The DJI Air 3 zooms up to 9x. It has two cameras: a 24 mm wide-angle that zooms digitally from 1x to 3x, and a 70 mm medium tele that gives 3x optical zoom and goes digitally to 9x. Tap the 3x button in DJI Fly to switch to the tele camera, and tap 1x to switch back.
Zoom specs
| Wide-angle camera | Medium tele camera | |
|---|---|---|
| Equivalent focal length | 24 mm | 70 mm (3x) |
| Digital zoom | 1x to 3x | 3x to 9x |
| Aperture | f/1.7 | f/2.8 |
| Sensor | 1/1.3-inch, 48 MP | 1/1.3-inch, 48 MP |
| Field of view | 82° | 35° |
| Focus | 1 m to infinity | 3 m to infinity |
Both cameras shoot up to 4K/100fps video and 48 MP photos. Because the sensors match, footage from the two cameras looks consistent when you cut between them.
How to switch cameras and zoom
- In the DJI Fly camera view, tap the 3x icon to switch to the medium tele camera. Tap it again to step through zoom levels.
- Tap 1x to go back to the wide-angle camera.
- Tap and hold either icon to bring up a zoom bar, or pinch on the screen.
- On the DJI RC 2, the camera control dial adjusts zoom by default.
When you zoom in a lot, DJI slows the drone's rotation so the view stays smooth.
Optical vs digital zoom
- 3x optical is the 70 mm camera at its native setting. Full quality.
- Digital zoom crops the sensor. A little (up to about 2x on the wide camera or 4x to 6x overall) can still look fine in 4K for social use. At 9x, expect a soft image, more noise, and more visible shake.
Best practice: use 1x and 3x for your best shots, and treat the in-between and higher levels as "framing aids" or for scouting.
Zoom in intelligent modes
- ActiveTrack works up to 3x.
- Spotlight and Point of Interest work up to 9x.
- Waypoint flight records the zoom ratio at each waypoint: 1x to 3x on the wide camera, 3x to 9x on the tele.
- QuickShots Asteroid isn't available on the tele camera.
See Air 3 ActiveTrack and Air 3 QuickShots.
Why the 70 mm camera is worth using
The tele compresses distance, so mountains look bigger behind a subject and parallax orbits look cinematic. It also lets you frame a subject from farther away, which helps you keep distance from people and property. Just remember the minimum focus distance is 3 m.
Air 3S zoom
The Air 3S keeps the 70 mm tele but upgrades the wide camera to a 1-inch, 50 MP sensor. Its wide zoom runs 1x to 2.9x and the tele still reaches 9x. See Air 3S zoom.
Want two cameras for the price of one drone? See the DJI Air 3, and set up your camera with our Air 3 best settings.
Related guides
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