Droneflyers.com Drone Photography and Video hints and tips #1
Photography and video from aloft is driving many to enter this hobby. In fact, many are
taking drone photography past the hobby stage and starting to use the amazing abilities of
quadcopters for light commercial and inspection duties (note: the legal status of such use has
not been settled)
Being as we are a beginners site, let’s focus on how to get a lot of value for the money spent
– without mortgaging the house to buy a heavy lift multirotor and a fancy DLSR. There are
three major factors to consider in the creation of your photo and video projects:
1. Your Eye – Creativity, Storyline, Art, etc.
2. Your Hardware – drone, camera, gimbal
3. Your software – editing software and photo post-processing
Part #1 – this post – will focus on the “art form” of your aerial photography and video. Parts
#2 and #3 will be published soon and linked here and elsewhere.
General Framing “Your Eye”
Of these factors, #1 is the most important! What do you want your photographs or videos to
show? Cameras do not “see” or experience the same way that the human eye and body do.
When you take in a scene, all your senses are engaged – yet in your picture or video, only
one. Quadcopters are usually too loud to record the sound of a scene.
Let me start by posting a nice still picture – taken from a height of close to 600 feet above
the nearby river! This shows a scene which is pastoral and pleasant to behold.
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Droneflyers.com Drone Photography and Video hints and tips #1
Picture from 600 feet high
But, there is a catch- this picture was taken standing on solid ground – not from the air! I am
using it as an illustration of the first rule of creating a decent aerial photo or video – that
being “Think about the shot – are you showing a point of view that is not seen otherwise?”
This would seem obvious, but it’s not…and just applying this hint will allow you to leap
forward in terms of the interest factor of your pics. Here are two examples of pictures taken
from relatively low heights – less than 100 feet – yet they capture images which cannot be
seen any other way than from the air. Click the pictures to see larger images.
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Droneflyers.com Drone Photography and Video hints and tips #1
In both
of these
photos,
the
surroun
ding
ground
Hanging Rock – Next to a Beach
is
Historical Horse Barn
relativel
y flat
and
there is
no point
of view
which is
higher
than
the
objects
themsel
ves.
This
makes
for a
nice
photos
than,
for
exampl
e,
bringing
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Droneflyers.com Drone Photography and Video hints and tips #1
your
drone
up to
the top
of the
local
mountai
n and
then
flying it
another
100 or
200
feet
high.
You
already
know
what
that
view
looks
like.
In fact,
it could
be said
that
very
hilly
terrain
is often
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Droneflyers.com Drone Photography and Video hints and tips #1
not the
best
place to
take
aerial
photos
– since
many of
the
views
are
seen
just
driving
down
the
road. In
such
terrain,
you
may be
better
seeking
out the
flatter
valleys
and
smaller
subjects
such as
building
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Droneflyers.com Drone Photography and Video hints and tips #1
s, etc.
to
present
a
unique
image.
Reposition for Different Views
Many pilots will walk to the center of a field or area and send their quadcopter up for some
still pics or video – then land and call it a day. You will find that moving your drone 50 feet or
more in any direction will capture a different view (photo or video) – same goes with various
heights above ground…things will look different with each shot. Memory cards are very
inexpensive – take lots of footage and still and sort out the best later!
Light – The Golden Hour(s) and More
“The golden hour is a period shortly after sunrise or before sunset during which daylight is
redder and softer compared to when the Sun is higher in the sky.”
Aerial pictures can be taken at any time of day – however, most of the current breed of flying
cameras do not work well in very low light. The usual photography and video hints apply –
such as trying to have the bright sun at your (drone’s) back. Cloudy days and partly cloudy
days (often with bright blue in between the clouds) make for some nice contrast.
The “Golden Hour(s)” often provide a nice light for your aerial projects. The Horse Barn
shown further below as well as this photo were taken in the last 1/2 hour before sunset.
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Droneflyers.com Drone Photography and Video hints and tips #1
Photo Taken near Sunset – Sun behind Drone
Video Framing and Story
The same advice applies to video – but you also have to consider a couple more creative
decisions. Think back to home movies and videos – no one wants to sit still and watch all your
footage! The secret of good video is to use it to tell a story. This means editing your video
and assembling only the best clips into the final product and including titles, transitions and
some background music or narration. Most aerial videos should be in the range of 1-3
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Droneflyers.com Drone Photography and Video hints and tips #1
minutes, with 5 minutes being the upper limit.
The story is more important than the quality of the particular camera – although having both
helps! As an example, here is a video shot from a $80 camera on an $80 toy Quadcopter – no
gimbal or stabilization, yet it shows a point of view impossible to get any other way:
General Hints for a Creative Focus:
1. Take photos and videos from a point of view other than the normal scenery.
2. Pictures and videos do not have to be from high altitudes – often a closer look is better
(real estate, etc.).
3. Still pictures are often better than video unless you have the skills to properly edit as well
as stabilized (gimbal) footage.
4. You can capture good video and pictures without FPV – that is, without a monitor to see
what the camera is looking at. This comes with some practice – but allows you to create on a
budget.
5. Videos should be short and tell a story.
6. Crop and slightly enhance still photos if needed – do not overdo it by adding “instagram”
type filters.
7. Use standard photo and video hints such as having the sun behind the subject and
shooting at the best times of day (depending on the subject, etc.).
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Droneflyers.com Drone Photography and Video hints and tips #1
Mansion – Low Altitude Screen Grab from Video – Cloudy Day
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Copyright - Droneflyers.com - 2016
Droneflyers.com Drone Photography and Video hints and tips #1
Related posts:
1. Quadcopter Aerial Photography and Video on a shoestring budget
2. How Video and Photography Drones Work
3. Finding Places to Fly and Photograph with your Drone
4. Drone Aerial Photography at the Golden Hour
Copyright - Droneflyers.com - 2016