Optimal apertures for RGB cameras on DJI Mavic 3E and 3M drones
A quick technical post about drone 🛩️ photography 📷 !
During my study on the maximum speed of the drone depending on altitude and shutter speed (https://lnkd.in/ensErKAm), I noticed that image resolution appears to be degraded when the lens aperture is very closed (value >f/8).
This is not surprising: the phenomenon of diffraction limits the angular resolution of a lens (https://lnkd.in/emxPySJV)
In the case of the Mavic 3, theoretical calculations show that resolution degrades for apertures greater than f/5.6
Slide 2 shows a wheat field shot . The loss of resolution is visible in this case at f/10 and f/11. But there may be a bias, because the closing of the aperture is compensated by an increase in sensitivity to maintain correct exposure.
So I organized a series of shots in my “lab” 😉 with the drone stationary, a resolution target, and artificial lighting so that only the shutter speed and aperture varied (slides 3 to 5). The image at f/4 is taken as a reference for resolution.
My conclusions to keep the best resolution ?
Aperture optimal values : f/4 to f/5.6
Aperture recommended range : f/3.2 to f/8
Happy flying!