Action cameras have a tiny sensor. It is usually smaller than 1 inch and they can not gather enough light during the night and under low light conditions. That usually means that without enough light you are gonna have grainy footage and a lot of noise. You can remove an amount of noise and improve the quality of your videos but on the other hand you will lose some details. And there are times that the video may be unusable. So is there a chance to create a cinematic clip using an action camera at night?
The truth is that in most cases we can not but we can always improve our footage using video editing software and adjusting the highlights, the shadows and the contrast.
Lets see now in the video some easy tricks that i used to get (almost) the best video quality possible. There is low light footage from two action cameras. A DJI Osmo Action and a lower end action camera, the Akaso V50X. I recorded the footage in 4k at 30 frames per second and later i down-scaled it to full high definition (1920X1080) at 24 frames per second using the free edition of the popular and user friendly video editor Filmora.
Akaso v50x vs DJI Osmo Action in low light - Which one do you like more?
And here are some things we can do to improve the quality of our video.
- Try to add extra light if possible
- Do some experiments with the settings of your camera (iso, shutter speed, white balance, exposure etc). First try to record a video with the settings set to Auto mode to get an idea how your action camera records under low light conditions. Remember though that every camera is different so there are not any recommended adjustments or settings
- Reduce the frame rate to see if that helps
- Use a flat profile, if possible. I used the D Cinelike (it is a flat profile) in my DJI Osmo Action to have the best dynamic range possible and to use color grading later in post editing. The Akaso v50x does not have such an option
- If you own a Gimbal disable the EIS (electronic image stabilization). Especially Akaso v50x night footage will be greatly improved.
- Use a video editing application to improve your video even further. DaVinci Resolve, Adobe Premiere, Sony Vega etc are really powerful video editing and color grading programs. You can try to remove the noise. Just be conservative because noise removal means loss of details.
- Utilize the darkness and the flickering lights. In my case i used flickering lights to my advantage while i was shooting in slow motion and the video looks more cinematic.
- Use a LUT. Usually greenly or teal and orange luts can enhance your clip. Be careful though because sometime LUTS can make a video worst. Before you apply your LUT do not forget to adjust the contrast, the highlights, the blacks, the shadows etc.
But remember. Action cameras were not created to be used in the darkness or even under low light conditions, so do not expect any miracles to happen. They need plenty of light to record decent videos. The more light, the better the footage.
If you are serious about low light cinematic film-making then you need a full frame camera and some really fast (and usually expensive)premium lenses. Cameras like the Sony A7S series and especially the A7S mark iii are real low light beasts. There is always the option to search for a full frame camera in the second hand market. An action camera during low light conditions and especially during the night will struggle. Remember: The bigger the sensor the more light it can gather and use.
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