To shoot a panorama on the DJI Mavic 4 Pro, tap Shooting Modes in DJI Fly, choose Pano, pick a panorama type, and press the shutter. The drone hovers, shoots a series of photos and stitches them. DJI says Free Panorama works on all three cameras, including the 168 mm tele, which captures far more detail of distant skylines than a wide-angle pano. Lock exposure in Pro mode and keep the original frames to restitch on a computer.
Panorama types
DJI Fly shows the Pano types your drone supports. On the Mavic 4 Pro, DJI specifically mentions:
- Sphere: a full 360° view you can view as a sphere or "tiny planet." A launch firmware update extended the low-angle view for the 28 mm and 70 mm cameras in Sphere mode, so more of the ground near the horizon is included.
- Free Panorama: you choose the area, which DJI highlights on all three cameras, including the 168 mm.
Other DJI drones also offer 180°, Wide Angle and Vertical presets. Check the Pano menu in your app for the exact list on your firmware.
Which camera to use
| Camera | Best for |
|---|---|
| 28 mm Hasselblad (100 MP sensor) | Landscapes, real estate, Sphere panoramas |
| 70 mm (48 MP) | Skylines and mountain ranges at mid distance |
| 168 mm (50 MP) | Very distant subjects, detailed cityscapes |
Tele panoramas need many more frames for the same area, so they take longer and are more sensitive to wind. Fly them on calm days.
Best settings
- Exposure: Pro mode with fixed ISO, shutter, aperture and white balance so every frame matches.
- ISO: 100.
- Aperture (28 mm): f/4 to f/5.6. The 100 MP sensor shows diffraction softening at f/8 and smaller.
- Expose for the brightest area, usually the sky near the sun. Shadows recover well from RAW.
- Photo Type: keep the original photos in the Pano camera settings so you can restitch.
Tips for clean stitching
- Fly high enough that nothing is close to the drone. Parallax from nearby objects breaks seams.
- Fly in calm air. Drift between frames shows as misaligned edges.
- Avoid moving subjects like cars and people.
- Keep the sun to the side or behind you to limit flare in some frames.
- Wait for the app to say the panorama is complete before you move.
Stitching on a computer
- Lightroom: select the original frames, then Photo Merge, Panorama. Merging RAW files keeps the dynamic range.
- PTGui and similar tools: best for Sphere panoramas, tele panos and difficult seams.
- File sizes: stitched panoramas from 100 MP or 50 MP frames get very large. Shoot 25 MP or 12.5 MP frames if you don't need print-size output.
Manual tele panoramas
For a custom shape, switch to the 70 mm or 168 mm camera, lock exposure in Pro mode, and take single photos as you yaw slowly across the scene, overlapping each by about a third. The Infinity Gimbal's 70° upward tilt also lets you include tall buildings and peaks above the drone.
Using panoramas for work
Sphere panoramas suit property tours, and wide skylines sell well as prints. Paid work requires a Part 107 certificate. For property shoots, see how to shoot real estate with a drone.
For more camera setup, see best Mavic 4 Pro settings, or shop the DJI Mavic 4 Pro.
Related guides
- How to shoot a hyperlapse with the DJI Mavic 4 Pro
- How to shoot panoramas with the DJI Mavic 3 Pro
- How to shoot vertical video with the DJI Mavic 4 Pro
- Best DJI Mavic 4 Pro camera settings for photo and video
- DJI Mavic 4 Pro LUT: D-Log M to Rec.709 color grading
- DJI Mavic 4 Pro night mode and low-light video: what to expect
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