How to Switch Camera Mode Between Auto and Pro on DJI Drone
Peter Leslie
22 May 2026
If a DJI drone is open in DJI Fly and the exposure on the live feed will not settle the way you want, the control you are looking for is the camera mode toggle. It sits as a single icon at the bottom-right of the camera view, and one tap flips between Auto and Pro on every current drone in the line-up.
Drones this applies to
DJI Neo 2, DJI Mini 5 Pro, DJI Avata 2, DJI Air 3 Pro, DJI Mavic 4 Pro. The same camera-view layout and the same bottom-right Auto / Pro toggle exist on every drone running DJI Fly v1.21.2 or later — only the range of ISO and shutter values that Pro unlocks varies very slightly between models.
Quick guide
To switch camera mode on DJI Drone, go to DJI Fly → Camera View → bottom-right icon (Auto / Pro). Tap once to toggle — Auto sets exposure automatically, Pro unlocks manual ISO, shutter, and EV controls along the same right-hand edge.
Step-by-step: How to Switch Camera Mode Between Auto and Pro on DJI Drone
Follow these top to bottom the first time, and you will know the path off by heart the second time. The icon position is identical on every drone in the callout above.
Open DJI Fly and enter the camera view on DJI Drone
With the drone powered on and the remote controller connected, launch DJI Fly and tap Go Fly to drop into the camera view. The live feed from the drone fills the screen with the shooting controls arranged in a column along the right-hand edge.
Find the camera mode icon at the bottom of the right-hand control column
Look at the stack of icons running down the right of the camera view — shooting mode, resolution, shutter, and the rest. The very last icon at the bottom of that column is the camera mode toggle, and it is the one you want.
Read the current label on the camera mode icon
The icon is labelled with whichever mode the drone is sat in right now — it reads Auto if the drone is in automatic exposure, or Pro if it is already in manual. Confirm which one is showing before you tap so you know which way the toggle is about to flip.
Tap the icon once to switch between Auto and Pro
A single tap flips the mode. If the icon was reading Auto, it switches to Pro. If it was reading Pro, it switches back to Auto. There is no confirm dialog, no submenu — the change is live the moment your finger leaves the screen.
Confirm the new mode by checking the icon label and the exposure controls
The icon now shows the mode you just switched to. If you are now in Pro, the right-hand column also reveals the manual exposure controls — ISO, shutter, and EV — that were hidden in Auto. If you are now in Auto, those manual rows collapse and the drone takes over the metering.
Dial in ISO, shutter, and EV from the right-hand column if you are now in Pro
Tap each of the newly exposed rows to set ISO, shutter speed, and EV one at a time. The live histogram on the camera view reacts to every change, so you can adjust until the exposure on the feed matches what you want to record. Pro values stick until you change them again or toggle back to Auto.
Peter's tip
I leave every drone in Auto for casual flying and only flip to Pro for matching shots — the moment the drone footage has to cut into a sequence shot on another camera, I tap into Pro, set ISO to the lowest the light allows, set shutter to twice the frame rate, and use EV to nudge the brightness. That way every clip from the drone grades the same as the rest of the timeline.
Auto vs Pro on DJI Drone
Two modes, two very different working styles. Use this table to pick before the flight, not during one.
| Mode | What it controls | When to pick it |
|---|---|---|
| Auto | The drone sets ISO, shutter speed, and exposure value automatically. The right-hand control column hides the manual rows and shows only the basics. | Casual flying, quick grabs, and any session where the light is changing between shaded and direct sun. The drone re-meters every frame so the exposure stays watchable without you touching the controls mid-flight. |
| Pro | You set ISO, shutter speed, and exposure value yourself. The right-hand control column exposes the three manual rows and holds the values you pick until you change them. | Mixed lighting, bright sky against dark ground, moving subjects the auto-metering keeps misreading, and any shoot where the drone footage has to cut into a sequence from another camera with locked settings. |
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between Auto and Pro mode on DJI Drone?
Auto lets the drone pick exposure for you — ISO, shutter speed, and exposure value all sit under the drone's automatic metering. Pro hands those three controls back to you, so you can dial in a specific ISO, shutter, and EV for the look you want. Everything else — resolution, frame rate, white balance, format — is selectable in both modes on every current DJI drone running DJI Fly.
Which camera mode does DJI Drone default to?
Auto. Every current DJI drone launches the camera view in Auto mode, and stays in Auto until you tap the bottom-right icon to switch it across. The mode persists across the same session, but a fresh power-cycle of the drone resets the camera view to Auto on the next launch.
When should I use Pro mode on DJI Drone?
Use Pro whenever the lighting is mixed, or the scene has a bright sky, dark ground, or a moving subject the auto-metering keeps misreading. Pro is also the mode to be in when you are matching drone footage to another camera on the same shoot — locking ISO and shutter manually keeps the look consistent between clips, which Auto will never do reliably.
When should I leave DJI Drone in Auto mode?
Casual flying, quick grabs, and any session where you are flying first and filming second. Auto is also the right call for changing-light scenarios — a flight that starts in shade and ends in direct sun — because the drone re-meters every frame and the exposure stays watchable without you touching anything mid-flight.
Does Pro mode unlock D-Log or a flat colour profile on DJI Drone?
No. The colour profile selector is a separate control — switching to Pro mode unlocks manual ISO, shutter, and EV but does not change the colour science. If you want a flatter profile to grade in post, set it from the dedicated colour control rather than expecting Pro to do it for you. Which colour profiles are available varies by drone, so check the per-drone list before you plan a graded edit.
Can I switch from Auto to Pro mid-flight on DJI Drone?
Yes. The mode toggle is one tap on the camera view, so you can swap between Auto and Pro while the drone is in the air. The flight itself is not interrupted — the drone keeps holding the position from the sticks while you adjust exposure. Just stop the recording first if you are mid-clip, because the mode change will look obvious in the final footage.
Why has the camera mode icon disappeared from the DJI Fly camera view?
Two usual causes — the camera view is in a sub-mode that hides the toggle, or DJI Fly is running an outdated version. Tap back out of FocusTrack, QuickShots, or any other Intelligent Flight Mode to return to the standard camera view. If the icon still does not appear, update DJI Fly and re-launch — the icon position has been stable across recent versions, so a missing icon is almost always a sub-mode or app-version issue.
Do Auto and Pro work the same way for photos and videos on DJI Drone?
The mode toggle behaves the same — one tap switches between automatic and manual — but the parameters Pro unlocks differ slightly between photo and video. In photo mode Pro exposes ISO, shutter speed, and EV; in video mode Pro exposes the same three with shutter values rounded to frame-rate-friendly intervals. The toggle itself is the same icon in the same position on every current DJI drone either way.
Auto is the right call most of the time on any current DJI drone — the metering is good and the exposure is watchable straight off the camera. Pro is the mode you reach for the second the shot needs to be locked, matched, or rescued from awkward lighting.
If you are not sure which mode suits the kind of flying you are doing, drop the details to peter@hiredronepilot.uk and I will come back to you directly. The video version of this walkthrough is on YouTube and the comments are open.
References
Primary source material for this article is the official DJI user documentation for each drone in the callout and DJI Fly. External links open in a new tab.
- DJI Fly — App download and release notes · The app where the camera view and the bottom-right Auto / Pro toggle live across every current DJI drone. Release notes record any layout changes between versions.
- DJI — UK consumer drone product line-up · Per-drone documentation covers the ISO, shutter, and EV ranges that Pro mode exposes, plus the colour profile options available on each model.
- DJI Fly — Product page (UK) · Camera view overview and the shooting controls layout that places the mode toggle at the bottom of the right-hand column.
Peter Leslie
Founder & GVC Drone Pilot
Peter is the founder of HireDronePilot. With thousands of logged commercial flight hours, he writes about drone technology, commercial surveying tactics, and UK aviation compliance.
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