JohnH

Hi,

Anyone have experience of photographing from a drone?

Any advice on which drone/camera gives the best results.

Here in the Uk there are lots of restrictions as to where. one can fly a drone, hence my hesitation until now.

John

Rongnongno Loc: FL

Check with the drone section on UHH.

jmizera Loc: Austin Texas

Go with DJI. Especially if you're just starting out. Short of high end octos, they are the best bet. Mavics are amazing.

Architect1776 Loc: In my mind

I use one for work only. Site surveys etc.
Outside of that they are too intrusive and dangerous when used by untrained narcissists.

ottopj Loc: Annapolis, MD USA

How did you learn? Or, are you still an untrained narcissist who pretends to know what to do when at work?

Architect1776 Loc: In my mind

I am a licensed pilot, took training and respect others privacy.

rstrick2 Loc: Beverly Hills, FL

I started out with the cheapest drone I could get so I could learn to fly them and learn the technique. The first two ended lost in a corn field because of pilot error. The reason I sent it way out to far, the wind caught it a took it away. The next one I bought was a drone with GPS in it. The GPS is a necessity. I flew this drone around taking photos just building up flight time. Then I went shopping looking for a DJI drone. I went into Letgo, Offer up and Facebook Classifieds. What I found is, when there is a new just released or expected to be released many people sell the older ones looking to get the newer model, as with the DJI Mavic Pro. I finally found a used DJI Mavic Pro kit, 4 batteries, charging station, filters the whole works with around 19 flights on it, as he wanted the newer model. I learned very quickly you get what you pay for. The Mavic Pro is one of greatest flying drones for aerial photos and video. I would recommend, especially if you haven't flown is to a cheaper drone that has GPS and learn to fly that then move up to the DJI Drones. They are many great deals out there if you take your time and ask questions. or go to DJI store and or buy new.

BlueMorel Loc: Southwest Michigan

I want the DJI Mavic, too, but for the life of me I can't see where I could use it. The national parks I vacation at ban their use, nearby farmers would be upset at bothering their animals, and hunters in the game area next property over might come hunting for me if I scare off the deer. We have 10 scres of mixed woods and overgrown field, but I wouldn't want to have to traipse through underbrush looking for a downed drone.

Weigh the "I want" factor against cost, need and practicality. I want it for the techie toy factor, but there are other more practical ways for me to satisfy that.

ottopj Loc: Annapolis, MD USA

Thanks for the info. Great reply, btw. I was thinking the other day, "Maybe, I want to try drone photography." Where do I start? Your answer was just what I wanted. Appreciate it. Thanks. Glad you didn't believe that anyone who wants to learn about it is a narcissistic invader of personal space.

rgrenaderphoto Loc: Hollywood, CA

Reviews for the DJI Mavic Air are very promising. Personally, as attractive as Drone Photography would be, I do not need another imaging obsession.

Architect1776 Loc: In my mind

Aww Why not?

Paladin48 Loc: Orlando

Soul Dr. Loc: Beautiful Shenandoah Valley

I was supposed to have a DJI Spark delivered by UPS today. But the delivery has been delayed due to about a foot of snow we got between last night and today.
The Spark has most of the features of the Mavic and some it doesn't have in a smaller, more portable package. I have had a DJI Phantom (sold it) and currently have a Parrot BeBop drone. The Spark comes in a nice case about the size of a laptop, making it very portable and easy to store.
So I do have experience flying drones for a while. They are a good way to get some great videos and photos you can't get any other way.
I have found the DJI products to be the easiest to set up and fly.
Don't buy a cheap toy drone to learn on. They will only make you frustrated and want to tear your hair out. Been down that road.
A good drone made by a co. like DJI is very easy to learn to fly. I let my grown daughter fly my Phantom, with some instructions from me and she had no problem even though she had never flown one before.

will

jeep_daddy Loc: Prescott AZ

As someone else pointed out, UHH has a drone section now and it would be an excellent place to post this question. Although, I am the mediator for the drone section I'll try to point you in a direction for a little help. As someone else already pointed out, there is a company called DJI that is probably the largest drone manufacturer on the market today. And, like most cameras, the more you pay, the better the camera is and this includes the drone too. DJI starts with a drone called the Spark as it's entry level drone and then the Mavic Air, Mavic Pro, Mavic Platinum, Phantom, then Inspire and then they have some industrial drones that are for who knows what that cost a fortune. There's no doubt that they can carry large DSLR camera payloads and have many bells and whistles. So, start by going to the DJI website and looking over the camera specs. Flight time will also be a consideration that most people think is important. There are some other done companies, one of which is designed to carry a GoPro camera. I know that the GoPro cameras are very good considering how small they are. I used to own one that I used for underwater photography and it was superb. But I sold it because I didn't plan to do any more of that kind of videography. There are some other companies that make drones with cameras but I'm not that familiar with them, and from what I've read, and what I've seen, none of them interest me. Could be that some of them might interest you depending on how much of a budget you have, how hard or easy they are to fly, and whether or not you need a good camera that has a 3 axis gimbal or not. I think the gimbal is just about as important as the camera, flight time, video and photo quality, price and ease of use. When I say ease of use, what I'm really saying is that some do and some don't have GPS and other sensors that make flight very easy and straight forward with much less risk of crashing or a fly-away. The thing that worries most of my friends is a fly-away. Nobody wants to have a $1000 simply fly away, never to be seen again.

If you have any specific questions, feel free to ask them here or on the Drone section of UHH. I hope this helps.

fantom Loc: Colorado