Is there any way to rig a P3 to get video footage of the sky above? I will be on a ship in the Arctic next month. We will have two P3's. I was thinking that it would be awesome to use the drone to get footage of the northern lights. One of the problems on a ship is the motion. I was thinking that the drone would provide a nice and stable view, and it would help that you can adjust the brightness. Would the gimbal still function if I am holding the drone upside down? If so, I might try that approach. I have been on a ship in the Arctic before. Up at those latitudes, the northern lights are stunning. There are amazing green bands of light that stretch from horizon to horizon and pass directly overhead. I am not a camera expert. Can anyone verify whether the P3 would be capable of capturing the northern lights and what would be appropriate video settings?
Any way to get video of the sky above?
- Thread starter cinclodes
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I wouldn't expect to get the colors that you're looking for from any Phantom... There are lots of great video cameras out there or - Sony α6000 E-mount camera with APS-C Sensor does both really well for a lower price then a DSLR..
alokbhargava
Premium Pilot
Thanks so much for the inputs! Since I will be on a ship, it won't be possible to take long exposures. I was hoping the P3 camera might do a decent job with the right setting. Oh well, I will just have to take the pix with my eyes!
You would probably need 15 sec at ISO 1600 (with f2.8 aperture) to produce a nice image. Very difficult, If not impossible, to achieve with the phantom.
The longer exposure you can get from your phantom is 8sec. Just not enough.
Read here carefully:
Sony a6000 Astrophotography Review
Or - https://www.amazon.com/Glide-Gear-Motorized-Mirrorless-Stabilizer/dp/B01IRLZDBE
Osmo style 3 axis gyro camera stabilizer with a good camera would be best. Being that the Northern lights are moving all of the time, there shouldn't be a problem taking some great video.
I use to love it in Northern Alaska in December. Ribbons of different colored electricity dancing like snakes in the sky. Farther south or in the fall just doesn't compare to the lights close to the Winter solstice
Osmo style 3 axis gyro camera stabilizer with a good camera would be best. Being that the Northern lights are moving all of the time, there shouldn't be a problem taking some great video.
I use to love it in Northern Alaska in December. Ribbons of different colored electricity dancing like snakes in the sky. Farther south or in the fall just doesn't compare to the lights close to the Winter solstice
Guys, the OP was asking about taking video. I say give it a try. See my earlier post about pointing above the horizon and use the same setting that you would for normal video shoots. That is ISO about 100, shutter 1/60 (assuming 30 fps). If you can fly from the ship, why wouldn't you try it? Don't pass up an opportunity to take cottage of a spectacular phenomena! And post the video here when you get back so we can all be envious!!
I have been in Greenland for 2 weeks - leaving for Iceland tomorrow. I tried aurora video and photos with my P3P and just couldn't get anything good. But with a Canon 5D mkIII I was able to take great stuff. Beautiful timelapses even. I have been mostly shooting 8 sec frames at 1600 ISO. Any longer and the movement of the aurora isn't as sharp.
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First, you don't need to be straight up. Especially over water or flat ground, the wide angle of a P3 will give you plenty of picture. The P3 should not need anywhere near a 15 second exposure at ISO 1600 to get a decent image of a bright aurora. At high latitudes it gets pretty bright - especially if you are over snow. Two or three seconds should suffice.
Remember, though the Phantom camera is anything but a high ISO performer. Think 3 year old cell phone. At ISO 100, where you get decent results you are probably talking about a 10 second image. I won't use anything over ISO 400 and that only in a pinch (aliens landing)
But a P3 is the wrong tool for the job. You want an Osmo. Or better yet, a Ronin with a decent DSLR.
Sooner or later I hope I'll have tha chance to see these stunning lights...I use to love it in Northern Alaska in December. Ribbons of different colored electricity dancing like snakes in the sky. Farther south or in the fall just doesn't compare to the lights close to the Winter solstice
I live in Italy and no nothern lights at all down here. But as I said, sooner or later...
Aurora borealis and aurora australis are blurry so a shutter speed of a few seconds does not matter.
Initially I wondered why you'd need to capture them from a drone when you could use a DSLR on a tripod.
But shooting them from above might be great:
Initially I wondered why you'd need to capture them from a drone when you could use a DSLR on a tripod.
But shooting them from above might be great:
Actually they are really crisp, sometimes like red and green snakes whipping in the air kind of like a laser light show. I saw that first video and it really is not a good quality video of the Northern Lights because there isn't any blur in real life. Unless you have bad eyes
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