Professional Photographer - USA (2019-07)

40 PPMAG.COM

PRO REVIEWTHE GOODS

system. Like earlier Mavics, OcuSync pro-

vides a robust communication channel be-

tween the drone and the remote controller

with a reliable, high-resolution view that is

rarely interrupted by interference.

The popular Sport and Tripod flight modes

are now easy to select directly from the

The Tower of Americas dominates downtown San Antonio at dusk. The Mavic 2 Pro has Hyperlight, a night photography mode that uses advanced noise reduc-

tion for fully automatic night photography.

TIP: NIGHTTIME

AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHY

To capture the very best aerial

photographs at night, find an evening

with calm winds and shoot at ISO

levels between 100-400. If the winds

are calm, you’ll be able to use long

exposures up to 4-8 seconds, which

can yield some eye-popping captures.

controller to let you access the flying mode

best suited for your operations. Sport dis-

ables collision avoidance features so you

can fly the drone at max speeds; Tripod is

a low-speed flight profile great for navigat-

ing through tight spots. Automated flight

modes like Asteroid, ActiveTrack, and Boo-

merang allow even new drone flyers to get

cinematic shots with relative ease.

At 2 pounds, the Mavic 2 Pro is heavier

than its predecessor but gets about one

more minute of flight time thanks to a

slightly higher capacity battery. Thirty-one

minutes is the stated flight duration, but

prudent pilots who land with reserve pow-

er will find a usable flight duration of 20-25

minutes max.

The Mavic 2 Pro is a joy to fly. It’s fast, re-

sponsive (especially in Sport mode), and is

noticeably quieter than previous DJI drones

thanks to upgraded motors coupled with

low-noise propellers.

BOTTOM LINE

With great image quality, a wide assort-

ment of flight and photo capture modes,

and a super portable design that folds

down to the size of a water bottle, the

Mavic 2 Pro appears well-poised to become

another DJI best seller. The Mavic 2 Pro

now owns the position of a take-anywhere

drone that doesn’t force you to make com-

promises on image quality or capability.

Priced at $1,499, it’s sure to make it

into the hangars of many drone pilots. •

Justin Moore is the author of “Drone

Photography Basics: Your Guide to the

Camera in the Sky” (Amherst Media),

available this summer. texasbyair.com