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I "splurged" on a Penivo Filter Kit

Dan Dolar

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Nov 13, 2017
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14
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Manteca CA
[DISCLAIMER: I totally do not get any type of compensation for the linked product. Just passing along what I've found.]

I'm sure the PolarPro and PGYTECH filters are great, but I honestly didn't want to spend upwards of a $100 for a full set of ND filters. So when I saw this on Amazon for just under $38 (with free one-day shipping thanks to Prime!), I pulled the trigger and ordered the set.

I wanted to get a set with all four "levels" of ND filtering - the UV and PL filters are really just bonus for me.20180111_191158.jpg

The metal case is actually pretty decent, just be careful when you open it - the lid fits a bit tightly so if you open it with too much force the filters might fly out lol.
20180111_191222.jpg

A solo pic of a filter.
20180111_191255.jpg

The filter is fitted onto the camera by firmly (yet carefully) pressing it onto the gimbal.
20180111_191542.jpg

I did a test flight with the plain UV filter (the most expendable one, lol) fitted onto the camera - it was a bit too dark to make a meaningful video so I'll try to make a video tomorrow, weather permitting. Even in full-on Sport Mode with the gimbal moving up and down the filter stayed in place - I was honestly surprised!

Keeping my fingers crossed for tomorrow - I have high hopes for these filters!
 
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I know you said they don't come off during flight, but how easy are they to remove and change over? If they are just held on by friction do you think they might loosen over time and be more likely to fall off?
The inside layer of the filter ring is made up of a smooth, pliable, semi-tacky rubber surface that seems to grip onto the camera ring pretty well; I think the combination of the rubber and the semi-tackyness (if that's even a word lol) does well to hold the filter in place. I flew my Spark in Sport mode for 5 minutes like a maniac while moving gimbal up and down the whole time - the filter didn't even budge, and I also never got any warnings of a gimbal overload. Maybe over time the rubber ring might not hold on as tightly, but honestly at 38 bucks it wouldn't be a big deal to buy another set of filters.

20180111_225650.jpg

They're pretty easy to put on, but because you have to press them onto the gimbal you obviously have to be careful. I pinch the sides of the gimbal with the thumb and pointer finger of one hand while I press the filter onto the camera hump with the other hand - the directions say that full contact with the camera is achieved after 10 seconds. Taking the filter off is just a matter of carefully prying the edge of the filter with your fingernail while pinching the sides of the gimbal to steady it.

I'm really hoping that these filters are indeed neutral for my video footage. Can't wait for tomorrow!
 
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[DISCLAIMER: I totally do not get any type of compensation for the linked product. Just passing along what I've found.]

I'm sure the PolarPro and PGYTECH filters are great, but I honestly didn't want to spend upwards of a $100 for a full set of ND filters. So when I saw this on Amazon for just under $38 (with free one-day shipping thanks to Prime!), I pulled the trigger and ordered the set.

I wanted to get a set with all four "levels" of ND filtering - the UV and PL filters are really just bonus for me.View attachment 2741

The metal case is actually pretty decent, just be careful when you open it - the lid fits a bit tightly so if you open it with too much force the filters might fly out lol.
View attachment 2742

A solo pic of a filter.
View attachment 2743

The filter is fitted onto the camera by firmly (yet carefully) pressing it onto the gimbal.
View attachment 2744

I did a test flight with the plain UV filter (the most expendable one, lol) fitted onto the camera - it was a bit too dark to make a meaningful video so I'll try to make a video tomorrow, weather permitting. Even in full-on Sport Mode with the gimbal moving up and down the filter stayed in place - I was honestly surprised!

Keeping my fingers crossed for tomorrow - I have high hopes for these filters!
Very interested in your test results. Please leave a link of the test footage.
 
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Would be interesting to hear your opinion about the issue, reported by some users (not all) in Amazon feedback: "These work great for lowering the shutter speed etc. like they are designed for and are great for normal mode camera flying. But in sport mode they sometimes cause the lense to shake and twice overloaded the gimbal on my spark. They also won’t allow sphere panoramic mode to work I think because the gimbal works so fast and they are too heavy. To summarize works great in all conditions at normal cinematic speeds but not well at high speed in sport mode or in sphere panoramic mode."
 
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Okay! So while today is way too foggy out here to try a video with the ND filters, it was decent enough to try a couple of 9-shot panos with the “expendable” UV filter. Below are the two pictures I was able to take - they’re not going to win any artistic awards, but the entire time it was making each pano the app never complained about it. And it’s 50 degrees and SUPER foggy right now to boot!

852896B2-EF32-4EE3-89AB-C6DE772249EF.jpeg
4D6C56D5-683F-4932-86F9-1F36E57D45D8.jpeg

I also took a horizontal 180 shot just for funsies, but apparently a cloud got in the way :p

AD89B98B-57A0-4519-A15E-90926EA7985C.jpeg

Hopefully the weather out here will clear up during this 3-day weekend so that I can get so meaningful video footage featuring the ND filters. Cheers!
 
Silly cloud photobombing your shot :rolleyes:.

Be cautious when flying in the fog.

There are posts in this Forum about the Spark flying in the fog and it thinks the fog is a solid surface that may rise above or try to land on in mid air.
 
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Silly cloud photobombing your shot :rolleyes:.

Be cautious when flying in the fog.

There are posts in this Forum about the Spark flying in the fog and it thinks the fog is a solid surface that may rise above or try to land on in mid air.

Oh, that totally, totally happened. It was the first time I'd ever dealt with that. I lost LOS of the Spark so I stupidly activated RTH - it obediently rose to the RTH height, and then got stuck there because the fog made it think that it was only 2 feet above the ground! Every attempt I made to bring the Spark down with my left stick triggered Landing Mode, so I had to push back up on the stick to abort the Landing Mode.

It stayed stuck until about 2 minutes were left on the battery, then miraculously it was able to get a true altitude reading and I was able to land it. I honestly thought I was going to lose my Spark today. :(

Needless to say, I will NEVER NEVER EVER fly my Spark in the fog again.

And the filter still stayed on, so I guess that's a plus.
 
I have the Anbee ones and they seem to work great. nice and clear and way better than no filter. Haven't had one come loose yet either.
 
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When I flew in fog a while ago I just forced it to "land" several times until it got out of the clouds, each situation seems to be unique, but fun flying :) some of us suffer so others don't have to xD
Oh, that totally, totally happened. It was the first time I'd ever dealt with that. I lost LOS of the Spark so I stupidly activated RTH - it obediently rose to the RTH height, and then got stuck there because the fog made it think that it was only 2 feet above the ground! Every attempt I made to bring the Spark down with my left stick triggered Landing Mode, so I had to push back up on the stick to abort the Landing Mode.

It stayed stuck until about 2 minutes were left on the battery, then miraculously it was able to get a true altitude reading and I was able to land it. I honestly thought I was going to lose my Spark today. :(

Needless to say, I will NEVER NEVER EVER fly my Spark in the fog again.

And the filter still stayed on, so I guess that's a plus.
 
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When I flew in fog a while ago I just forced it to "land" several times until it got out of the clouds, each situation seems to be unique, but fun flying :) some of us suffer so others don't have to xD


What's the fog procedure?

Start to land, drop altitude a little, cancel landing, and start over again?

Seems like you have to be quick on timing for this but if it works, it works :).

If this is what needs to be done to save the Spark from a fog bank rolling in, it may be future software for DJI....Auto fog RTH o_O?

Thanks for the tip.
 

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