Stafford aerial photos / videos by drone

wmrcomputers

Stafford PC & laptop repair specialist
Damn you @wmrcomputers ... I've just caved in and ordered a dji phantom 3.

I've been playing around with a cheaper drone just to master flying but I'm ready to go more upmarket now.
I'm not looking to do professional work with it, its just an extra for my camera hobby.
Should be delivered sometime next week so if you have any tips you want to share then please let me know :)

Is that the standard one at £640? I'm really gutted that I didn't hold out for longer!

BIGGEST TIP - Calibrating the magnetic compass! Do it when you get it, and do it everytime you fly in a different place than last time. They say you only need to do it if you use it 30 miles from last location - ignore that!! If you don't want it to go dissapearing do it every time you fly in a different spot - even if it's only a couple of miles across town.
Another tip - don't eat yellow snow. That's a no no. ;)
 

wmrcomputers

Stafford PC & laptop repair specialist
As I'm now prioritising in setting up my photo booth business instead, I would actually consider selling mine and buying a Phantom 3 next year. I'm just not prepared to lose as much as I'd probably have to on it.
 

Perrier

Banned
Is that the standard one at £640? I'm really gutted that I didn't hold out for longer!

BIGGEST TIP - Calibrating the magnetic compass! Do it when you get it, and do it everytime you fly in a different place than last time. They say you only need to do it if you use it 30 miles from last location - ignore that!! If you don't want it to go dissapearing do it every time you fly in a different spot - even if it's only a couple of miles across town.
Another tip - don't eat yellow snow. That's a no no. ;)

Yes its the standard :)
Great deal considering that it comes with the camera and gimbal included.
It hasn't got light bridge but I'm not planning to send it out of my viewing radius anyway.
I've been watching the YouTube vids showing the pre flight setup including return to home and compass etc and I think whilst in beginner mode it won't actually allow take off unless they are completed.

I'd be more concerned about brown snow if I break it lol.
 

wmrcomputers

Stafford PC & laptop repair specialist
Yes its the standard :)

I've been watching the YouTube vids showing the pre flight setup including return to home and compass etc and I think whilst in beginner mode it won't actually allow take off unless they are completed.

I'd be more concerned about brown snow if I break it lol.

I wouldn't bank on it! Mine warns if not connected to many satellites, but still wouldn't prevent take off. Also the compass calibration - you'd remember as you're losing control.

If you want a real-life flight session / friendly lesson let me know as I'm always keen to introduce newbies. Also, set it up using the PC software before first flying as there are features you might think are activated as standard that aren't..... Mine came in "Phantom mode" but they are much better in Naza-M mode in my opinion. You might also need to enable the return to home to work on the right switch otherwise you have no manual way of entering it other than switching off the controls - and if you do that re-gaining control is almost an impossibility. It's nice have the right switch do it as you can use it to bring it back closer if you lose sight of it, then switch back once you have set eyes on it again.

There are some other settings I would recommend activating using your PC too, such as height limit of 400 feet to ensure you stay within the law (and 400 feet is far higher that you'll need to go most of the time anyway)
 

wmrcomputers

Stafford PC & laptop repair specialist
These things seem everywhere. What do you all film?
To be honest I'm using mine very little at the moment. I maybe go out with it once or twice a week, some weeks not at all. Due to strict laws you have to be really careful about where they are flown and what you capture. Another reason why I was going to take my BNUC-S qualification so that I could expand it's useability and even make money, but just decided as it would be seasonable that my photo booth hire business might be a wiser investment.

I'll still probably keep it, as I absolutely love flying it. Sometimes it's not even about the image.... There are times I fly it just because I can.
 

Perrier

Banned
Thanks for the info wmr .
Regarding the laws in effect at the moment , I know a few remote areas I can get to that shouldn't be to much of a problem.
I think the media is scaremongering their use as a spying tool a little too far as if I wanted to do that I have a perfectly good telephoto lens on my handheld camera that could probably catch someone squeezing a zit on their face from a few hundred foot away.
These drones can get some great aerial footage but they haven't got the scope you would get from a Sunday sport camera man chasing a royal.
To be fair , if I was flying into someone's garden , or school area, nudist beach etc and generally being a tw@t , then i would expect to be busted.

Being responsible and considerate will reap rewards and not give the hobby a bad name.
 

wmrcomputers

Stafford PC & laptop repair specialist
Thanks for the info wmr .
Regarding the laws in effect at the moment , I know a few remote areas I can get to that shouldn't be to much of a problem.

To be perfectly honest, as long as you aren't too close to buildings you won't draw much attention. I regularly have people come up and talk to me about it and ask if they can see the screen of my phone. I think it reassures them that I'm not zooming in on anyone and it fascinates them at how different things look from a different angle. I should imagine 2 or 3 people I've spoken to will have gone on to purchase one just like yourself.

When you are up and running let me know. I've always fancied flying at the same time as another drone user to see if we could get good images of eachother in the air. :up:
 

Perrier

Banned
When you are up and running let me know. I've always fancied flying at the same time as another drone user to see if we could get good images of eachother in the air. :up:

I was kind of hoping you would say that , I'll be in touch as soon as I've got to grips with it :)
 

wmrcomputers

Stafford PC & laptop repair specialist
I was kind of hoping you would say that , I'll be in touch as soon as I've got to grips with it :)
There's not a lot to get to grips with to be honest. If you bought something cheaper to learn with - as in a non-GPS drone, then you're probably alot more skilled than you need to be. Phantoms are sooooooooo easy to fly. I shook like a dog having a sh** the first couple of times I took off - partly as I was scared of losing it and partly sheer adrenalin! Now it's like walking the dog. In fact scrap that.... the dog pulls and goes where it wants to and the drone does exactly what I expect it to. :D
 

wmrcomputers

Stafford PC & laptop repair specialist
Well, I ended up selling the drone to urgently fund towards a £700 printer that I needed for my photo booth. However, I was contacted today by the council asking for permission to use some of the images I've captured, in particular Wildwood park, Rowley park and Stafford Castle. Therefore if anyone sees them appearing anywhere online or otherwise please let me know as it would be nice to see how they are used. :)
 

John Marwood

I ♥ cryptic crosswords
Well, I ended up selling the drone to urgently fund towards a £700 printer that I needed for my photo booth. However, I was contacted today by the council asking for permission to use some of the images I've captured, in particular Wildwood park, Rowley park and Stafford Castle. Therefore if anyone sees them appearing anywhere online or otherwise please let me know as it would be nice to see how they are used. :)


Not yours

But

http://www.theguardian.com/sport/vi...y-knocks-drone-out-of-sky-with-football-video
 

hop

Well-Known Forumite
Came across a prototype scheme by direct line called Fleetlights. Basically using drones to illuminate areas, can think of several uses for this kind of application.
 
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