45mm on x5r for video?

[giumick]

We have the chance to cover a event with over 1000 people and wondered what people thought of the video quality of the 45mm lens. I have heard mixed results and people complain of poor shots.

Is this just down to people not using it correctly? I am hoping ours would do nicely to cover this small festival and of course i am aware we have to maintain 150m in line with CAP 393 thus why i want to know if the 45mm will do the job?

We have never used it yet beyond still images.

Thanks
Mick

 

[Florida Drone Supply]

People have said that the X5R gimbal was not perfect with the 45mm lens and some had issues with vibrations, yet some people had good results. Maybe it depends on your style of flying and camera settings. Definitely worth some experimentation before the event. That being said many people are using the 45 with excellent results on the X5s.

 

[giumick]

People have said that the X5R gimbal was not perfect with the 45mm lens and some had issues with vibrations, yet some people had good results. Maybe it depends on your style of flying and camera settings. Definitely worth some experimentation before the event. That being said many people are using the 45 with excellent results on the X5s.

Yeah ive seen a few nice videos on youtube with it so maybe it is luck of the draw. Someone once told me they couldn't use it as they had vibration issues with it.

I used it once at a nature reserve and it was fine except i canned all the footage as it was insanely close and looked like we were flying through a green warp speed tunnel haha. I flew it without the shade on and a nd filter on/ adapter.

I might have to give it a go and just see what results we get from a good height.

 

[Casey53]

There's some odd update to the 45mm that Olympus told me about. It does have something to do with video and the aperture I think when I spoke to their service guy. The correction was made a couple of times in that lens and it's up to version 1.2 now.

I was wondering about mine (used) and surprised to find out it was Version 1.0 so I just sent it off today to Olympus to fix. DJI will not allow you to see the version number so you have to put it on either a Olympus body or Panasonic M43 body and read the lens firmware version in them.

So I went to Best Buy and they sell a Panasonic Lumix G7 camera and the lens was off their demo model and it was powered on via the cord. It was just sitting there with no lens and a nicely exposed gold/green sensor. I asked the sales guy if I could put the Olympus lens on it to check the lens version (I bought two drones from them.) and he asked the manager on the store's intercom who said "I could, but the lenses are permanently attached to the bodies due to theft so I couldn't." Turned out someone already figured out a way to swipe the lens off it so I could put mine on it and check it. Drilled down in the Panasonic menu and the 45mm was Version 1.0 and not 1.2 so away it goes for the update. I would have thought maybe a v1.1 but was older and original v1.0 so who knows how long it sat someplace before being sold and I got it.

Fwiw, the price, since I don't own a body and could have done it for free, was almost $50. Some little sales tax was applied too so there must be some minor part used too along with shipping. Some flat-rate minor service charge was done online. I'm guessing in 3-4 weeks I'll know. I tried a repair shop in Los Angeles that works on Olympus but they couldn't do it for whatever reason and said to send it to Olympus. So away it went.

 

[InterMurph]

I have the 45mm and an X5R, and I don't have any vibration problems.

But I haven't really found much use for a lens with a field of view this narrow. It's really hard to get good-looking footage, particularly when panning or yawing.

 

[NickU]

I can only speak from aerial use on the x5s and I2 and from some limited use on the Osmo Pro - I appreciate that the X5 raw and the I1 are different beasts.

I've found the lens is relatively stable and can provide some nice 'reveal' shots when tracking sideways, or on crane type shots, and the compression from the focal length can give some nice effects too. Pans needs to be very slow due to the focal length and you need to allow for some slight overshoot of the gimbal at the end of a move - most noticeable on yaw moves - as the focal length shows up the gimbal damping more than the shorter lengths do. I've found the easiest way to manage that effect is to carry on the move beyond the intended end point and cut in post rather than trying to stop dead on an object.

(I don't have another Oly camera, so my lenses are with whatever firmware that Oly shipped them with. Hopefully I'll find someone with a M4/3 Old one day and do the lens updates myself - I think you can do it via the camera without sending the lens to Oly)

 

[Casey53]

Ack! Olympus Service is done by an outfit that has as bad a rating for service as DJI it seems: Precision Camera - Enfield, CT

Hard to believe they do Sony as well and I already knew they were bad for service, but didn't know they were the same outfit. Maybe best to buy a M43 body and DIY for the lens version update? Reading the Yelp! reviews is sort of scary.

More strange is using the Olympus Service online you get a quote of $39 and same as the Nick guy I spoke to told me, but using the Precision Camera site quotes the 45mm as $131. Not reassuring.

 

[Florida Drone Supply]

I can only speak from aerial use on the x5s and I2 and from some limited use on the Osmo Pro - I appreciate that the X5 raw and the I1 are different beasts.

I've found the lens is relatively stable and can provide some nice 'reveal' shots when tracking sideways, or on crane type shots, and the compression from the focal length can give some nice effects too. Pans needs to be very slow due to the focal length and you need to allow for some slight overshoot of the gimbal at the end of a move - most noticeable on yaw moves - as the focal length shows up the gimbal damping more than the shorter lengths do. I've found the easiest way to manage that effect is to carry on the move beyond the intended end point and cut in post rather than trying to stop dead on an object.

(I don't have another Oly camera, so my lenses are with whatever firmware that Oly shipped them with. Hopefully I'll find someone with a M4/3 Old one day and do the lens updates myself - I think you can do it via the camera without sending the lens to Oly)

Does it have to be an Olympus camera or would a Panasonic Lumix G7 or GH5 work for the update?

 

[Casey53]

Does it have to be an Olympus camera or would a Panasonic Lumix G7 or GH5 work for the update?

I used a Panasonic Lumix G7 at Best Buy to check mine (Go to the "Wrench" icon in the menu and scroll down to "Version" and it will show you the Camera version as well as the Lens version there.). If you read the Four Thirds website, you'll find you can update the Olympus lens on either a Olympus or Panasonic body using their loaders that write a BIN file and loads the lens firmware version. DJI is also a member of the four-thirds.org but we can't do squat with the lenses on their cameras or drones regarding lens version updates, but too bad we can't see what DJI camera version or lens version is in them.

Four Thirds | Special Contents | Joint update service

 

[NickU]

I don't know. I found this (Joint update service for OLYMPUS E-SYSTEM - OLYMPUS Digital Camera) on the Oly Japan website which gives details of the firmware etc for the lenses, it refers you onwards to the Panasonic website for pan body+oly Lens combination. Panasonic's details state "For the Case 2(OLYMPUS lens) and Case 3(SIGMA lens), DMC-L1 and L10 camera body is required to be Ver.2.1 or later, otherwise lens firmware can not be updated." - I don't know if that helps in any way?

(Edit: Casey53 got there as I was typing.)

 

[Florida Drone Supply]

I used a Panasonic Lumix G7 at Best Buy to check mine (Go to the "Wrench" icon in the menu and scroll down to "Version" and it will show you the Camera version as well as the Lens version there.). If you read the Four Thirds website, you'll find you can update the Olympus lens on either a Olympus or Panasonic body using their loaders that write a BIN file and loads the lens firmware version. DJI is also a member of the four-thirds.org but we can't do squat with the lenses on their cameras or drones regarding lens version updates, but too bad we can't see what DJI camera version or lens version is in them.

Four Thirds | Special Contents | Joint update service

Thanks, I just checked my Oly 45 on my GH5 and it shows version 1.1 for the lens. I will look into the updates available for the lens. I will check my Oly 25mm next.

 

[Florida Drone Supply]

I don't know. I found this (Joint update service for OLYMPUS E-SYSTEM - OLYMPUS Digital Camera) on the Oly Japan website which gives details of the firmware etc for the lenses, it refers you onwards to the Panasonic website for pan body+oly Lens combination. Panasonic's details state "For the Case 2(OLYMPUS lens) and Case 3(SIGMA lens), DMC-L1 and L10 camera body is required to be Ver.2.1 or later, otherwise lens firmware can not be updated." - I don't know if that helps in any way?

(Edit: Casey53 got there as I was typing.)

I do appreciate your help.

 

[NickU]

AFAIK the latest firmware for the 45mm is 1.2 . The 12/25 are 1.1 I think.

 

[Florida Drone Supply]

AFAIK the latest firmware for the 45mm is 1.2 . The 12/25 are 1.1 I think.

My 25,17 and 45 are all v1.1, my 12 is version 1.0.

 

[Casey53]

My 25,17 and 45 are all v1.1, my 12 is version 1.0.

View attachment 14759

Did you update your lenses yet with your camera?

I'd be curious as to what effect the updates have on video. The tech mentioned the aperture so maybe it has something to do with exposure wavering in video mode? Dunno, but it seemed odd for a version push through most all lenses about the same time frame in Nov. 2015.

Still I'm not too happy with my version 1.0 in my 45mm even being listed as "Like new" (used) and it needed to be sent in to a questionable repair facility for an update and whatever else it needs. Seems Olympus, Sony, and Pentax no longer have factory repair facilities in the USA and farm it out to maybe not-so-good repair facilities and they seem to want to "Just sell it and forget it."

Nikon and Canon still have their own repair facilities for now, although Canon seems to lead there: Canon vs Nikon
Others (Sony) really look bad compared to Canon in that website and I fear that will keep Sony from ever becoming a pro-shooter's brand of camera unless one disposes of it if broken. Olympus too, but the repair facility is the same one. Go figure!

 

[Florida Drone Supply]

Did you update your lenses yet with your camera?

I'd be curious as to what effect the updates have on video. The tech mentioned the aperture so maybe it has something to do with exposure wavering in video mode? Dunno, but it seemed odd for a version push through most all lenses about the same time frame in Nov. 2015.

Still I'm not too happy with my version 1.0 in my 45mm even being listed as "Like new" (used) and it needed to be sent in to a questionable repair facility for an update and whatever else it needs. Seems Olympus, Sony, and Pentax no longer have factory repair facilities in the USA and farm it out to maybe not-so-good repair facilities and they seem to want to "Just sell it and forget it."

Nikon and Canon still have their own repair facilities for now, although Canon seems to lead there: Canon vs Nikon
Others (Sony) really look bad compared to Canon in that website and I fear that will keep Sony from ever becoming a pro-shooter's brand of camera unless one disposes of it if broken. Olympus too, but the repair facility is the same one. Go figure!

I have not updated yet.

 

[niki]

I have the 45mm and an X5R, and I don't have any vibration problems.

But I haven't really found much use for a lens with a field of view this narrow. It's really hard to get good-looking footage, particularly when panning or yawing.

Hello,
I have X5R too and recently I've got the 45mm lens and I have a lot of vibrations when trying to shoot kind of landscape shots. In hoovering it's kinda "not stable" but at speed it's very shaky. I'm using balanced TT CF props with AmazingTech adapters, also have a custom interchangeable lead counterweights on all 3 gimbal axes. At least that setup works very well for the 15mm and 25mm lenses for video shooting.

I suppose in my case the problem could be that I'm using too heavy ND filter (Heliopan variable ND) and the overall weight is more than the recommended? Can you please tell how you balance the lens? What step-up ring and ND filter you are using, did you have any counterweights on the gimbals axes?

Thanks!

 

[crnee]

I have recently acquired 45mm and am quite satisfied with it.

This lens is different kind of beast than wide lenses that we are used to having on drones.
As someone mentioned it is great for revealing shots flying sideways.
With this lens you can achieve great shots using parallax.

I have slight vibrations, barely noticeable, but you have to have in mind that longer the focal length vibrations get more visible (simple geometry).

General rule of thumb in photography is that minimal shutter speed should be 1 / "focal lenght" to get sharp picture, ie. if using 200mm lens use minimum 1/200s shutter speed.
In video things are different but with frugal stabilisation in post it could be done.

Also wide lenses are more tolerable to vibrations, you don't see them even if they occur. That is why action cams, and drones, have ultra wide lenses. Simple geometry mentioned earlier.

Also if you are having vibrations try balancing your props, no prop is factory balanced, and sum of their imbalance/vibrations results in sometimes strong vibrations.

Thing I learned trough the years of using drones and building them is: do not use carbon fibre (CF) props for filming.
They are too rigid. Props have to be flexible for smooth movements. Think of it as shock absorbers in cars. For smooth cosy casual ride you want them to be flexible, but for quick response in racing you want them stiff. It is same in drone world.

 

[Casey53]

Interesting comment on the carbon fiber props being a hindrance for vibration.

I've balanced my props using the old RC prop balancer, but they weren't bad. Couple of wooden plugs on the end of a statically balanced rod setup in a Dubro Balancer.

My biggest vibration seems to be the gimbal motors. The upper mounting plate on the body is pretty smooth by touch, but the plate for the gimbal below it is pretty buzzy. I know some have seen or had twitches from the gimbal so I don't know if it is setup by the firmware is that smooth, but given it is DJI it probably isn't tuned that well in practice. Maybe they need to be dampened somehow like fluid head tripods are. Dunno.

 

[niki]

For me the CF props are producing more stable video compared to the plastic ones.