Disclaimer: This is an opinion article based on all the available information of the DJI Mavic 4 Pro at the time of writing. This article is not sponsored in any way. Some of the links in this article are affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission if you buy through them, at no extra cost to you. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Ever since the DJI Mavic 4 Pro launched, a lot of doubt has seemingly been cast over whether or not it is actually a significant upgrade from its predecessor. Because I like to follow my own thoughts and observations, I decided to just test it myself by flying the Mavic 4 Pro and Mavic 3 Pro side-by-side, taking the same images in the same conditions.
Let’s get one thing out of the way first: I am not a pixel-peeper. I generally don’t go and zoom in on an image at 400% to see whether or not something is every so slightly sharper. I don’t think it matters all that much. And you know why? It’s because a new drone, or a new camera, is not solely defined by whether or not it produces significantly better images. There are so many factors to take into consideration whether something is a significant step up such as battery life, transmission technology, controllers, easy-of-use, …
So what did I find by putting the DJI Mavic 3 Pro and DJI Mavic 4 Pro next to each other? Let’s find out!
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I flew both the DJI Mavic 4 Pro and the DJI Mavic 3 Pro side-by-side, in the same conditions, to compare their RAW files.
The short version: for most working photographers the Mavic 4 Pro is a real upgrade. The main camera moves to a newer 100 MP quad-bayer sensor that gives you cleaner 25 MP files than the Mavic 3 Pro, the telephoto is finally good enough to lean on, and the longer battery life is something you feel on every flight. If you shoot for a living or as a serious hobby, it pays off. If you want my full long-term take after months of real shooting, I wrote up my hands-on verdict on the DJI Mavic 4. The Mavic 3 Pro is still a very capable camera though, so rather than take my word for it, I have made the untouched RAW files from both drones free to download so you can judge for yourself.
DJI Mavic 4 Pro Vs. Mavic 3 Pro: Full Specifications At A Glance
| Specification | DJI Mavic 4 Pro | DJI Mavic 3 Pro |
| Main Camera Sensor | 4/3 CMOS (Hasselblad) | 4/3 CMOS (Hasselblad) |
| Main Camera Resolution | 25 MP | 20 MP |
| Main Camera Aperture | f/2.0 to f/11 (variable) | f/2.8 to f/11 (variable) |
| Medium Tele Camera | 1/1.3" CMOS, 48 MP, 70 mm equiv. | 1/1.3" CMOS, 48 MP, 70 mm equiv. |
| Tele Camera | 1/1.5" CMOS, 50 MP, 168 mm equiv. | 1/2" CMOS, 12 MP, 166 mm equiv. |
| Gimbal | 3-axis with infinity rotation | 3-axis |
| Max Video | 6K/60fps, 4K/120fps | 5.1K/50fps, 4K/120fps |
| Battery Life (Max) | 51 minutes | 43 minutes |
| Transmission | DJI OcuSync 4+ (O4+) | DJI OcuSync 4 (O4) |
| Wind Resistance | 12 m/s | 12 m/s |
| Internal Storage | 64 GB (up to 512 GB) | 8 GB |
| Weight | 1,063 g | 958 g |
| Released | May 2025 | April 2023 |
Things You Should Know About The Mavic 3 Pro/Mavic 4 Pro RAW Files
Since the release of DJI Mavic 4 Pro, I have been getting a lot of requests for files so I decided to do it properly and make a full set of files of both the Mavic 3 Pro and Mavic 4 Pro. Today, I went out, flew both drones next to each other at about 14 meter altitude and then took all of the images according to a list I made. Some of the differences are considerable and I am sure you will be curious about them too.
If you sign up below, you will get a link sent to download the files. However, there are a few things I want to point out first…
Good To Know
During the creation of all these images, and comparing both drones, I have noticed a few things that really stood out to me. It’s impossible to do a 1:1 comparison, with the same composition/view, between the Mavic 3 Pro and Mavic 4 Pro for a variety of reasons:
- The camera module on both drones has a dramatically different design. How the three different lenses are positioned is different, with the most obvious change being that the 1x lens is at the bottom on the DJI Mavic 3 Pro and at the top on the Mavic 4 Pro). The gimbal itself is also vastly larger on the Mavic 4 Proo, which means that they are not sitting at the same height.
- The main camera (1x) does not have the same focal length, with the Mavic 4 Pro being a bit tighter. On top of that, the resolution is not the same as the Mavic 4 Pro has 25 megapixels, up from 20 megapixels on the Mavic 3 Pro. The sensor itself also has a different aspect ratio. Mavic 4 Pro has a 3:2 sensor, while Mavic 3 Pro has a 3:4 sensor.
- The 6x and 7x have the same focal length but have a slightly differing resolution.
Because the camera modules are dramatically different, it is almost impossible to do a true 1-to-1 comparison of both camera systems.
- The Mavic 4 Pro has many more ISO steps to choose from. For example, you jump from ISO100 straight into ISO200 on Mavic 3 Pro, while Mavic 4 Pro has ISO125 & ISO160 in between. To keep the download size smaller, I removed these in between ISO steps from the RAW files.
- The 1x lens on the Mavic 4 Pro has an aperture that can open up considerably wider than the Mavic 3 Pro’s 1x lens.
- Mavic 4 Pro is also capable of shooting at much faster shutter speeds (up to 1/16000s) which you will notice when comparing the highest ISO’s. Some images on the Mavic 3 Pro are overexposed as a result of the slower maximum shutter speed.
- After inspecting the RAW files, I can conclude that the Mavic 4 Pro RAW files have a higher effective color depth than Mavic 3 Pro.
- Mavic 4 Pro has dual-native ISO on all three cameras for photography with a native ISO at 100 & 400. This is different in video, and depending on the color profile, where it will be ISO 400 & ISO 1600 instead.
- Even though the white balance is the same on all images, the colors on Mavic 3 Pro are much cooler in comparison.
- The minimal focusing distance is different with the Mavic 3 Pro focusing from one meter, as opposed to two meters on the Mavic 4 Pro.
- For some of these images, for example when changing the ISO, I had to leave the settings on Auto for aperture and shutter speed so the exposures wouldn’t be wildly different. This is when I noticed that the metering on both of these camera systems is seemingly very different. You will notice that the choices for aperture and shutter speed on both drones, in the same situation, are completely different. By default, the Mavic 3 Pro seems a lot darker in choosing its exposures.
What Can You Find In The Downloadable Files?
Here is a list of all the RAW files I have made available in the download:
- DJI Mavic 4 Pro:
- 1x Camera: all ISO’s that are also available on Mavic 3 Pro
- 1x Camera: all apertures
- 1x Camera: a 100 megapixel quad-bayer image
- 2,5x Camera: all ISO’s that are also available on Mavic 3 Pro
- 2,5x Camera: a 48 megapixel quad-bayer image
- 6x Camera: all ISO’s that are also available on Mavic 3 Pro
- 6x Camera: a 50 megapixel quad-bayer image
- DJI Mavic 3 Pro:
- 1x Camera: all ISO’s
- 1x Camera: all apertures
- 3x Camera: all ISO’s
- 7x Camera: all ISO’s
Everything is divided up neatly into folders so you can do your own investigating and research.
Get Access To The RAW Files
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A Few Comparisons I Wanted To Highlight
While I do not want to draw conclusions just yet, because I want to use my drone more thoroughly before I write a thorough review, there are a few comparisons I want to show you in the imaging department. As mentioned, these are comparisons under certain conditions between DJI Mavic 3 Pro and Mavic 4 Pro. Without hyping it too much, there is definitely a very visible difference between both of them.
Disclaimer: it is by far the best to download the files yourself and have a look. The images you see here are also in some way compressed because you are viewing them on my website.
200% Crop Between Mavic 3 Pro (1x) and Mavic 4 Pro (1x)
This is a 200% crop of two RAW files at ISO100 towards the center of the frame. There is a very clear difference in sharpness.
DJI Mavic 3 Pro
DJI Mavic 4 Pro
200% Crop Of The Left Bottom Corner On Mavic 3 Pro (1x) and Mavic 4 Pro (1x)
This is a 200% crop of the left bottom corner of both RAW files at ISO100. Mavic 3 Pro was never great at corner sharpness and it does not look like Mavic 4 Pro has any significant improvement there.
DJI Mavic 3 Pro
DJI Mavic 4 Pro
ISO6400 On Mavic 3 Pro (1x) and Mavic 4 Pro (1x)
This is a crop of two unedited RAW files. I tried to crop them to resemble the view somewhat. The difference between both sensors at ISO6400 is revolutionary in my eyes.
DJI Mavic 3 Pro
DJI Mavic 4 Pro
200% Crop Of Mavic 3 Pro (7x) and Mavic 4 Pro (6x)
These two RAW images show a significant improvement on the longest lens of the two drones. The sharpness improvement is very obvious.
DJI Mavic 3 Pro
DJI Mavic 4 Pro
Fly These With Me
Drone Photo Workshops In Iceland & Greenland
The quickest way to find out whether a drone suits you is to fly it somewhere worth photographing. That’s what my Iceland and Greenland workshops are for. I’ll show you where I fly and why I keep some images and delete others.
If a trip up north isn’t on the cards, the Drone Photography Masterclass I made with Nigel Danson covers the same workflow at home: 17+ hours of lessons on planning, flying, composing and editing, with RAW files to practise on.
Affordable Alternatives
If you are looking at alternatives to the DJI Mavic 4 Pro, I can point you into the direction of my updated drone photography buyer’s guide. If you are considering upgrading from an older model, you may also be able to get some great deals on second-hand Mavic 3 series drones or others.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is The Mavic 4 Pro Worth Upgrading To From The Mavic 3 Pro?
For most working photographers, yes. The newer 100 MP quad-bayer main sensor gives you cleaner 25 MP files than the Mavic 3 Pro’s 20 MP camera, the tele camera is finally usable, and the new battery life is a quality of life upgrade you feel on every shoot. If your photography is a serious hobby or your livelihood, the upgrade pays off.
Does The Mavic 4 Pro Have Better Dynamic Range Than The Mavic 3 Pro?
In practice, yes, particularly in the deep shadow recovery on the main camera. The difference is most visible in high-contrast scenes like sunrise landscapes where you need to lift the shadows without introducing noise. The improvement is not enormous, but it is real and it shows up consistently.
Are Mavic 3 Pro RAW Files Still Good In 2026?
Yes. The DNG files from the Mavic 3 Pro still hold up extremely well, especially from the main and medium tele cameras. Modern editing software like Lightroom and DxO PureRAW continues to improve the noise handling on older files, so if anything your existing Mavic 3 Pro archive gets better over time, not worse.
Can You Tell The Difference Between Mavic 3 Pro And Mavic 4 Pro Photos?
At normal viewing sizes for social media or web, the difference is subtle. At print sizes above A3, or when you start cropping aggressively, the Mavic 4 Pro pulls ahead clearly. The tele camera difference is the most obvious in side-by-side comparison.
Which Is Better For Low Light: Mavic 4 Pro Or Mavic 3 Pro?
The Mavic 4 Pro, but the gap is smaller than the specs suggest. Both drones share the same 4/3 main sensor format, so the improvements come from updated image processing rather than a fundamentally larger sensor. In real low-light flying, expect noticeably cleaner files on the Mavic 4 Pro at ISO 800 and above.
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Thank you for considering!
Thank you for your review, Jeroen. I am currently deciding whether to replace my broken Mavic 2 Pro with a used one or upgrade to the Mavic 4 Pro. The major issue for me: still image quality. Mavic 2 Pro was sort of okayish but not great. What I did not like: softness of the corners, easily blown out highlights (in particular in the yellows). And I had to try several samples to find one where the lens was decently centered and did not show worse softness in one or two of the corners. – You mentioned that corner softness is still present in the Mavic 4 Pro (which diminishes the value of an upgrade for me). If you have used a Mavic 2 Pro earlier, do you have an opinion how the image quality compares with regard to sharpness over the frame? And is highlight blowout still an issue?
Thanks a lot
Frank Sauer
Hi Frank, the Mavic 4 Pro is a dramatic upgrade in still image quality over Mavic 2 Pro. No doubt in my mind it would be a great upgrade: it is currently the best prosumer drone on the market for photographers. If you have the financial means to get a Mavic 4 Pro, I wouldn’t try and find another Mavic 2 Pro today.
Thank you very much! I am using Mavic 3 pro and
your explanations and comparative data are very useful 🙂
Thank You for the impressive comparison.
I guess I will go for Mavic 3. I have been using a lot Mavic 2 Pro, but now it is time to upgrde.
We have been coming a long way from my very first drone around 2014, with soft corners and fringes..
Cheers,
Petteri
My pleasure! I am happy to read you found it useful!
Hi Jeroen,. what software did you use to process the raw files?
The RAW files are not processed. All I did was open them in Lightroom to make the comparisons. No edits were made. The RAW files that you can download are not processed either.
Hi Jeroen,
Thank you for your excellent posts on the new Mavic 4 Pro, which I recently bought.
I’m a professional aerial photographer (www.davidabram.co.uk & Instagram @davidrabram). Most of my work is destined for print (in both books and large-scale prints for exhibition), so I was really looking forward to this new drone.
However, and in contrast to nearly every review I’ve read to date, I am a little disappointed with the quality of stills images in the main camera. It looks to me as if the Quad Bayer Coding is adding artefacts to my shots. I always use HDR natural image fusion to compensate for the small dynamic range of the sensor on the M2Pro, with great results up til now. But it looks as if I’m going to have to work out a whole new workflow to get really good stills off the latest Mavic.
I write this because it would be great to read your thoughts in your detailed review later in the year. I’m holding off judgement at present as most of the test shots I’ve done have been in windy conditions, but I can say with certainty that the results I’ve had so far are not better than what I get out of my Mavic 2 Pro (with a bit of help from Photomatix Pro/PTGui etc).
This does not apply to video, which is a huge step up. And of course, the ‘quality of life’ improvements DJI have made to the craft and RC are wonderful – in many respects this is the drone I’ve wanted for 12 years or more. I just suspect in their desperation to have a headline 100 megapixel spec for the marketing push may prove a shot in the foot in the long run.
Keep up the good work,
David Abram, UK
I think the problem you may be facing is that when the drone can’t stay perfectly still, the quad-bayer technology will struggle. Even though it happens quite fast, there is always going to be some delay as it is trying to create the higher resolution image. It’s one of the reasons I never use it because I almost always shoot in windy conditions or because I am photographing moving subjects.