Drones?

[Theo-san]

http://www.petacatalog.com/homeperso...irangelsdrone/

Saw this and it got me thinking about the possibilities of drone use for skiing/action sports - just wondering if any mags are doing it on a non-professional level with decent results. Would be interested to see what experiences anyone here has.

I'm curious as to the performance of lower-end models at altitude..

[LightRanger]

I remember Trackhead started using them years ago.

[abraham]

Yeah I remember that too. I've been thinking about setting up something similar, but I think it would be a two person job to use. One for steering and one for filming. Of course it would be useful if it didn't require line of sight so you would need to transmit some video back to make it useable. Flying through trees while filming a skier from above would be pretty exciting to me.

[Edgnar]

Just a bit more money, but this one has a built in rig for a go pro. Adding video transmission back to the ground runs another $300 minimum is what the 45 minutes of research I put into the subject told me.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/cont...=REG&A=details

Would be fun...

[kathleenturneroverdrive]

Lots of people are using them in action sports. It's kind of the 'in' thing for a lot of young camera guys. On a pro level you need a seriously talented crew of two to run these things and a camera burly enough to fly at least a dslr. You also need as much stabilization as you can afford.

On a rec level you can def get into this with a cheap go pro cam.

[hitek79]

DJI Phantom. Do want!!!

[hitek79]

[Hott Butt Mud]

Anyone know what the National Park Service has to say about this? or the BLM or USFS?

I ask because I remember Chris Davenport getting into trouble for filming a 14er ski line with a real heli.... it was illegal becuase of the heli filiming for-profit.

[hitek79]

For profit definitely is an issue. You need to go thru all the permitting process it seems if you want to set up and get real quality stuff. If you're out just playing around, the consensus seems to be "it's better to ask forgiveness than permission"

[kathleenturneroverdrive]

On a pro level you need permits from all those agencies and it's a pain in the ass to get them (not hard, just a lot of red tape). Different story if you're just a guy with a guy with a consumer camera. That said most park/FS employees probably wouldn't consider you a hobbyist if you're flying one of these and they'd probably shut you down if you didn't have a permit.

Davenport didn't get permits for anything. At all. For an entire season of skiing. Don't think the heli really mattered at that point.

Oh and just an FYI for everyone: drones are technically illegal according to the FAA. They'll probably figure something out and make them legal eventually though.

[hitek79]

Basic drone rules.

http://diydrones.com/profiles/blog/s...ogPost%3A28583

[Touring_Sedan]

Just a bit more money, but this one has a built in rig for a go pro. Adding video transmission back to the ground runs another $300 minimum is what the 45 minutes of research I put into the subject told me.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/cont...=REG&A=details

Would be fun...

I considered that model for a while, and while the base price looks good, to get usable video out of it you really need to invest in a $700 gimbal. That pushes the price for the entire rig well into the $1K range, for something that is only good for wide angle shots.

[kidwoo]

I considered that model for a while, and while the base price looks good, to get usable video out of it you really need to invest in a $700 gimbal. That pushes the price for the entire rig well into the $1K range, for something that is only good for wide angle shots.

With all the shaking, vibrations and sudden movements inherent in ANY small rig, trust me.....you don't want anything BUT wide angle shots. If you want to start getting tight framing, you're dropping a hell of a lot of money. 1K is astronomically cheaper than the options around just a year ago. I see the biggest limitation being that you have to use a gopro. Not because it's wide but because those things suck in anything but ideal light.

[Theo-san]

On a pro level you need permits from all those agencies and it's a pain in the ass to get them (not hard, just a lot of red tape). Different story if you're just a guy with a guy with a consumer camera. That said most park/FS employees probably wouldn't consider you a hobbyist if you're flying one of these and they'd probably shut you down if you didn't have a permit.

Davenport didn't get permits for anything. At all. For an entire season of skiing. Don't think the heli really mattered at that point.

Oh and just an FYI for everyone: drones are technically illegal according to the FAA. They'll probably figure something out and make them legal eventually though.

Are you sure drones for recreational purposes are illegal? I'm assuming the R/C pilots in the country are not ALL criminals.. I could be wrong. I could see flying in a national park/wildlife refuge being illegal or at the very least "unadvisable".

[Touring_Sedan]

With all the shaking, vibrations and sudden movements inherent in ANY small rig, trust me.....you don't want anything BUT wide angle shots. If you want to start getting tight framing, you're dropping a hell of a lot of money. 1K is astronomically cheaper than the options around just a year ago. I see the biggest limitation being that you have to use a gopro. Not because it's wide but because those things suck in anything but ideal light.

Agreed, these small rigs are only viable for wide angle. I just think it's shitty that DJI doesn't include the gimbal, as shooting without it is pretty useless. You're right that 1K is an amazing price point. My last rig cost significantly more.

[hitek79]

If you get on YouTube, there are a number of tweaks and tricks to make the Phantom vibrate a lot less. Beyond that, there's a gimbal called the tarot that only runs $199 and is just as good as the $700 zenmuse.

[GustavBrandbyge]

If you guys would like to see some heavy drone-action filming, then you should definitely check out Field Production's new movie "Supervention". In cooperation with Antimedia, they have certainly managed to capture some sick shots of powder, urban and terrain park skiing. Check out their VGTV series or their Supervention trailer on YouTube. You will not be disappointed!