DJI Air 3 - 48mp? What the Reviews didn't tell us!

I have replaced my DJI Mavic 2 Pro with the recent Air 3. Was that a stupid thing to do? Or is the 12 MP sensor actually good enough? Or perhaps even better than the 1" Hasselblad camera?
Here we answer three questions so far not really tested by all the reviews I have found:
1) Is the digital zoom any good in video mode?
2) Can it really take 48 MP images in still?
3) Which max ISO can we use in video?
One very important consideration is: Can I live without the variable aperture or will I be missing it?
#djiair3

Пікірлер: 33

  • @MontagoDK
    @MontagoDK3 ай бұрын

    Thanks for this detailed test ! - I've been looking for something like this for a while and havent found it until now. Its funny how a still picture can look so sharp when pictures taken from a flying drone becomes so fuzzy at times.

  • @MattMesserPics

    @MattMesserPics

    3 ай бұрын

    Very glad it was useful. I also couldn't find anything, and I think you need to know these things to make a good judgement before buying. Anyway, it is a fantastic piece of kit...

  • @MontagoDK

    @MontagoDK

    3 ай бұрын

    ​@@MattMesserPics excatly , DJI doesnt provide any samples or benchmarks of the camera capabilites , they merely throw out some megapixel numbers and let people figure it all out themselves. DPReview and similar has for a long time benchmarked cameras up against eachother to make the informed choice of gear upgrades - i think the world might need something like that :) It also drives innovation and competition if you have quality numbers against each brand

  • @alanmaher
    @alanmaher24 күн бұрын

    I was researching similar questions. Thank you! 😊

  • @MattMesserPics

    @MattMesserPics

    23 күн бұрын

    Great to let me know that it was useful, thanks!

  • @skf957
    @skf9573 ай бұрын

    I've had my Mini 4 Pro for 4 months now and still haven't used the zoom. I sort of expected it to be useless and you have confirmed that for me. Thanks for this vid - very informative and well presented.

  • @MattMesserPics

    @MattMesserPics

    3 ай бұрын

    Thanks for that - encourages me to do more!

  • @tinof5829
    @tinof58293 ай бұрын

    Thank you so much for the great video. I do not usually subscribe to most channels but you I have and for "two" main reasons I did. 1) You spoke clearly, precisely and professionally. 2) You replied to all the comments, "that" is VERY important to me. Thank you again.

  • @MattMesserPics

    @MattMesserPics

    3 ай бұрын

    Thanks for that! I hope I can keep those high standards. And yes, I do make a point of responding to every comment, but it may take a day or so when I'm travelling. Enjoy watching!

  • @museonfilm8919
    @museonfilm89193 ай бұрын

    That digital zoom was very 'crunchy' looking. But, much like my street photography, I don't bother with a zoom - I just get closer!

  • @MattMesserPics

    @MattMesserPics

    3 ай бұрын

    That's exactly what I do. But I was curious if zoom is a useable feature of the drone. Alas...

  • @BMacksAerialVisuals
    @BMacksAerialVisuals3 ай бұрын

    Pretty much re-enforces my decision to pass on this model of drone from DJI. In it's stead, I did purchase the Mini 4 Pro, which has basically the same camera traits (minus the 70mm zoom). For the money, I'm very happy with the Mini 4 Pro's camera, especially in low light which is where I like to shoot most often. I also have the 1" sensor Autel Evo Lite+ which is on par with the Mavic 2 Pro. I still believe the crispness of the 1" sensor far exceeds the slight softness I get from the Mini 4 Pro.

  • @MattMesserPics

    @MattMesserPics

    3 ай бұрын

    Thanks for that! I think you made exactly the right decision there, but for me, the 70mm camera was the main reason to switch. I guess it was a bit stupid of me to sell the M2Pro (I got next to nothing for it) as I can now no longer make comparisons.

  • @mikemcgrath5188
    @mikemcgrath51883 ай бұрын

    i think 1600 iso on modern sensors looks like 400 iso film stock, not too shabby. when ever i shoot higher iso, "i'm going for the artsy look."

  • @MattMesserPics

    @MattMesserPics

    3 ай бұрын

    Exactly! For Photos: Don't be afraid of some grain! And for videos: It won't be so apparent anyway! Thanks for that comment!

  • @CaptureLifeConnection
    @CaptureLifeConnection3 ай бұрын

    Excellent information 👍👍 I ended up passing on the Air 3. I’m still enjoying my Air 2s. I have friends that receive DJI drones for review so I was able to test the Air 3 and I was impressed. Still, I wish it had a 1” sensor.

  • @MattMesserPics

    @MattMesserPics

    3 ай бұрын

    Thanks for that! I'm actually happy with the sensor size - matches 4k video - but I really miss the variable aperture. But then, not even the Mavic 3 Pro has that on the tele-camera.

  • @CaptureLifeConnection

    @CaptureLifeConnection

    3 ай бұрын

    @@MattMesserPics variable aperture is great to have on a drone. I still own and fly a Phantom 4 Pro. It’s such a beast of a drone.

  • @UmbertoUderzo
    @UmbertoUderzoАй бұрын

    Thanks for the test. I tought that a digital zoom on a raw 48 mp sensor could give something on video but looks that on video they keep the 12 mp mode. I'm coming from and old Mini2 and would like to upgrade. I'm on the fence between the Air3 and Mini4 and Air3 is appealing for its wind resistance and 70mm lens (I'll use it to shoot mountain videos) but what stops me is the backpack space and weight that will prevent me bringing the drone on long trips. Guess I'd go for the Mini4 and live with its physical limitations...

  • @MattMesserPics

    @MattMesserPics

    Ай бұрын

    Thanks for the comment! If you don't need the 70mm lens, then I'd indeed recommend the Mini4. Don't underestimate the wind resistance - my son has the Mini 2 and it is better than my old and much heavier Mavic 2 Pro.

  • @UmbertoUderzo

    @UmbertoUderzo

    Ай бұрын

    @@MattMesserPics Thank you for your reply! I managed to fly my Mini2 in limit conditions (when the gimbal starts losing the horizon). From what i read the Mini4 wind resistence is similar to the Mini2. It may be slightly uncomfortable sometimes but i must admit that the little one managed to complete the mission. That said, i understand that fitting an Air2 into the backpack can be troublesome but i can see its strenghts. It's a difficult choice indeed. From your experience, how do you rate Mini4 toughness in respect to the Mini2? Given the same weight i guess that Mini4 is similarly built (paper plane like i mean)

  • @Theoneready
    @Theoneready3 ай бұрын

    thanks for the video

  • @MattMesserPics

    @MattMesserPics

    3 ай бұрын

    Glad if you found it useful!

  • @Skybydrone972
    @Skybydrone9723 ай бұрын

    From what i can see on m'y dji air 3 is that with the 70camera noise is really something you can see the 70 is not for night or low light now for the Iso the losy in quality is visible à 1600 in any case i only go to 400 Iso max .For the photo now 48mp is way better than using the 12mp even if we all know that is not à real 48 mp

  • @MattMesserPics

    @MattMesserPics

    3 ай бұрын

    Thank you! So you more or less have similar conclusions, but I really should have looked at both cameras separately for ISO noise. I guess we all miss variable aperture,

  • @danewesterdahl3451
    @danewesterdahl34513 ай бұрын

    Hmm. I would say that your findings should also apply the mini4. Same camera resolution. Right ? Thus it seems worthwhile to set to 48 up. Overall I fund the 2s did a better job at Stills. This may help. Thanks

  • @MattMesserPics

    @MattMesserPics

    3 ай бұрын

    From what I can see, the mini4 has the exact same sensor, so, yes, it should all apply there. Unfortunately, I never tried out an Air 2s. Perhaps it was a mistake to give the Mavic 2 Pro away - you can imagine how little I got for it. Now I cannot make any direct comparisons. You are probably aware of Stewart Carroll's comparison chart. Careful, he's a CGI-fanboy, but he knows his stuff and the numbers are correct, of course. Thanks for the useful comment!

  • @danewesterdahl3451

    @danewesterdahl3451

    3 ай бұрын

    The air 3 and mini4 would be vastly better with a bigger and better sensor. Unfortunately they they would be cutting into the sales of the Mavic 3 series. It just seems like a marketing decision. Perhaps there will be an air 3s in a couple of months that will bring back bigger sensors. There was so much hype when the mini4 and air 3 came out that we were all convinced that they were better than reality. You post is the clearest testing Ive seen that confirms my opinion. I did set my mini up to 48 mp setting. I will be happy to get a 20 or so mp image. Thanks so much.@@MattMesserPics

  • @J5388T
    @J5388T3 ай бұрын

    The '48 MP' shots will be achieved via some sort of Pixel shift arrangement, how DJI merge them and keep moving objects sharp I've no idea!

  • @MattMesserPics

    @MattMesserPics

    3 ай бұрын

    Ahh - OK. Well, the important thing is that it works, even if 48 MP is very optimistic. The pictures I've got so far (I only have it for 3 weeks now) seem every bit as good as what I got out of the Mavic 2 Pro. Thanks!

  • @eprohoda
    @eprohoda3 ай бұрын

    How u oing?, Matthias~ you did pro ~have a great day! )

  • @MattMesserPics

    @MattMesserPics

    3 ай бұрын

    Thanks mate! Hope you're having a great time, too!

  • @1234j

    @1234j

    3 ай бұрын

    Well. I didn't know I needed to watch this, but I did... and I DID. Excellent stuff. Thank you. Cheers 🎉

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