -- the sensor is just not big enough. The next step up in DJI-land uses m43 sensors which would be closer to your DSLR.

Ex Machina Posted at 10-30 08:10
Completely agree -- you can expect the Mavic 2 Pro to be better than the Zoom, but its performance will be closer to the Zoom than your DSLR -- the sensor is just not big enough. The next step up in DJI-land uses m43 sensors which would be closer to your DSLR.

In contrary, Ex Machina. M2P sports 1" sensor of 20MP resolution, while Zoom version has 1/2.3" 12MP CMOS. Zenmuse X5 has 4/3" 16MP CMOS, X5S got the same size sensor of 20.8MP resolution. So, in theory M2P sensor should perform well in this comparison, Hasselblad image trickery aside. Still, no match to a modern DSLR with 40MP full size sensor, a plethora of professional features and huge glasses. My once revolutionary Nikon D200 DSLR can't stand a chance with ridiculous 12MP sensor ...

Matthew Dobrski Posted at 10-30 09:03
In contrary, Ex Machina. M2P sports 1" sensor of 20MP resolution, while Zoom version has 1/2.3" 12MP CMOS. Zenmuse X5 has 4/3" 16MP CMOS, X5S got the same size sensor of 20.8MP resolution. So, in theory M2P sensor should perform well in this comparison, Hasselblad image trickery aside. Still, no match to a modern DSLR with 40MP full size sensor, a plethora of professional features and huge glasses. My once revolutionary Nikon D200 DSLR can't stand a chance with ridiculous 12MP sensor ...

True, the M2P has a larger sensor than the Zoom, which is why we are talking about an expectation of better image quality -- and the M2P images I've seen do look better, but they're not DSLR-better -- you really need to go up to the 50%-larger sensor in the m43-based DJI products to get closer to what you might expect from a modern interchangeable lens camera.

Matthew Dobrski Posted at 10-29 13:00
For the purpose of my explanation I will assume that you don't understand the concept of shooting RAW (DNG) images. My apologies if I'm wrong ...

While JPEG format will deliver satisfying results in most average situations, post-corrections are very limited. DNG format - for change - is offering extremely wide palette of corrections in almost every aspect of digital image.

Good explanation. A picture is worth a thousand words...