How to Choose Photography Drones (UAV)

Introduction

Photography drones have changed how photography used to be. Most of the traditional photography was vertical with very few options for different angles. With the coming of drones, it’s now possible to capture wonderful moments from any angle including aerial commonly referred to as aerial photography. 

Through our experience in drones and drone batteries and accessories, we have prepared a brief guide on what to look for when searching for a photography drone. We have interacted with different drones from different drone manufacturers and we believe that this guide will help you choose wisely your photography drone. Below are the tips that you should pay attention to when purchasing your photography drone. 

• Quadcopter Design 

The X Quadcopter-shaped models of photography drones are easy to fly compared to Photography drones that are shaped like planes. A quadcopter-shaped drone captures the most stable videos and photos since it can easily hold its position in the air in a steady way. 

• Crash-detecting sensors

Photography drone sensors have undergone a lot of revolution. Today we have drone sensors that can detect any objects approaching from any direction. That way, they can adjust the direction of their flight path thus avoiding any crash that may have happened. 

This is a great way of securing your drone from breakage that will result in losses. This drone sensor technology will release you from the stress associated with flying drones. You have an option to consider a photography drone that can sense objects coming from the back, bottom, and even front. 

• High-quality camera

Quality cameras are a big plus for drones. In fact, this is what sets the main difference when it comes to the cost of drones. The higher the cost of drone photography, the better the quality of a camera you will get. With a better drone for photography, you will get 4k videos and 12-megapixel images. 

• Three-axis gimbal

A good three-axis gimbal stabilizes the drone camera that is attached to the drone with gyroscopes and accelerometers even when flying in a jerky pattern or in windy weather will be important if you want useful footage. A three-axis gimbal is the set industry standard. 

• Battery Life

A long-lasting drone battery is always good for photography drones. However, these drone batteries tend to be large with a lot of weight. This is why drone battery manufacturers try to balance battery life and drone size. 

Shorter battery life will mean fewer, videos shots with less flexibility.  A good drone battery should last at least 20 minutes. It is advisable that drone pilots carry a few extra rechargeable drone batteries to spend more time flying the drone. 

• Autonomous flight modes

Any photography drone worth purchasing should come with a mode for fail-safe return-home. This is meant to automatically bring the photography drone to where it was launched immediately with a press button. 

It should also return to the launch point immediately after the drone loses contact with the controller. A good photography drone should also have a button to tell the drone to follow it as you film a dramatic photo or race up a mountain. 

• Portability

The best photography drone should be portable enough for ease of carrying every day as an everyday tool. This means they should be light and small enough to fit in your backpack or the pack into your camera bag. Some drones make it easy for you by allowing you to fold the drone arms thus making them more compact. 

• Extended flight range

Some laws dictate that you must always have your photography drone within your sight. However, having a drone that has the ability to fly even long distances without disconnecting from the controller is very useful. 

• Intuitive drone controller

Most drone controllers are similar in appearance. They have two joysticks that control flight and a number of buttons for special tasks. Controllers can either have an in-built screen or have an option to connect to a smartphone for viewing as well as gain extra control abilities through the app. This makes the controller more intuitive by extending its functioning. 

Precautions to Observe when flying your photography drone

• Fly your photography drone within your line of sight. You should be able to view your photography drone without the help of aids like binoculars. 
• Drones must weigh not more than 55 pounds unless your drone has been certified by your community-based organization
• Never attempt to fly your drone close to other aircraft.
• Never fly your photography drone within 6 miles of an airport. If you do, ensure you inform the airport control tower before your flight. 
• Never fly anywhere near the emergency response efforts
• Do not fly your photography drone while under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

Advantages of using Photography Drones

• Affordable, Silent and Non-polluting
• Quick and easy to implement
• Allows Several Elevation points within a few hours based on your distance
• Very stable with a great flow of shot images
• Closeness to the object being shot or filmed
• High speeds of up to 50km/h
• GPS enabled to allow for easy return to point of flying
• Photography drones can carry a wide variety of shooting systems
• It has remote access to impassable and dangerous areas that human beings cannot maneuver
• Full-HD Quality-Photography drones can shoot in full HD to capture aerial footage of 4K resolution and above. This does not mean reduced image and video quality
• Time: The photography drone is operated by a very small team. It mainly involves the photography drone pilot as well as the camera operator. This means you have less time like 5 minutes setup time and start off your project. Even when you get bad weather in the middle of the project, you simply have to land the drone and you can wait for the rain to stop.  

Conclusion

With the many advantages that come along with the use and need for photography drones, it is important that you get everything right when settling down for a specific drone. Here at SPP, we have more than we can offer including drone batteries and DIY drones among others. You can reach out to us anytime and we will be happy to assist.