New P3 Pro Still Poor Video Quality (Soft Focus)

Suzanne · Nov 16, 2015

I'm hoping that it's just something I'm missing.

I had a P3 Standard and was so unhappy with the video quality - blurry image and TONS of artifact. I returned it to Best Buy and not only exchanged but upgraded to the P3 Pro.
So much happier with the RC and the aircraft itself. Seems way more solid and stable. HOWEVER... After spending double on the Pro I'm still very disappointed in the video quality. The focus isn't sharp really at all... I mean it's not totally blurry but from looking at other posted videos my camera is delivering nowhere NEAR the same quality and others who are raving about this unit.

Even after post production and trying to fix the contrast and color correction I'm getting a poor result. Nothing like what I was hoping for. I haven't attempted shooting a still yet - frankly, now I'm kind of nervous to do it in fear that I'll be crushed

I'm shooting in 1080P because I'm sure my "HD" TV can't show anything higher than that. I've also adjusted settings to follow a tutorial that I saw online regarding "flat" settings so that there is more flexibility in post production. Now I AM new to all of this video stuff and I'm learning as I go, but it just seems to me that even in all auto settings I should be getting a decent, clean, crisp (even maybe too crisp) video image.

Is there a way to check camera focus or to re-focus the camera? I'm at work so I don't have any footage to post but I'll try and get that done tonight when I get home.

I'm concerned because I really took my time with this unit. I got it home, carefully unboxed it, installed the new firmware according to instruction, recalibrated the IMU and the gimbal, read the entire manual and even tutorial videos... I flew it for the first time on Saturday... when I first viewed it on my iPad it seemed so much happier with the video quality (no artifacts) but when I got it home I just couldn't believe how much detail I was missing. Even when hovering fairly still I couldn't make out the true features of my face. What am I doing wrong to get such a soft focus on my P3 Pro camera??

bbfpv · Nov 16, 2015

did you remove the plastic from the lens?

III% Streve · Nov 16, 2015

Without something real to go by there is no way to help solve you problem

Suzanne · Nov 16, 2015

bbfpv said:
did you remove the plastic from the lens?

Yes, I removed the plastic and even made super sure the lens was clean.

Suzanne · Nov 16, 2015

III% Streve said:
Without something real to go by there is no way to help solve you problem

I know. when I get home tonight I'll upload a section of the video and I'll jot down the exact settings I was using. But I do know I was in manual White Balance, D-Log color file, I haven't gotten my SRP 8/16 ND filter yet so I'm assuming my shutter speed was way too high. I think for the video I will be uploading I was in 1080 @ 24 FPS.

Mako79 · Nov 16, 2015

Are you getting the file off the SD card in the gimbal or off your phone/smart device?

RodPad · Nov 16, 2015

Mako79 said:
Are you getting the file off the SD card in the gimbal or off your phone/smart device?

SD Card,

Very poor video quality on P3S | DJI Phantom Forum

RodPad · Nov 16, 2015

Suzanne said:
I know. when I get home tonight I'll upload a section of the video and I'll jot down the exact settings I was using. But I do know I was in manual White Balance, D-Log color file, I haven't gotten my SRP 8/16 ND filter yet so I'm assuming my shutter speed was way too high. I think for the video I will be uploading I was in 1080 @ 24 FPS.

Do this for sure..
Reset camera settings and leave it on Auto, take some pictures and short videos indoors if you don't have good light, in a bright room like a kitchen.
I start making camera adjustments on my tablet, then I look at the results after downloading it was better before I made my changes.

Post some picts, jpgs are fine, and easier to upload.

Suzanne · Nov 17, 2015

Good Morning!
Problem resolved! Apparently I had my settings all messed up. My husband had done a test flight on Sunday and I viewed the video last night. It looked beautiful. Thank you for your responses and willingness to help.

RodPad · Nov 17, 2015

Good to hear it, I was getting stressed out.

Pmason718 · Nov 29, 2015

Funny you posted this b/c I have a similar situation. I had a P3P that was perfect but in order for Best Buy to adjust the Black Friday price to the original price I had to pay two weeks before I had to return it and they gave me a new one. Today I was flying and realized the video isn't sharp at all even the video being streamed back to the iPad was shitty. I will give it a shot again tomorrow but has anyone experienced this before?

Andrew Allsbury · Nov 29, 2015

I had a P3P that was working great, but every so often I was getting corruption artifacts in my video on various approved sd cards, so I switched it out. My next p3p had HORRIBLE focus, only the middle left part of the screen was remotely in focus, so I switched that one out. Now I am pretty sure this one is sharp enough, though I fear still not as sharp as the original, but during my first flight I hit the return to home button to demo the feature for a friend and the whole button fell into the remote (lol) tomorrow I will be returning the remote.

I've had a rough run with Phantoms...but to be honest even my DJI Ronin had to be RMA'd within the first few weeks for a defect, so DJI is not exactly known (at least by me) for having stellar QC.

bobmyers · Nov 29, 2015

Andrew Allsbury said:
I had a P3P that was working great, but every so often I was getting corruption artifacts in my video on various approved sd cards, so I switched it out. My next p3p had HORRIBLE focus, only the middle left part of the screen was remotely in focus, so I switched that one out. Now I am pretty sure this one is sharp enough, though I fear still not as sharp as the original, but during my first flight I hit the return to home button to demo the feature for a friend and the whole button fell into the remote (lol) tomorrow I will be returning the remote.

I've had a rough run with Phantoms...but to be honest even my DJI Ronin had to be RMA'd within the first few weeks for a defect, so DJI is not exactly known (at least by me) for having stellar QC.

those button problems are not new-- various posts regarding them--

Andrew Allsbury · Nov 29, 2015

bobmyers said:
those button problems are not new-- various posts regarding them--

Bobmyers,

Any way to fix the button issue? Or should I just swap it out for a new one?

Andrew Allsbury · Nov 29, 2015

Also, is there away to adjust back focus on these cameras? May be why some are blurry.

nhoover · Dec 30, 2015

My first P3P (from May) worked great but crashed due to the 1.5.0030 FW battery bug. I just got a replacement and upgraded to 1.6.0040 before flying. All the photos (raw and jpg) and video are soft focus - too soft to use. So this one has to go back. I remember back in the P2V days I had to send the camera back twice to get one that was in focus on both sides of the frame but this one is out of focus generally - maybe slightly worse in the middle but bad everywhere really.

Here's a shot from today, un-edited. 4:3, shot at 1/1880 ISO 100. Those white blobs are seagulls.I have similar shots with my old P3P which, in comparison, are sharp.