One May Morning

Golden mist envelops a forest in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia at sunrise.

[@RoyRogersMusicShop]

Wonderful imagery and soft piano are a perfect fit for the early AM lighting

[@LUXaerialfilms]

Thanks, Roy. The forests and mountains are sure in fantastic form these past couple of weeks. I hope you’ve been able to get out and enjoy it a bit.

[@petr-podrouzek]

Fantastic !!! :-)

[@LUXaerialfilms]

I happen to think so, also.... well, the scenery at least. My shooting and editing skills still lack much to be desired. But, hopefully, it’s getting better.

[@antdx316]

What drone control settings were you set to making this video?

[@LUXaerialfilms]

Hi Anthony. All shots were made at 30fps and a shutter speed of 60. PolarPro ND filters were used throughout. For the shots which I planned and used a LUT, which account for about 2/3rds of the scenes in this video, I shot with dLog-m and the settings were 0 or +1 sharpness, -3 contrast, and I left the saturation unchanged. For the few shots were no LUT was planned, I simply shot with the normal color profile and changed the contrast by -1 to help reduce some of the digital noise. Does that help?

[@antdx316]

@@LUXaerialfilms What happens if you shoot at 1/30 vs 1/60? What ND filter numbers were you at? As for the controls, I meant were you using cinematic? Tripod (tripod settings too)? normal mode (what expos), etc. : ) Is shooting w/ dLog-m better than w/o?

[@LUXaerialfilms]

Anthony, as a rule of thumb, you always want your FPS to be double your shutter speed. You can work out the math to shoot in the shutter speed of your choice, and then use filters when the camera cannot properly expose the image due to using the previously state rule. When done correctly, which takes lots of practice and quickly camera adjustments, you can achieve footage which looks cinematic. As to LUT or no LUT, that all depends on the situation and would take more time to explain... if I could even do so. Typically, when in doubt, go with dLogM, because that will give you the most control over your footage in post production.

[@LUXaerialfilms]

Anthony, and no, I never use the cinematic mode, never. It’s too non-responsive. I use normal mode most of the time, unless I’m VERY close to the subject I’m filming (within 10 feet), and use tripod mode in those circumstances.... and practice smooth flying always. Just build a habit of never allowing yourself quick, jerky motions.

[@LUXaerialfilms]

Anthony, as to exposure... typically if you’re going to use a LUT you should have the image exposed to 0, otherwise the LUT will not apply appropriately. When using normal color, exposure can be a little bit more flexible. Well, I’ve tried to sum up how I made this video. If you really want to get good with your drone’s camera, start reading and watching videos about normal photography methods.... it will help you tremendously.

[@The-Northern]

EPIC! Deserves a sub from me!!!