Guest post by Hawaii Web Group There are unique advantages and disadvantages to both ways of shooting aerial photography. Living in Hawaii gives us access to many helicopter tours and some of the best views on the planet. And since we have many drones and professional cameras at our disposal, we’re in a unique position to share specific examples and our experiences shooting aerial photography from both helicopters and drones in Maui, Hawaii. The Differences between Drone Photography & Traditional Helicopter PhotographyLegal Height This is one of the biggest differences, and both types of aerial photography have pros and cons. With drones, you can’t legally fly in the US above 400 feet. This is great for shooting people, moving objects on the ground, sports, buildings, etc… But, to get a truly magnificent birds eye view, a lot of times shooting from a helicopter is the only way to go. We find shooting towns, cities, and major landmarks offers a fuller composition from higher up. Flight Duration and distances DJI claims the new Phantom 4 has a max flight time of approximately 28 minutes (same with the new Inspire 2 and Mavic Pro), the DJI S900 does 18 minutes (depending on the weight of the attached camera and gear), and the GoPro Karma has a 20 minute flight time. This is usually enough time per shoot, and there’s always the option of having more batteries once you return to home. When flying with Blue Hawaiian Helicopters, you fly for up to a 2 hour tour. This allows you to shoot for longer and travel greater distances. Though flying a drone out of line of sight is easily done, it’s not recommended and restricts the distances you can cover on a single full charge. Safety & Liability We fly exclusively with Blue Hawaiian's experienced pilots and quality aircrafts. As far as drones, you can find a million scary videos online of drones crashing into bystanders as well as drone operators. Thankfully, applied sensor technology is keeping new drones from crashing into objects. We’ve all been waiting for this! I have a robot kitty cat toy my kid has played with for over 4 years that has this sensor technology. Why it took so long for drone makers to add this feature is beyond me. Depending on how well this technology works, you hopefully won’t have a problem. If you do, you’re the one liable for damages. Cost Of course, if you fly infrequently, most drones will end up costing you less than helicopter flights. There are, however, some hidden costs for drone owners. If you travel, you need to consider the extra baggage cost of checking in items you might normally carry on (cause we know you’ll likely carry your drone on, right?) Another additional cost to flying drones is upgrading. It seems every time we buy a new drone, the next version comes out a month later. Also, sadly, we’ve lost a number of drones in numerous ways including tree & waterfall collisions (which it looks like will be a thing of the past), and malfunction over the ocean… I really can’t expand on this. It’s emotional. Camera Type Though our Phantom cameras aren’t quite to the professional level we want, the new cameras that can be added to the Inspire are phenomenal. We also love the ability to drop our Canon Mark III on the S900. That being said, there’s extra cost for these cameras, and taking out the big spreading wing rig requires more time, muscle and energy. When shooting aerial photography from a helicopter, we can use any size and weight rig we want, which is really nice. Noise Helicopters are obviously much louder, but it doesn’t matter. You’re never going to piss off neighbors and have ignorant people call the police on you if your flying with an experienced helicopter pilot. Plus, they give you noise-cancelling headphones so you can talk to each other. When you fly high enough with a drone, you can’t hear them, but when low, it can be upsetting depending on your location and proximity to animals and people. I got kicked out of the Surfing Goat Dairy once cause my Phantom was bothering the goats. I feel bad about it to this day. Speed The new Inspire 2 flies up to a whopping 67mph! That’s pretty stunning. We wonder how much that drains off the battery and your flight time? We’ll test it soon! As far as helicopters, you can fly much faster and much further. For sustained shots over far expanses, you can’t beat the helicopter. Camera Control Expert drone pilots can control both the flight and the camera with ease. We love that the Inspire gives you the option of having 2 controls so that 2 people can control each independently. We also really like the new features added at DJI that allow for following the subject or spotlighting them. But for those of us with less experience and the need for complex shots, flying from a helicopter is preferred. Flight Restriction There are certain areas you can’t capture with a drone in Hawaii. For example, Haleakala National Park—or any US National Park—prohibits flights over them. With a helicopter, you can legally get close enough to see them well. With a drone, you risk getting tazed by a ranger. Also, flying over private property and certain protected animal life (Humpback Whales) isn’t allowed below 400 feet. You’ll need to book a helicopter tour in Hawaii for these unique shots. Proximity to Subject Again, pros and cons for both. Your helicopter pilot isn’t going to let you fly within mere feet of another person or a building. But you can’t get up close to a towering waterfall in the West Maui Mountains with a drone (unless you want to hike and rock climb for days.) Weather is also an issue. A little rain won’t bother your helicopter flight, but it’ll fry your expensive toy. Gimbal for Video If you want to shoot video on a helicopter, you better have a great gimbal that reduces shake. Most drones these days are equipped with 3-axis gimbals and shake-eliminating technology. The Thrill This is a plus with both. My heart races flying both drones and in a helicopter. My adrenaline level is definitely higher when flying next to sea cliffs, racing over rainforest, and steady right next to massive waterfalls. But there’s a giddy excitement every time I bring a drone into flight. What did we miss? Please comment below with your questions and anything you would add or change on this aerial flight comparison blog post. Mahalo and we’ll see you in the skies above Maui, Hawaii!
Comments
Maui Farm to Table via drone - Drone to Table
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Farm to Table via Drone Delivery
This project was an experiment to see if drone to table might be a viable concept and I think it could with more development. The S900 is not a simple rig to operate and maintain and when they start doing this regularly, I will need to train someone to operate and maintain the drone. DJI has still not standardized larger batteries for their larger drones so you have to be careful and take your time loading batteries. I nearly crashed my s800 into a pond because of the battery attachment method on the S800 and it is basically the same on the s900. It's a challenging drone to operate even with the stable A2 flight controller - bigger drones are just more stressful. |
Automation will be the final solution, which is why a dedicated landing pad and take off zone at the restaurant and at the farm have been created. It is always windy on Maui, and that decreases the precision of the GPS holding of the flight controller, so you would need to have a larger space to take off and land from (or have someone who has some hours on the drone sticks.) I still have not experimented with automation so I do not know its limitations and draw backs.
FINAL THOUGHTS
This was a fun project, and I felt lucky to be able to work on something like this. Exploring the uses of drones has always been one of the reasons I started this website, and this was the most unique thing I've done yet. Now we can all add "Drone to table" to the things drones are good for!
This was a fun project, and I felt lucky to be able to work on something like this. Exploring the uses of drones has always been one of the reasons I started this website, and this was the most unique thing I've done yet. Now we can all add "Drone to table" to the things drones are good for!
The response I have gotten to my book on starting your own aerial photography business has been amazing and the feedback I have gotten has been so positive but I still get questions about how much to charge for aerial photographs and video. This is somewhat of a loaded question and depends on where you are at on the drone as a hobby spectrum. For example, did you buy a drone specifically to start shooting aerial photography for business or do you want to just shoot enough to cover the cost of your awesome new toy? One of the things Italk about in my book is how to build up your customers by emailing realtors and offering free or discounted pictures to build your portfolio and get some satisfied customers to start generating word of mouth referrals. If you want to start building up a backlog of work and start an actual business you will make less at first but you will build your portfolio and customer base and you can slowly start raising your rates. Under this scenario, I think you offer pictures for free to the first client and if you nail the job then you should charge a bit more for your next set of pictures for the next client, say $50-75. You keep raising the rate up until you get to $100-250 per session. Only move your pricing up if you have happy customers who gush about how great your work is. Remember to always under promise and over deliver. Say you will give them 3 amazing pictures but end up giving them 6-10 fully edited amazing pictures and a short video if you have a drone with a gimbal. Word spreads fast if you are good at what you do and have great customer service.
If you do not like the progressive approach and want to just make some quick cash, you can do this as well. Depending on your RC and photo / video editing skills, you can easily charge $100-150 bucks for some nice pictures. If you have the DJI Phantom and a GoPro, try and use the video and picture setting that records video and takes pictures and go ahead and make a 1-2 minute video and offer it to the client for an extra $50-100. The bottom of the range is for less expensive houses while the higher end is for more expensive houses. You should always size up the house and the client because more expensive listings should generally make you more money than cheaper houses. Lots, ranches, and undeveloped land are ripe for aerial photography because they can be difficult to capture from the ground.
Anytime the job requires more than a short car ride or involves something novel or unique, you can and should charge more.
If you do not like the progressive approach and want to just make some quick cash, you can do this as well. Depending on your RC and photo / video editing skills, you can easily charge $100-150 bucks for some nice pictures. If you have the DJI Phantom and a GoPro, try and use the video and picture setting that records video and takes pictures and go ahead and make a 1-2 minute video and offer it to the client for an extra $50-100. The bottom of the range is for less expensive houses while the higher end is for more expensive houses. You should always size up the house and the client because more expensive listings should generally make you more money than cheaper houses. Lots, ranches, and undeveloped land are ripe for aerial photography because they can be difficult to capture from the ground.
Anytime the job requires more than a short car ride or involves something novel or unique, you can and should charge more.
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