The Best Drone for Photography? DJI AIR 3 Review

I've always had mixed feelings with it comes to drone photography. Some days I feel like it's cheating, other days I have so much fun flying around the islands.
Recently, I picked up the DJI Air 3 and have been loving my experience flying it so far, mostly because of some of its new and improved features which I discuss in this video
Skip to the section that's important to you
Love/Hate Relationship with Drones 00:53
Ocusync 4 Test 02:40
Wide Angle vs Telephoto Lens 04:37
Range Test 08:13
Portability Test 13:05
High Wind Test 17:00
Size Comparison vs Mavic 19:47
Video Specs 20:15
Battery Life 21:31
Intelligent Flight Modes 22:45
Who this drone is for/not for 23:30
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@spencerlee808

[@1chrisandrew1]

Awesome review of the DJI Air 3, Spencer. This is a great help. Super photos as well - great work

[@2dronesphotography]

This is the best review I have seen on the air 3 - I really like the way you break all the components down - fantastic! Thank you

[@RandomCityLights]

Hey Spencer, very nice review of the drone. Others are often so much focusing on the specs only, but your mix with real flying sessions makes me really want to go out and fly it. Good job! 😊

[@spencerlee808]

Thanks so much! I kinda want my reviews to be less formal and more casual!

[@dwaynepedals]

This is for sure my next drone. Huge upgrade from my OG Mavic Air. Awesome video!

[@K5QBF]

Nice review, and I love the scenery you have to produce the content. ❤

[@2bsure]

Awesome review and some super awesome captures. This is why I bought a drone, to enhance my photography and get images a camera cannot reach.

[@amosdasilva]

Great Video , thank you to make this Video possible

[@theaprum1]

It's useful and informative, thanks.

[@BeyALdroneID]

Hi, nice to meet you, I'm from Indonesia, wow, very good shooting, drone photography, thank you for sharing your knowledge

[@MechaExists]

Great Video, keep up the good work!

[@spencerlee808]

Thanks so much!

[@holisticaustralia]

G'day Spencer, Juddy here.. from Australia 🇦🇺 I notice you are building a channel and just want to say keep up the good work Bro, I am working on building a channel also and I am looking to buy a drone next year to improve my ratings, the air 3 is definitely on my radar and thanks to channels like yours I can make an informed decision confidently. Thanks mate, I am sub no. 748 and I will be following your growth into the future.. 😊👍

[@restiedelfin315]

Great video. Hope to fly and take some videos of those mountains when I come out there again.

[@spencerlee808]

yes, these mountains are something else!

[@flakoman27]

Good review Spencer !! just a comment @test range. you should be facing your drone/ islands ... parallel antenas / for better results .

[@CeeJayBee]

Enjoyed the breakdown. I’m gonna have to get one soon, I’ve held off for awhile but this drone looks too good to pass up.

[@JoyCool1]

Great Video!

[@caesaremmanuelnavarro3233]

wow what a great shot i just bought my air3 yesterday and i cant wait to test it how far it will go but that kind of far in your vid i dont think i can do that how many ft is it? my mini b4fore i can only go 2km how many km is that?

[@1dale1dale]

Love the shots. Are the panorama shots taken with the drone shooting mode or do you take the photos separately and stitch them together in post?

[@spencerlee808]

Stitched together in post

[@elemiya.]

ラニカイの素晴らしい映像を提供してくれてありがとう😊

[@fergnjude]

G'day Spencer great review, what program do you use to stitch your photos for your Panoramas.

[@spencerlee808]

photoshop!

[@katknights2819]

great review, thank you.. I'm new to drones and want one. I can not decide between dji air 3 or mini pro 4 question please - did you use filters in these videos? if yes, which ones? Can you do a video without filters. I just like the air 3 do to videos seem better quality, plus better fight times, weight for windy days is better over the sub 250 drone.

[@spencerlee808]

I didn't use any filters for these videos... yes the 180 degree shutter rule is important but not essential, especially for drone photography, more for filming people... but yes the stability of the air 3 vs the mini is a big plus

[@D8Droner-xj5tg]

Great video tutorial was so amazing 👍👍👍❤❤️🇵🇭

[@spencerlee808]

Thanks so much!

[@D8Droner-xj5tg]

@@spencerlee808 ❤️

[@Cpt_Tony]

Love this review. Everyone was bitching around because of the camera not having a 1 inch sensor. And they're not completely wrong. Especially during low light conditions the Pictures come out pretty noisy and generally not that great. But as soon as these sensors get good lighting conditions they're just amazing!

[@spencerlee808]

I think even in low light with the low light ai editing the video comes out pretty good

[@Cpt_Tony]

@@spencerlee808 I wasn't specific enough! You're right! The low light video performance of this drone is nothing short of amazing, the low light photo performance not so much.

[@flexable222]

Can the dji Mavic 3 Propellers work on the dji air3?

[@nahokuart]

Excellent review brother! I am a total noob when it comes to drones. Do you think they are stable enough to handle astrophotography?

[@spencerlee808]

Hmm ive never tried… but will definitely see next mw season!

[@sebastiantreloar6045]

I would say it wouldn’t be good for long exposures but stacking lots of 2sec exposures would probably work

[@nahokuart]

@@sebastiantreloar6045 thanks yeah I figured they are not stable enough with the wind and all. May try that!

[@user-ob3jm5up1w]

Hallo Spencer, Du lebst in einer so schönen Gegend. Die Aufnahmen und Erklärungen sind gut verständlich. Man kann was lernen. Ich habe meine AIR3 aus den gleichen Gründen wie Du gekauft. Ganz ehrlich: Den spektakulären Flug zu den Inseln hätte ich mir nicht getraut. Außerdem ist sowas in Deutschland auch nicht erlaubt. Leider. VG Gert

[@ConnorRyanDD]

Was there any issue getting clearance? Where was the location of this area?

[@carlos1982]

Best off using the 12mp and reducing tge sharpness a little

[@AzariaAerialsLLC]

Wow

[@jordanarnold9845]

Any thoughts on the Mini 4 Pro update? Lacks the telephoto, but the Occusync 4 should help with the range issues you were having before

[@spencerlee808]

Definitely! If i was looking for something super small and light with good range, that would be my pick… but idk if its a must upgrade for a mini 3 user…

[@JoshConnectMedia]

I'd suggest you go for the Air 3. Am gonna swab my Mini 4 pro for the Air 3 soon.

[@jordanarnold9845]

@@JoshConnectMediawhat’s the draw on the air3 over the Mini 4 Pro for you?

[@JoshConnectMedia]

@@jordanarnold9845 1. Wind resistance isn’t that great but usable though . Becos of the light weight of the mini 4 pro . If you frequently fly around heavy and high mountainous areas , the confidence level of the wind is sometimes a bit uncomfortable . 2. The telephoto lens of the Air 3 ofcos . But generally if you don’t mind these stuff , the mini 4 pro is sweet . I’ve enjoyed flying it though.

[@youssefkarmous6227]

@@jordanarnold9845 I have the mini 3 pro and I just bought the air 3. I like how small and compact the mini 3 is, I basically can fly it anywhere without headache, no registration or certification required, but what pushed me to get the air 3 is the wind resistance, with the mini you need to pay attention when/where to fly it. If you live in a windy area, or if you hike mountains and would like to get nice shots, the mini series can struggle and give you hard time getting the shot. I just got the air 3 I'm going to try it and see how it behaves.

[@garyguest1999]

Nice video. The Air3 is a great drone to fly and fun. However the 12meg images are good but the 48meg is crap. And sadly DJI used this to sell the Air3. I have been incontact with DJI and they have admitted there is a major problem with the 48meg images. I feel people should be made aware of this. It was clever marketing but bullshit. And many are pissed.

[@eprohoda]

How are things?~ Spencer~Thank you~top recording,take it easy~=)

[@spencerlee808]

Thanks so much!

[@Martincuevasher]

❤❤❤❤🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉

[@johngisis6827]

How do you take a 3 shot pano?

[@spencerlee808]

Usually use lightroom or photoshop to put it together

[@MontagoDK]

its funny how anyone can complain about the video quality of this drone...

[@mhmphotography400]

How can you state that the air 3 is the best drone for photography. I have to disagree, the best drone overall is the mavic 3 pro.

[@6mazing]

Lol

[@WOTHFPV]

Agreed. Even the Air2S takes better photos than the Air3. That quad bayer sensor is horrible for still photography. DJI can play games and call their photos 48MP, but we all know they are really 12MP.

[@whotshisface]

​@@WOTHFPV.. Sometimes. From what I've seen it's fairly split, dependent on photo. Of course the Mavic 3 pro kick both their arses

[@WOTHFPV]

@@whotshisface I have never seen an Air 3 photo that looked as good as the same photo taken by an Air 2S or M3. Side by side its not even close. I still prefer the Air3 over the 2S for everything else. Guess we'll wait and see if there is a Air3S with that 1" sensor from the pocket 3 coming....

[@waynepollard8866]

Simply, it is his opinion and his channel. Relax folks.