How to shoot vertical video with the DJI Air 3

Yes, the DJI Air 3 shoots vertical video. Both the 24 mm wide and 70 mm medium tele cameras record 9:16 vertical video at 2.7K (1512×2688) or 1080p (1080×1920), at 24 to 60 fps. The Air 3 does this by cropping a vertical frame from the sensor, not by rotating the gimbal like the Mini 4 Pro.

DJI Air 3 vertical shooting — The Air 3 records vertical video by cropping a 9:16 frame from its sensor. The gimbal does not rotate, so the drone stays stable and the horizon stays level.

How to turn on vertical mode on the Air 3

In DJI Fly, switch to Video mode.
Tap the resolution and frame rate setting in the lower right of the camera view.
Choose 2.7K 9:16 or 1080p 9:16. The live view shows the vertical recording area between two darkened bars.
Frame your shot and record as normal.

Menu layout can change between DJI Fly versions. If you don't see the option, update DJI Fly and the aircraft firmware.

Crop vertical vs true vertical

Some DJI drones rotate the camera 90 degrees for full-sensor vertical shots. The Air 3 doesn't. Instead it records a vertical slice of the image. What that means for you:

Resolution tops out at 2.7K, not 4K, in vertical. That's still more than the 1080×1920 that Instagram Reels, TikTok and YouTube Shorts display.
The field of view is narrower than the horizontal frame, because you're using part of the sensor. On the wide camera, back up or climb to fit tall subjects.
No 100 fps slow motion in vertical. Use 60 fps if you want to slow it down to 40 or 50 percent in your edit.
The 70 mm camera works too. Vertical tele shots are good for isolating a person, a lighthouse or a single building.

Option 2: shoot 4K and crop in editing

If you want both a horizontal and a vertical version of the same shot, record in 4K horizontal and crop a 9:16 frame in your editor. A 9:16 crop from 3840×2160 is 1215×2160, which still fills a 1080×1920 vertical timeline. Many editors, including DaVinci Resolve, Premiere Pro and CapCut, can reframe automatically.

This gives you flexibility but less room to move the frame, so keep your subject near the center.

Vertical photos

DJI lists vertical shooting as a video format for the Air 3. For vertical photos, shoot 48 MP and crop. A full-height 9:16 crop from the 8064×6048 image is about 3400×6048 pixels, roughly 20 MP, which is plenty for social posts and prints.

Tips for better vertical drone video

Use vertical movement. Rising reveals, top-down pulls and descending shots suit a tall frame.
Fly slower. A narrow frame makes fast sideways motion feel jumpy.
Grade to match. If you shoot D-Log M for your horizontal clips, see Air 3 LUTs for the conversion workflow.
Mind the safe zones. App buttons and captions cover the top and bottom of vertical posts, so keep key details in the middle.

For more on the Air 3's cameras, see Air 3 photo and video quality. If vertical shooting is your priority, compare drones in our drone finder, or shop the DJI Air 3.