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Would love feedback in regards to color

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Went out and hit some great video this weekend, I call it “forbidden footage” because...well...they kicked me out 5 minutes after I was done.

Anyway, my color and camera setting skills are sorely lacking (YouTube qaulity doesn’t help) so I’m looking for feedback. I need to brighten image up but every time I try it gets completely blown out, it’s either too dark or way too bright. Looking at this video what one or two specific settings should I be adjusting in post? I’m using video pad pro. It has way too many settings I’m still trying to learn....color, saturation, brightness, red,blue, Green..exposure, contrast, temperature, RGB ETC...and everything else under the sun. I don’t know which specific setting I should be adjusting. I shot at 2.7k auto 30FPS with white balance lock on c23. Iso 200..., maybe at one point I think I had shutter at 1/1400 OR 1/1800 (if that’s the correct verbiage), think I expirememted with those two settings.

Clouds were in and out and a little overcast being on the ocean.

Am I correct in saying it’s too saturated?

Thanks.


 
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Went out and hit some great video this weekend, I call it “forbidden footage” because...well...they kicked me out 5 minutes after I was done.

Anyway, my color and camera setting skills are sorely lacking (YouTube qaulity doesn’t help) so I’m looking for feedback. I need to brighten image up but every time I try it gets completely blown out, it’s either too dark or way too bright. Looking at this video what one or two specific settings should I be adjusting in post? I’m using video pad pro. It has way too many settings I’m still trying to learn....color, saturation, brightness, red,blue, Green..exposure, contrast, temperature, RGB ETC...and everything else under the sun. I don’t know which specific setting I should be adjusting. I shot at 2.7k auto 30FPS with white balance lock on c23. Iso 200..., maybe at one point I think I had shutter at 1/1400 OR 1/1800 (if that’s the correct verbiage), think I expirememted with those two settings.

Clouds were in and out and a little overcast being on the ocean.

Am I correct in saying it’s too saturated?

Thanks.


It's not so much two things.

1) Always record at 2.7k 30fps, then downscale to 1080p and do post with the 1080p footage it will be a lot easier to work with. Usually you can export the video and save as 1080p once you have brought it into the program. Starting at 2.7k downscaled is actually better quality than starting at 1080p especially if you are uploading to YouTube or social media. Each of them compress the files and this will help maintain sharpness and quality.
2) Color looks good.
3) You need to set your white balance before recording as it is too high and you are getting blowout at points above the horizon. Do this by pointing up at the bright spot and then set it from that point.
4) Transitions are fine.
5) Beginning credit is not readable due to font color being too dark. Don't bother getting fancy with credits till you get better with camera setting.
5) Watch your camera panning to keep it smooth. You can also correct this by starting the shot a few seconds before the actual footage you want to you. Then you can clip the unwanted portion keeping the smooth pan.

Other than that it was fairly well done. Don't stress out about getting it right the first time. Learn each function the camera has first. When I teach people about photography, one of the first things I get them to do is go out and learn one camera function per week then move to the next one. Once you have learned how the camera works, editing will get a lot easier. Rule of thumb.....garbage in, garbage out.


Murray
 
It's not so much two things.

1) Always record at 2.7k 30fps, then downscale to 1080p and do post with the 1080p footage it will be a lot easier to work with. Usually you can export the video and save as 1080p once you have brought it into the program. Starting at 2.7k downscaled is actually better quality than starting at 1080p especially if you are uploading to YouTube or social media. Each of them compress the files and this will help maintain sharpness and quality.
2) Color looks good.
3) You need to set your white balance before recording as it is too high and you are getting blowout at points above the horizon. Do this by pointing up at the bright spot and then set it from that point.
4) Transitions are fine.
5) Beginning credit is not readable due to font color being too dark. Don't bother getting fancy with credits till you get better with camera setting.
5) Watch your camera panning to keep it smooth. You can also correct this by starting the shot a few seconds before the actual footage you want to you. Then you can clip the unwanted portion keeping the smooth pan.

Other than that it was fairly well done. Don't stress out about getting it right the first time. Learn each function the camera has first. When I teach people about photography, one of the first things I get them to do is go out and learn one camera function per week then move to the next one. Once you have learned how the camera works, editing will get a lot easier. Rule of thumb.....garbage in, garbage out.


Murray

Thanks Murray, good advice. I believe when I locked in white balance (I thought I locked it in) I tilted camera up pointing straight at blue sky and locked it. What is the best point or color to lock it in on before shooting, and is it better to leave it on auto if the cloud cover is the same ..I.e ...no clouds so no shadows/all cloudy so no shadows. Maybe a better question is when is it best to lock WB and when is it best not to lock it.

In regards to the pan: I tried something different, started to pan after passing a boat and then panned the next clip in the same direction, I was trying for continuity between them but it might have come off as an annoying pan movement. But for the most part I’m not a fan of panning while filming and like the straight 5-10 second shots transitioned together.
 
I believe when I locked in white balance (I thought I locked it in) I tilted camera up pointing straight at blue sky and locked it. What is the best point or color to lock it in on before shooting, and is it better to leave it on auto if the cloud cover is the same ..I.e ...no clouds so no shadows/all cloudy so no shadows. Maybe a better question is when is it best to lock WB and when is it best not to lock it.

Using the blue sky as a reference will not give you optimal results. It is best to do the white balance with the camera pointed at something err... white. :) There are cards made for such measurements, but you can always use piece of white cardstock from any copy shop. And always lock the white balance afterward.
 
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One word of warning, I'd be very leery of getting that close to a metal bridge. It could screw your drone's compass up. Believe it or not I had a problem with interference from a handicapped parking sign one time. I was setting the drone down near the edge of a parking lot and never even thought that the sign could do something like that.

I had a really great launch site for a project I was working on but there were towers for high voltage power lines running right behind it. I did some research and saw that it'd be okay as long as I stayed 100 feet away from the power lines. In the end I opted not to use that launch site. There's a balance between getting a great shot and risking losing a drone.
 
Thanks Murray, good advice. I believe when I locked in white balance (I thought I locked it in) I tilted camera up pointing straight at blue sky and locked it. What is the best point or color to lock it in on before shooting, and is it better to leave it on auto if the cloud cover is the same ..I.e ...no clouds so no shadows/all cloudy so no shadows. Maybe a better question is when is it best to lock WB and when is it best not to lock it.

In regards to the pan: I tried something different, started to pan after passing a boat and then panned the next clip in the same direction, I was trying for continuity between them but it might have come off as an annoying pan movement. But for the most part I’m not a fan of panning while filming and like the straight 5-10 second shots transitioned together.
As @Eagle's Eye Video mentioned, there are cards to use, but they are for a more controlled environment such as inside or for an overcast day. Try to point to the brightest white cloud or edge of cloud spot, avoid pointing directly at the sun as it may cause damage to the camera sensor.
 
ND filters..
 
ND filters..

If possible I’d like to stay away from ND filters. I’m not going for a video product that I’ll be selling for a high dollar amount which will get scrutinized by a discerning eye. Next year I’d like to get into some real estate/function type work where I can get away with just a nice looking photo/video for the layman.

Plus I’m not ready for ND filters as that will be another moving part that’ll affect other camera settings.....when I don’t even have a grasp on said camera settings yet. I would think I could accomplisg the quality I’m looking for through post-production. As of now I don’t know the first thing about ND filters and don’t want to further complicate my learning.

Besides, the video to my eye looks almost too dark, wouldn’t. Filters block out even more light?

I would like to learn how to prevent my sky from getting washed out, and really get a contrast in the blue sky/white clouds, but not sure what setting in the camera/post production affects that.
 
What seems to be the key element here is not white balance, but rather exposure. Am I missing something else?

@Done-guy, neutral density filters will help when the conditions don’t let us get the shutter speed slow enough for proper video. E.g. twice the frame rate - 30 FPS equates to an optimal shutter speed of 1/60s. Again, for video.

As for the video you posted, there is often a compromise or sacrifice decision to make: does one want a perfectly exposed sky at the expense of darker than desired landscape, or is the critical subject what is on the ground, rendering the sky not as important?

Some adjustments in post are possible, but as many photographers will attest, getting it as close to “right” in the camera often is the best tact to take.

Hoping what I and others have had passed along by those before us, over the years, can help.

By the way, I thoroughly enjoyed the video. Kept my attention the whole way. That is the major objective, in my book anyway!

Good luck!

Jeff
 
What seems to be the key element here is not white balance, but rather exposure. Am I missing something else?

@Done-guy, neutral density filters will help when the conditions don’t let us get the shutter speed slow enough for proper video. E.g. twice the frame rate - 30 FPS equates to an optimal shutter speed of 1/60s. Again, for video.

As for the video you posted, there is often a compromise or sacrifice decision to make: does one want a perfectly exposed sky at the expense of darker than desired landscape, or is the critical subject what is on the ground, rendering the sky not as important?

Some adjustments in post are possible, but as many photographers will attest, getting it as close to “right” in the camera often is the best tact to take.

Hoping what I and others have had passed along by those before us, over the years, can help.

By the way, I thoroughly enjoyed the video. Kept my attention the whole way. That is the major objective, in my book anyway!

Good luck!

Jeff

Thanks Jeff, appreciate the feedback. I never really thought of it that way (making a compromise). I guess it’s one of things I’m learning in my journey, namely-I can’t have my cake and eat it to when it comes to the sky or landscape. I.E one of them will suffer in some way if choosing the other.
 
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The one thing I’ll add to what the others have put forth. You can recover details from areas that are too dark, but once an area is blown out (overexposed to the point of being pure white) there is very little you can do to get it back.

Experiment with photos capturing them in Raw (DNG) with natural setting. Expose so the sky doesn’t get blown out, then tinker with the exposure, highlights, and shadows in post. You can get more latitude from the dng files than you can with the jpg files.
 
As a photographer (portrait and high school senior) I can relate to the compromise thing. I always tried to set everything as it should be in camera, but sometimes had to adjust in PS. I would calibrate my monitor and then set skin tones in the images. After that, everything else would fall where it may (within reason).
 
Hi Great video beautifully done ??.
I think you may have got a bit close to the tug boat however and they may perhaps have said something.
I always fine if you ask someone in charge at administration they always say yes as long as they get a copy to use.
For me i never say no and they always give you ( 50/50 of the time) a private 30 mins slot before public arrive.

I have to ask how many batteries did you use, and like the video don't stop doing them ??.
 
Hi Great video beautifully done [emoji122][emoji122].
I think you may have got a bit close to the tug boat however and they may perhaps have said something.
I always fine if you ask someone in charge at administration they always say yes as long as they get a copy to use.
For me i never say no and they always give you ( 50/50 of the time) a private 30 mins slot before public arrive.

I have to ask how many batteries did you use, and like the video don't stop doing them [emoji122]?.

Hey Taz, thanks for the kind words. You could be right about the tug because I actually have about a full minute of the drone following the back of the tug very close, which is a really great clip. I didn’t incorporate it into movie because to me anything longer than a few seconds gets boring, and I try to follow the “leave them wanting more” in my video making philosophy. I can definetly envision them calling the rangers on me though. lol. I’m finding that People either really love the drones or really hate them. I wasn’t flying over any people other than maybe one or two upon landing as I was right on the edge of the water when I launched. I try not to fly over any people at all when I go up.

Part of the fun for me is walking the line of trying to video great subject matter that may be in the grey area of whether or not I’m allowed to get it....short of breaking the law of course. If I get kicked out I sincerely apologize to them and say “ok, now I know”. I find as long as im not endangering anyone with my flying, sincere and polite in apologizing for flying there, there’s usually no issues. A couple times I’ve had people change their minds and allowed me to stay when they realized I wasn’t harming anyone. Most people’s initial reaction when flying near them is that we’re spying on them, no idea why but that’s been the consensus. Anyway, that “grey area” philosophy may not be for everyone but I can’t just take pictures of an open field or trees for hours on end or I’d probably give this hobby up due to boredom.

I only used a battery and a half, probably less than 30 minutes.
 
Yeah I know what you mean ?
But you have the eye and your video is stunning and perfect in many ways ???

Wow only 1 and a half cool ???

Over here we have to be licensed and have id's showing when we fly. And have iq tags on every drone but when i have meet resistance I tell them I am with the CAA and fully qualified to fly any UAV and if they want I will let the see what I have been videoing and that always does the trick.
After that the public are happy and they always leave happy knowing I am not one of those people who buzz around people and Tick people off. ( Change Tick for a 4 letter word ??. )

I have to say when your flying up there and look down around, you see a entirely different world, I really envy birds sometimes ?
 
Yeah I know what you mean [emoji57]
But you have the eye and your video is stunning and perfect in many ways [emoji106][emoji122][emoji122]

Wow only 1 and a half cool [emoji6][emoji846][emoji846]

Over here we have to be licensed and have id's showing when we fly. And have iq tags on every drone but when i have meet resistance I tell them I am with the CAA and fully qualified to fly any UAV and if they want I will let the see what I have been videoing and that always does the trick.
After that the public are happy and they always leave happy knowing I am not one of those people who buzz around people and Tick people off. ( Change Tick for a 4 letter word [emoji6][emoji6]. )

I have to say when your flying up there and look down around, you see a entirely different world, I really envy birds sometimes [emoji854]

Sounds cheesy but that why I got into this hobby in the first place..for years I’ve always been fascinated with birds and flying, and yes envied them for how they’re able to see the world us humans aren’t allowed.
 
No thats no cheesy and thats the same for me too... just looking up at the beautiful blue sky and wanting to just fly up there free ...... wouldn't that be cool, with Mr Blue Sky playing in my head ...
 
The exposure look good. As others have said, getting the exposure right for both sky and ground subjects is not always possible (without HDR). The best compromise seems to be to expose a little darker than looks right on the controller to get some of the sky right. Then bring up the dark areas in post. The clouds and boat wakes have a yellow tint. Add a little blue in post. I show the camera a white/grey card (fill the screen as much as possible) then lock the white balance before taking off. But really, your video is beautiful. Keep up the good work.
 
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