A two- or three-axis camera gimbal — a device used to stabilize movement — can make your drone videos look buttery-smooth. It won’t necessarily reduce the artifacts caused by your camera’s rolling shutter, however, including Jell-O effect. For that, you’ll want these filters from Polar Pro, designed specifically for quadcopter-mounted GoPro cameras.
Polar Pro has taken its high-quality two-stop and three-stop neutral density (ND) filters, as well as a polarized filter for mounting on the waterproof housing, and redesigned them to fit on the naked camera and with a lower profile and reduced weight of only 6.7 grams (0.24 ounce).
The ND filters work by cutting down the amount of light entering the lens, forcing the GoPro camera to shift to a slower shutter speed, which can create enough blur to help mask rolling shutter artifacts. The polarizer can be used much the same way, but also improves contrast and really makes blue skies pop. It also reduces glare, which can make a huge difference if you’re flying over water.
The filters are sold as a three-pack for around $50 (about £35 and AU$65) and are compatible with GoPro Hero3, 3+ and 4 cameras. Watch the video below to see the difference.