Lens Issues

[wernerjb]

Coming from Yuneec Drones and even an Xstar I find the lens on the Evo2 6K too narrow. Anyone has the same problem?

 

[herein2021]

Coming from Yuneec Drones and even an Xstar I find the lens on the Evo2 6K too narrow. Anyone has the same problem?

I discussed the pros and cons of the narrower FOV here. I personally don't find the FOV a problem, I'd rather less distortion than a wider FOV, but I mostly film events, people, promo videos etc.......if I did mostly landscape I think I would care more about it.

 

[herein2021]

Coming from Yuneec Drones and even an Xstar I find the lens on the Evo2 6K too narrow. Anyone has the same problem?

Actually, the more I think about the narrower FOV the more I like it; mainly due to the decrease in barrel distortion. As I mentioned, I mostly shoot events and film people more so than landscapes so the narrower FOV is better for those scenarios. But thinking about landscapes some more....when I am filming a truly nice landscape like that perfect sunset or waterfall with a drone, I have always shot a 3 or 4 shot panorama then stitched the images together in post. This increases the effective resolution and increases the FOV regardless of the starting FOV. Based on the reduction of barrel distortion; these 3 or 4 shot panos will actually be higher quality with a lens that has a narrower FOV.

When it comes to video, the narrower FOV helps as well; since the narrower FOV increases the perception of motion; and in video more motion is usually better. It definitely takes a little getting used to when compared to drones with wider FOVs but I do think the pros outweigh the cons in this situation. I still remember shooting with the GoPros and their nearly fisheye looking 120 degree lenses; the distortion out of those cameras was terrible.

 

[wernerjb]

I shoot mostly landscapes and like the wider view better than what the Evo2 lens gives me. I have to send the drone much further away to capture the same view then on my other drones and I deal with the barrel distortion in LR.
I like the look when I shoot a beach with palm trees and I look almost straight down on the trees and the beach and still have the horizon in the shot - it is almost like flying with a helicopter without the door shooting with a 16 mm lens.
I can't get that feeling with the Evo2.
But thanks for your response.

 

[Rubik3x]

It's a matter of taste. I shoot almost entirely landscape video with my E2P. My favorite move to capture more of the scene is to fly sideways. In my opinion, this looks much better than panning. You get a sense of depth between near and far objects.

 

[herein2021]

It's a matter of taste. I shoot almost entirely landscape video with my E2P. My favorite move to capture more of the scene is to fly sideways. In my opinion, this looks much better than panning. You get a sense of depth between near and far objects.

I feel the same way, I never pan unless I'm tracking an object and even then I combine it with forward movement if at all possible. My own personal favorite move is the orbit. Orbit, dolly, pedestal, and tilt; put together into different combinations depending on the subject material are my typical drone movements. Panning is not one of them. Trucking left/right combined with a pedestal up tends to make for a nice reveal opening scene as well which you can then transition into an orbit to keep the reveal interesting. Especially if you have good foreground material like trees or buildings to enhance the reveal.

I shoot mostly landscapes and like the wider view better than what the Evo2 lens gives me. I have to send the drone much further away to capture the same view then on my other drones and I deal with the barrel distortion in LR.
I like the look when I shoot a beach with palm trees and I look almost straight down on the trees and the beach and still have the horizon in the shot - it is almost like flying with a helicopter without the door shooting with a 16 mm lens.
I can't get that feeling with the Evo2.
But thanks for your response.

You are right.....for that scenario a wider lens will work much better. No way to get that same look and feel for that scenario with the EVO II 6K's FOV. I did some checking...the FOV of the lens is a 35mm in FF. I think now I know why I like the look so much....crowds look so good at that focal length without distortion; but its definitely not a landscape 14mm or 16mm FF equivalent lens.