Putting a Drone Under Your Child’s Christmas Tree

Phoenix, AZ—Okay, I have to confess that my two camera drones have brought out the child in me!  I put one under my own tree last Christmas.  I’m middle-aged but have become hopelessly hooked on these incredible things.  I now own a DJI Phantom 2 and a Blade 350QX quad-copters that use those great GoPro cameras. 

For some unknown reason these multi-rotor camera drones have not caught the affection of women like they have men.  I don’t understand this since women are generally more creative then men.  I hope this changes because they have no clue what they’re missing.

The popularity of the multi-rotor drones is exploding especially with photographers.  They allow limitless perspectives of the subject mater sought to make or capture breathtaking images. 

They have starter drones on the substantially less-expensive end such as the Blade 200-QX that can help your child master the very important skills in controlling, operating and understanding this somewhat new technology. 

To be a successful camera drone owner & operator there are four things that must be part of your learning curve. 

First is learning the science and piloting of the device itself.  Next is the understanding of cameras and video photography.  After that, learning how to edit the video so that it is watchable becomes very important.  Last but not least is story telling or writing ability, which is no small part of this process. 

The best way to describe this is to compare this process to making a TV news story or a blockbuster movie.  If you’re not motivated, creative and competitive don’t bother with camera drones.

There’s really no fun in using the camera drones if you can’t share your films with your friends and the world.  Nobody will want to watch your videos unless they have that special sizzle. 

Drone photography has opened a new world that often can’t even be captured safely with conventional helicopters or fixed wing aircraft.  

The safety record of the camera drones is still unblemished but for a few careless owner/operators that have put their hand or fingers into the moving propellers.  For these people putting Band-Aids in their flight box may be a good idea. 

Crashes into trees, buildings or other fixed objects are inevitable but most of the time the drone survives with little or no damage.  A broken propeller or two are easily replaced.  

A pretty nice consumer drone with camera will cost between $1,200 and $3,000 but is worth every penny. 

The lucrative camera drone manufacturing industry is becoming fiercely competitive meaning the quality improves as the prices are dropping. 

An accomplished camera/drone operator can expect to see real career possibilities in many areas of business.  Filmmaking, TV news, Surveying and Mapping businesses will all need drone/camera operators.

Back to the idea of giving one of these gee wiz gizmos to you kid.  A starter drone may be the best idea.  If your child is really motivated, responsible and capable of handing the learning curve the real deal camera drone might just become the gift of a lifetime.  

Anyone getting a drone should learn to fly with an already accomplished drone operator.  Trying to learn alone is a terrible idea.  There are RC or remote control flying fields everywhere and there are folks there, flying that are only too willing to teach you some basics. 

Camera drone schools are also beginning to surface and that’s yet another professional opportunity. 

The drones are here to stay simply because they are both needed and wanted.  Now I want Santa Claus to put an advanced professional drone under my own tree this year!
My Number One Drone:

 Sunset and PCH L.A. video

Westlake Villiage, CA:

Breaking News! FAA Ban on Commercial Use of Quadcopters was Shot Down by a federal Court!

Los Angeles, CA—Yes, I’m still in mourning over the loss of my new Blade 350 quadcopter and it’s GoPro 3+ camera payload.  Sadly this magnificent machine disappeared somewhere around the 405 Freeway and Wilshire Blvd.

I will now be getting a replacement sooner than I anticipated!  The current FAA regulation precluding commercial use has been overturned in a Denver Courtroom.  I’m suddenly free to use a drone for investigation or newsgathering video right now! 

On or about October 17, 2011 Raphael Pirker of Zurich, Switzerland was commercially operating a drone also known as an Unmanned Aircraft System over the University of Virginia. He was paid to gather video by a communications company.

Pirker was also accused of flying the UAS at extremely low altitudes.  The FAA claimed he operated his drone recklessly.  Accordingly the FAA issued a civil penalty of $10,000.00 against Pirker ruling that FAA did not follow law when they promulgated the UAS regulations. 

In Denver, CO on March 6^th 2014 Federal Judge Patrick G. Geraghty reversed the FAA’s action against Pirker and that nasty fine.  The judge ruled that the FAA has no authority over small unmanned aircraft. 

The FAA quickly announced that they intend to appeal the judge’s decision.  That may well take years to litigate.

In the mean time the FAA has been grappling with some form of regulation of the UAS drones.  That may be difficult since thousands of these drones are in the hands of juveniles all over America.  I say, LET FREEDOM RING! 

If you need aerial photographs or video I will now be at your service! 

The decision is below:

  Pirk Er DHuerta vs. Pikerecision

The Sad Ending of My Quadcopter Drone Spycam

Los Angeles, CA—I thought I learned how to fly my new Blade 350 quadcopter very well.  It was now time to shoot some cool video over the trendy UCLA neighborhood of Westwood while I was in town.  I wanted video of the old movie houses and such from not so high above. 

I carefully placed and set up a brand new GoPro 3+ camera on the gimbal and sent the drone all over the area for nearly 10 minutes.  I landed it perfectly and changed the battery sending it up to the Western sky.   I sent it up really high and unfortunately this time directly into the sun. 

I was completely blinded and I maneuvered the control to the North.  However I completely lost sight of it and the advertised return home feature failed miserably.  It simply vanished from view.

The little drone should have flown until the battery discharged and the thing would have slowly descended until it made a soft landing, but where?  I don’t have a clue!  A rooftop?  The VA Cemetery?  Did it land on busy nearby street or sidewalk?  Is it somehow on the roof of the FBI building?

To me this major mystery is nearly as important as the 1937 disappearance of Amelia Earhart her navigator Fred Noonan along with their Electra plane somewhere not far from Howland Island.  

I did not place identification or a phone number on it so it is lost forever.  The camera and the 64 gigabyte SD Ram card long with the drone cost well over $400.00 and the device itself $650.00.  Then there are the tools and accessories I bought that will now remain idle. 

More that anything I want the contents of the GoPro’s SD Ram card. 

Oh well it was fun while it lasted! I am incredibly sad right now. 

Update:

I began to analyze what went wrong and how I should have handled the emergency mid flight.   In retrospect I should have been able to avoid the panic and loss of the aircraft.

First and foremost, when the sun blinded me, I should have simply let go of the controls and it would have hovered in place.   I would have had at least five minutes to think up options. 

I could have moved the thing a bit to the right or left and let go of the controls again until I could get a visual on it.  Then I could have finished my flight without the drama and heartache. 

The cause of this air disaster was pure and simple pilot error.  Inexperience and over-confidence is a killer! 

   

   

The Crimefile News Spy Drone is Operational!

Van Nuys, CA—Today history was made!  I flew my Blade 350 quadcopter with a GoPro Hero 3+ camera.  The bad news is the area where I shot the video was boring.  I pepped it up for you with Gwen Stefani’s, Real Thing.

I made every maneuver and angle I could which helps me determine the best angles to shoot from.   All I need now is the right subject or action to capture. 

The idea is to find something to focus into or follow with smooth action. 

A New Toy For Private Eyes, filmmakers and TV News Producers--The Blade 350 QX

Blade 350 QX  Quad-Copter with a GoPro Camera Mounted 

Los Angeles, CA—As a PI, TV news producer and filmmaker I’m always looking for new, quick and effective ways of quality image and video making. 

Arial shots were always expensive because rotor or fixed wing aircraft was necessarily involved.  You got a one-time look for a lot of cash. 

Satellite imagery was available but not on the Internet.  You had to buy expensive and often incomplete stock images from NASA. 

The first game changer was Google earth that provided great images from most areas of dry land in the world.  The photo resolution was kind of so-so and the images are not regularly updated.

Now there is the latest Gee Wiz video-making device ever!   It’s the Blade 350 QX offered by B&H PHOTO 1-800-221-5743 when combined with the popular GoPro cameras is amazing .  They are those new and rather small, easy to operate Quad-Copters that are battery powered and operated by remote control.

The little drone can be driven to any location and deployed in the air within a minute.  It will fly 1000 feet high or higher than our tallest buildings and as much as a mile in any direction.  The very quiet little GoPro camera can shoot a series of high-resolution still photos or 1080p high definition video.

The GoPro can transmit video on a several second delay to an iPad or iPhone so the operator can see just what he’s captured.  Currently the devices are limited by battery to 10 minutes flying time.  However keeping several extra charged batteries on hand could extend that time.

The video can be imported and edited on all current software programs with ease.  

For tiny budget filmmakers this is a dream come true.  You can get those breathtaking aerial shots without breaking the bank. 

For TV news organizations this is an incredible tool.   The operator can simply drive near any crime, fire or accident scene and from blocks away from the dreaded yellow tape safely capture the action unobtrusively from 25 or 75 meters above. 

For the smaller TV markets with limited budgets helicopters are out of the question.  With the Quad-Copter cameras they can now do what was formerly impossible. 

For private eyes the possibilities are endless.  For search and rescue work difficult to inspect areas are a snap for this equipment.

Then there are roofers, real estate sales people and others that would benefit from the use of a Quad-Copter Camera.   The need for repetitive and dangerous ladder climbs has all but ended.

The legality of this device and its uses are under review by the FAA.  Currently there are no discernible restrictions for use by hobbyists. 

These wonderful machines will be flying off store shelves later this month.  They are being marketed by B&H PHOTO www.bhphotovideo.com  The price to obtain this machine is $469.99.

The GoPro Hero3 Black edition camera runs an additional $400.00 and they are available at www.gopro.com or thousands of retailers like Target.

I sent out a nationwide dragnet to get one of these machines for evaluation and review and can't wait to show my visitors this thing in action. Let's hope I can beat the target delivery date with some videos.  

Below are some videos that show this marvelous machine in action: