DJI Pocket 4P Review After 50 Days: Image Quality, Zoom & Filters
Freewell Gear
Field guide · 50 days of filming
The Pocket 4P can deliver lovely travel footage. The difference is knowing when to stay wide, when to use its second lens, and how to control color and exposure.
After more than 50 days of filming in Spain, our review found strong image quality and battery performance, with more care needed for tracking and autofocus. Here are the settings and shooting habits worth taking into your next shoot.
The quick verdict: Start with 1x for image quality, use 3x for tighter framing, and choose D-Log if you plan to grade. In bright daylight, set your shutter first and use an ND filter to manage exposure.
These findings describe the filmed test. Check your current firmware for available settings and mode combinations.
1. Choose the view before you reach for more zoom
The 1x camera delivered the strongest overall image. Use it for wide travel scenes, walking shots and general filming. The dedicated 3x camera adds tighter portraits and details without moving closer, although the reviewer found softer skin texture and lower image quality than 1x.
Follow the same waterfront buildings as the view tightens. Extra reach makes distant subjects larger, but fine detail becomes less convincing. Tap an image to inspect it larger.
The reviewer found 6x usable in the daylight examples; 12x showed more obvious compromises. Digital zoom is useful for capturing an otherwise unreachable moment, but it is a choice about framing and acceptable detail.
Try this: Film a wide establishing shot at 1x, then a detail at 3x. Review both at the size you will publish before deciding whether you need digital zoom.
Explore the Pocket 4P vs Sony A7 V field test for the larger-camera comparison.
2. Pick your color profile for the way you edit
D-Log was the reviewer’s everyday choice. It looked less processed than Normal, worked across the zoom settings in the test, and was straightforward to match with Sony S-Log3 footage. Skin sometimes needed extra color adjustment.
D-Log 2 suited demanding wide-camera scenes. In the filmed configuration, it was limited to 1x but allowed ISO 100, compared with a minimum ISO 400 in D-Log. The reviewer saw a small improvement in highlight latitude and skin color.
Choose your starting point: Use D-Log for a graded shoot with changing camera views. Try D-Log 2 for a demanding 1x scene. Choose Normal when you want a quick edit and accept a more processed image. Use HDR when your editing and delivery workflow supports it.
A gentler starting look
Texture−2Less sharpening.
Noise reduction−1Balance noise and detail.
GimbalSlowGentler reframing.
These are the reviewer’s preferred starting settings. Protect important highlights, record a short test, and use the matching DJI conversion LUT if your workflow calls for one. See our Pocket 4P settings guide for more setup advice.
3. Smooth footage starts with how you move
The gimbal smooths rotation, but it cannot remove all the up-and-down movement from footsteps. Softer steps, slow gimbal settings and gentle starts and stops helped the reviewer get better walking footage.
ActiveTrack sometimes made abrupt adjustments, particularly when it changed from tracking the face to the body or approached a movement limit. Autofocus could also jump between people in crowded scenes.
Try this: Rehearse a short walk or tracking move and review it before a long take. If your subject stays at a consistent distance, test single autofocus to avoid unwanted focus changes. A subject moving toward you may need continuous focus.
Filming alone? Check the remote and audio first.
The remote helped with reframing, but its settings controls were limited during the test. Prepare exposure and frame rate on the camera before stepping away. The reviewer also experienced occasional microphone signal dropouts, so check that your audio backup is usable at your working distance.
4. Set your shutter, then choose the ND filter
An ND filter reduces the light entering the camera. That helps you keep your chosen shutter speed in bright daylight. The review used ND64 with a 1/50-second shutter for natural-looking motion blur.
Try this at 25fps: Start at 1/50 second, choose your color profile and ISO, then add enough ND to expose the scene. At 30fps, 1/60 is a common starting point. Recheck when moving between sun and shade.
These shutter choices are a creative convention. A faster shutter can be useful when you deliberately want crisper movement. ND64 is an example from the test, not a universal daylight setting.
Which filter fits your shot?
- Daylight video: The Standard Day Kit offers ND8, ND16, ND32 and ND64.
- Daylight plus reflections: The Bright Day Kit combines ND with polarization. Rotate the polarizer while checking water, glass or other reflective surfaces.
- Long exposures: ND1000 provides stronger light reduction for slow-shutter work such as moving water or clouds.
5. Plan how slow motion will fit your edit
The slow-motion examples used Normal color, and the reviewer found them harder to match with graded log footage. For timelapses, capturing still images and assembling them in post offered more control than using the camera’s finished video.
Try this: Before a full shoot, record a short slow-motion clip and a regular-speed clip. Put them together in your edit and check the color match. Confirm the profile options available at your chosen frame rate.
6. Balance cleaner shadows against retained detail
Night Mode was convenient, but the reviewer found its noise reduction smoothed away too much detail. Graded log footage with controlled noise reduction in post was the preferred approach.
Try this: Record the same low-light scene in Night Mode and log. Compare the finished results at your delivery size, then choose the balance of detail and editing effort that suits you.
Can it handle a day of travel?
Battery and heat performance were strong in the test: more than two hours of continuous 4K/50fps recording at about 32°C without overheating. Sustained high-frame-rate recording was more demanding, so plan around your actual shooting mode and conditions.
The Pocket 4P suits travel, vlogging and second-camera work where size and stabilization matter. A mirrorless setup still offers interchangeable lenses and more specialized options.
Before your next shoot
Five reminders to help you prepare before pressing record.
- Choose your view. Start at 1x; use 3x when a tighter composition helps.
- Choose your color workflow. Confirm the profile is available in your recording mode.
- Set frame rate, shutter and ISO. Check important highlights.
- Match the filter to the light. Recheck exposure after fitting or changing it.
- Record a short test. Check focus, movement and audio before a long take.
Five questions worth clearing up
Are ISO 100 and ISO 400 the native ISOs?
The test identifies minimum selectable ISO values in those configurations. That alone does not establish native or dual-native ISO specifications.
Is there one exposure-compensation setting for D-Log?
No single value suits every scene. Expose for the subject, protect important highlights, and judge a short graded test before committing.
Should I choose fixed ND or variable ND?
Fixed filters provide specific strengths to swap between. A variable ND lets you adjust light reduction within its range. Choose for your shooting pace and check the image after each adjustment.
What is the difference between ND, CPL and ND/PL?
ND reduces light. CPL changes reflections from non-metallic surfaces, depending on rotation and shooting angle. ND/PL combines both functions.
Does the video show the settings available today?
It shows the configuration used during filming. Firmware can change the combinations of camera, frame rate and color profile, so check your updated camera before planning a shoot.
Watch the complete field test
See the comparisons, walking footage and motion examples together in the original Freewell Gear review.
Watch the full review on YouTube ↗