Because there are few establishing shots that can compete with the one you get above 250 feet, I frequently take my shoots airborne. Whether it’s yanking the doors off a Bell Ranger traditional style or the…ahem…new school way of sending an 8-bladed octo-copter to do the dirty work, if it’s outdoors these days, aerial footage is, well, the new black.
Neither option mentioned above is cheap, however. I’ve been paying thru the mega-schnoz to rent A-Stars ($2000 + per hour) and such for years. And then was superduper excited in 2010 to go remote aerial at about half the cost of a real heli for this project launching the Nikon D7000 (here’s some more BTS with the same flight crew from a commercial i shot in Telluride…). But it’s still pricey. $2k – $5,000 per DAY or more. And although going the R/C route is the lesser of two budget busters, it’s still a rough lump to swallow, particularly if you’re just getting in the game.
ENTER the DJI Phantom, (picked mine up at Dronefly.com) the out-of-the-box R/C quadcopter.
Now before y’all jump into a tizzy that this thing isn’t close to the same quality – doesn’t do X and Y…I know those things. It’s ok that it can’t fly an Arri Alexa or do this or that other thing. BUT damn this is a great entry product that A) allows budget conscious folks the ability to fly a camera; B) makes some pretty solid footy for web videos and such; and C) is a helluva lot of fun to fly. All at fraction of the cost of any previously mentioned option.
Designed to fly the GoPro (you know I love ’em in this video), this little rig comes in at under $700. Nothing to sneeze at, but chump change compared to what was available just 5 years ago. My crew has two of these little buggers now — and within 5 minutes I had achieved a comfort level great enough to try the stunt at 0:45, terrorize the other people at the GasWorks park in Seattle, and even chase a seaplane.
Although it’s not suitable for high end work (yet?), this is a nice budget breakthru. And truth be told it’s a fricking blast — I’ll be doing more soon. Perhaps…ahem… even on my next photo shoot in Iceland…
Pabst Blue Ribbon? That copter must be expensive, not much money left for beer. Anyway, was hoping you’d review this. Thanks for the info, might get one and fly it around the Brooklyn Bridge.
@Pabst Blue Ribbon – could be a Seattle thing. Chase does display a dusting of hipster attributes, but he more than makes up for it by being genuinely cool and talented.
Great Chase! Your pretty good for just starting out. I filmed this with my quadcopter and GoPro last Sunday night in the Cascade Mountains – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N4u0KWSsir8
Isn’t it against FAA regulations and therefore illegal to use drones for commercial and editorial work?
Not trying to be a wet blanket, but just wondering if you knew of a work around.
those laws are continually being revised and reworked by my understanding. i’ve flown them all over the place – with film commission permits and without.
The jury is still out and from what i know the challenge is really around the definition and the size / less about flying a cheap camera. ‘
but i’m no lawyer (phew.)
Here in Australia the jury isn’t out.. it’s illegal to use them for commercial purposes unless you are certified by our Civil Aviation Safety Authority.. so many photographers are using them without the right permits though.
Thanks for the reply Chase.
Same in UK … Have to do CAA qual. You may say boring but 1. Can be very dangerous ….(a bit boring) 2. Cant get insurance without it and that could be curtains ….
Pay up and do it
Cheers
stfu you are pathetic , mr regulation man lmao
Throw a nice gimbal on there and you’ll get rid of the jello and get some smooth stabilization.
Have you seen the new model they are supposed to release this year? All in one with camera and live FPV and controls to your iPhone. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rht-QarvEM4
Glad to see you get on board! Thats copter is awesome, and Im jealous of my old stomping grounds, Gas Works.
Between you and your crew, I know you probably have done all the research, but here anyhow:
Balance the blades, go to a hobby shop and get a blade balancer for $10 – that will help with the vibration. A TON. (reduce the jelly affect on the footage)
If you can, fly without the GPS on. I know its a great safety catch, but the Phantom (and all gps guided self flyers) are sending thousands of adjustment signals per second to the rotor motors and it causes a bunch of vibration on the footage. Shutting the GPS off will cut down on that as well.
You can also bye gimbals and tons of other sweet things for the Phantom now too:
http://phantomguide.com/
Not my site, just sharing. Thanks man for throwing this up!