Excited, and then Deflated

[CraigCam]

So about auto settings. I have tested with using a phone connected to the CGO3+ to lock in better settings. That helped a lot, but the 120fps quality is still subpar compared to other drones in the same price range, like the Autel XSP.

There is NO question locking in good settings gives much better results, but the environment can be a hinderance. When you are on a boat on the lake the way we are, and we can't hold up for too long, we have to get setup and shoot quick, you gotta go. Also, I don't always trust what I see on the phone or iPad screen as to what it is going to look like when I get it to FCPX. So most of the time if I am using a HERO for instance, and use auto, it looks great, and then the occasional artifacts you see while it "shifts" exposure or balance while filming, while annoying, are pretty subtle and handled fairly well. The CGO3+ does a very bad job with this, and others have definitely pointed that out.

So the question to me is if I can find a workflow with the H, where I quickly set lock in WB and Exposure without taking too much time, and also trust the decisions I make looking at the screen, while floating on the boat in sunlight. I did a test in our meadow (I live in the mountains on 26 acres) with an ATV in follow mode with my kids it felt good, 4k is gorgeous when set right, and I think I can live with the 120FPS. When I got the video to my mac, it was what I expected to see, after using my iPhone 7 to eyeball it and lock it in. Thanks to Captain Drone for some good tips on that, and then also the tip to switch to natural, that helped a ton. I will post up a short clip.

The captain drone video explains that resetting the camera is imperative if you go from auto to manual and back to auto. It also shows that most of the time, the auto WB is good and you should immediately lock it down before going into manual mode for ISO and shutter speed. His tutorial on using and understanding the histogram is great as well. With ND filters, I usually can hold the ISO setting to 100 and depending on light, a shutter speed of over 100. I typically shoot 1920x1080 at 60 frames which provides me with a nice compromise for both sped up or slowed down shots.

As I stated before, the Autel is more hyped so it's footage looks better pre post but is a PIA to make look more natural. Of course we've changed how everything looks with our supposed superior HD capabilities but ultimately most of us want it to be more film like. I found the GoPro completely unacceptable as I flew and edited for over a year with a Hero 4 on different quads and gimbals. The TH is way better and more reliable for me but then again, I'm not a not an action professional like you.

 

[ragboy]

I am not just comparing the autel, I also have a P3, and then comparing with friend's mavic, and P4. All of that doesn't change the fact that the CGO3+ is not as good of a camera. Tweaking the settings I feel like I can make this work, but the others also show better encoding/higher bitrates.

 

[PatR]

I don't see how anyone might say a camera using a micro sensor could be as good or better than a camera with a 1" sensor. The H was a match for the P3 camera, with the exception of bit rate, and seriously bested the P3 gimbal. The bit rate may be what is causing you grief for slo-mo, although use of a slow SD card will also cause problems. Combine a lower bit rate with a slow card and things could get pretty bad. But a person with superior tech knowledge would already know that. Pro photographers certainly do. I don't know if DJI finally did something to correct the gimbal for poor yaw damping with the P4.

If you want to use Autel or DJI, feel free. We won't get in your way.

 

[CraigCam]

I am not just comparing the autel, I also have a P3, and then comparing with friend's mavic, and P4. All of that doesn't change the fact that the CGO3+ is not as good of a camera. Tweaking the settings I feel like I can make this work, but the others also show better encoding/higher bitrates.

We will have to agree to disagree. All my clients like the H video over anything a P4 does. GoPro isn't even considered anymore. My closest competitor is using an Inspire and the H provides as smooth an image as anything he does and in fact has less motion problems. I can color correct in post but I can't get rid of jerky motions, jello, and shifting white balance that I used to be plagued by until this very affordable, stable, six motor, retractable landing gear, 360 degree gimbal, programmable controller with integrated screen, plus many more features that no one else has at this price point UAS came along. I guess it's a matter of expectations vs reality and if I was doing what you do, I'd be hard pressed to consider auto shooting as the source of my issues. But then again I could care less about action photography as IMHO it's only interesting to those involved in the activity.

 

[PatR]

I haven't found anything using less than a MoVi gimbal than provides imagery as smooth as the H. Autel comes close though. Using Natural or Gorgeous scene settings along with manual camera settings requires no more work to be done in post aside from cutting and "splicing" and minor correction for white balance when I err in the white balance set up. Two minor adjustments with the video editor easily takes care of that. Those are the same adjustments I use to correct Mavic video, although I have yet to generate Mavic video as clear as what the H produces. Sharpening in post creates too many artifacts.

As I've said before, an amateur blames the equipment, a pro blames himself. The pro understands that only he is responsible for the quality of the product via understanding how to use the tools they have. A good photographer can produce a good image with anything. The "point and shoot" crowd just keep buying more equipment in hopes of overcoming their personal deficiencies. It's an instant gratification thing.

 

[ragboy]

I have few complaints with anything other than the camera. The real world flight time is good, the stability of flight and the gimbal are top notch, so good that it is pushing me to work through any other issues I have to make it work. I would put the stability and gimbal up against a Inspire I any day. I have no experience with the Inspire II, which is why I don't mention. Then there is the follow me, I don't know it's equal, the follow me tracking is truly amazing, and I can't wait to keep playing with it. Heading to the lake to get some great footage today.

That said, I really don't think the CGO3+ camera is in the same league as the P4 pro or the Hero5 black. We can just leave that to my opinion, and leave the many other examples online of side by side comparisons for others to make their own judgment.

I may still add a mavic to my gear for a very portable solution, but as long as my continued testing on the lake goes as well as my "ATV meadow" test, the H and CGO3+ are going to be my primary solution for drone footage of surfing. Will be selling the XSP. FWIW.

 

[Rubik]

I have few complaints with anything other than the camera. The real world flight time is good, the stability of flight and the gimbal are top notch, so good that it is pushing me to work through any other issues I have to make it work. I would put the stability and gimbal up against a Inspire I any day. I have no experience with the Inspire II, which is why I don't mention. Then there is the follow me, I don't know it's equal, the follow me tracking is truly amazing, and I can't wait to keep playing with it. Heading to the lake to get some great footage today.

That said, I really don't think the CGO3+ camera is in the same league as the P4 pro or the Hero5 black. We can just leave that to my opinion, and leave the many other examples online of side by side comparisons for others to make their own judgment.

I may still add a mavic to my gear for a very portable solution, but as long as my continued testing on the lake goes as well as my "ATV meadow" test, the H and CGO3+ are going to be my primary solution for drone footage of surfing. Will be selling the XSP. FWIW.

It appears that your only issue is how the TH handles 120 fps. And, I believe that you are right. Since 1920x1080x120 fps on the TH is 1/4 of the 3840x2160x30 fps video, it will not look very good when viewed at the same screen size. That's a limitation of this particular tool. Drones with higher video bit rate will look better in that situation.

 

[ragboy]

I do also think that it its camera software and automatic modes are much poorer than the competition, remedied by going manual.

As far as bitrate, while my iPhone 7 120fps bitrate is about 45-50 mb/s, and the hero 5 black is about 60 mb/s, the CGO3+ is about 25-30 mb/s.

Bitrate is DEFINITELY not the final benchmark for determining quality. Its just like an MP3, if similar microphones and equipment is used to record, and similar algorithms are used for compression, then bitrate would be the primary factor in quality. A 256kbps mp3 will sound much better than a 96kbps mp3.

 

[JulesTEO]

Went out today to record over water. Sorry but no water splashing, (I'm no surfer nor I have any surfer friends), but wanted to share some of the slowmo footage I recorded regarding the topic.

Again, white balance locked, shutter speed left on auto.

Greetings!

 

[PatR]

Just for the heck of it, what would that look like rendered in 4/3 instead of 16/9?

 

[Rayray]

As far as bitrate, while my iPhone 7 120fps bitrate is about 45-50 mb/s, and the hero 5 black is about 60 mb/s, the CGO3+ is about 25-30 mb/s.

You are a recognized expert in wave surfing, and I congratulate you on that. It is plain that you do not like the CGO3+ camera, and you are entitled to your beliefs. I do not use 120 FPS, but the post-processing software I use can produce good (to me) slomo or fastmo.

My 2 CGO3+ cameras often run 50 mb/s or more into high speed UHS-3 cards, but I also do not equate this with quality videos.
Use what you wish, I will not argue.

 

[ragboy]

Well, opinions are like buttholes right? ;-) FWIW, I use the same high quality SD cards for all my cameras. So the 60mb/s hero 5 stuff was the same brand and size as the one in the yuneec, could have even been the same card. I keep a pack of 8 64GB and 1 128s with us at all times.

Like I said, with the manual settings, I think its good enough. I got the drone for $1199 (with real sense) and I feel like its a good value for what I got, even with a bit of extra work. I would also recommend it, but I would add the caveat that you will need to tweak a few camera settings and lock down exposure and WB.

Oh, and the 4k video I took was definitely in the 50mb/s bitrate range, just not the 120fps. So the card is fine.

 

[CraigCam]

I do also think that it its camera software and automatic modes are much poorer than the competition, remedied by going manual.

As far as bitrate, while my iPhone 7 120fps bitrate is about 45-50 mb/s, and the hero 5 black is about 60 mb/s, the CGO3+ is about 25-30 mb/s.

Bitrate is DEFINITELY not the final benchmark for determining quality. Its just like an MP3, if similar microphones and equipment is used to record, and similar algorithms are used for compression, then bitrate would be the primary factor in quality. A 256kbps mp3 will sound much better than a 96kbps mp3.

Good analogy. Our Mp3 is YouTube where all your work gets mangled by their compression. I prefer Vimeo the same way I like ACC encoding better for audio.